Newly Deciphered Sabotage Malware May Have Targeted Iran’s Nuclear Program—and Predates Stuxnet

SentinelOne researchers say the 21-year-old malware Fast16 was likely built to quietly sabotage high-precision engineering and simulation software.

Reverse engineering suggests it could spread across networks and subtly alter calculations without being noticed.

The team thinks Fast16 dates to 2005 and may have been created by the US or an ally, possibly targeting software tied to Iran's nuclear research.

If confirmed, it would point to cyber sabotage efforts against Iran before Stuxnet and show how malware can corrupt scientific results with real-world impact.