Israeli cybersecurity firms ClearSky and Profero claim to have stopped an Iranian cyberattack in September termed "Operation Quicksand." The firms described the targets as "prominent Israeli organizations." According to a report by the firms, an Iranian group dubbed "MuddyWater" that has contracted for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) sent malware to Israeli organizations in an effort to cause damage rather than steal data. The report noted that the hackers in the September attack employed techniques similar to those used during other cyberattacks in the Middle East, including a 2012 attack on Saudi Arabia attributed to Iran. According to a database maintained by a German research institute, MuddyWater, also known as Static Kitten, has been known to focus on espionage and state-level attacks.