Cyber Operations Tracker
Archived: 2026-04-05 18:29:01 UTC
Affiliations
Also known as Cutting Kitten and Group 41
This threat actor targets governments and private sector entities for espionage and sabotage purposes. It is
believed to be responsible for compromising U.S. Navy computers at the Navy Marine Corps Intranet in San
Diego, the U.S. energy company Calpine Corporation, Saudi Aramco, Pemex, Qatar Airways, and Korean Air
(http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/12/02/us-cybersecurity-iran-idUSKCN0JG18I20141202)
Canada, China, United Kingdom, France, Germany, India, Israel, United States, Kuwait, Mexico, Pakistan,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey
Suspected state sponsor
Iran (Islamic Republic of)
Type of incident
Espionage
Target category
Government
Private sector
Victim government reaction
Unknown
Suspected state sponsor response
Denial
Read more
https://www.cfr.org/cyber-operations/operation-cleaver
Page 1 of 4

Operation Cleaver
https://www.cfr.org/cyber-operations/operation-cleaver
Page 2 of 4

Whois Clever Kitten
https://www.cfr.org/cyber-operations/operation-cleaver
Page 3 of 4

Hacker Group Creates Network of Fake LinkedIn Profiles
Source: https://www.cfr.org/cyber-operations/operation-cleaver
https://www.cfr.org/cyber-operations/operation-cleaver
Page 4 of 4