Technology Slice Blog

Israel Computer Worm Tested - Israel has tested a computer worm aimed at knocking out Iran's nuclear centrifuges, and it seems to have worked, according to a published report. The New York Times reported on Sunday that the Stuxnet worm shut down a fifth of Iran's nuclear centrifuges in November. The newspaper said testing of the worm has been taking place for the past two years at a heavily guarded secret nuclear plant at Dimona in the Negev Desert. There has been no official response from Israel to the story. Experts interviewed by the newspaper said the Stuxnet worm caused the Iranian centrifuges to spin wildly out of control. They estimated 20 per cent of them have self-destructed. The worm also reportedly has another feature: to help avoid detection it creates a "situation normal" screen for the computer it has taken over, while it is, in fact, busy destroying the centrifuges. The New York Times cited unidentified American intelligence experts, includ...