The CIA could have been behind a computer virus dubbed the world's first cyber 'super weapon' that attacked an Iranian nuclear plant, experts claim.
The launch of Stuxnet in 2010 marked the transformation of viruses into weapons of war.
Experts believe it was so sophisticated that it could have only been invented by designers with the backing of a nation state, with the spy arm of the U.S government being the main suspects.
It was purpose-built to attack Iran's Busehr nuclear plant, overriding and controlling circuits inside the plant to cause physical damage.
It was the first malware that could truly be described as a 'cyber-weapon'.
'With Stuxnet we have opened a new chapter in human history,' says Ralph Langner, the security expert who unravelled the attack. 'There is now no way we can stop or control the proliferation of cyber-weapons.'
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, center, visits the Natanz Uranium Enrichment Facility some 200 miles (322 kilometers) south of the capital, Tehran, Iran
'Everybody is going crazy about the offensive capabilities and opportunities it gives you,' says Ralph Langner. 'What people don't realise is how easy such attacks are'
To begin with, the sheer sophistication of the attack was what dazzled experts - it exploited four separate vulnerabilities in Windows to penetrate and override industrial control systems designed by Siemens.
It would have taken experts months to design.
But in the wake of Stuxnet, it's become clear that the weapon was almost over-designed for the job.
The Stuxnet attack on Iran's Bushehr nuclear plant - a computer 'worm' specifically written to attack industrial control systems - was proof that the software in many industrial plants was vulnerable to attack.
Since then, there has been increased interest in the idea - both from researchers, and from potential attackers. Since then, other software has 'copied' Stuxnet - raising the alarming possibility of attackers simply downloading such weapons and unleashing them at will.
Nations across the world have long warned that future wars will include cyber assaults on the industries and economies of adversaries, and the potential targets include power plants, pipelines and air traffic control systems.
