Stuxnet was the malware that disrupted Iranian nuclear centrifuges at the Natanz enrichment facility.
Discovered in 2010, Stuxnet was an unusually sophisticated computer worm designed to affect industrial control systems. It targeted Siemens Step7 software and programmable logic controllers used to control machinery. The malware altered centrifuge operations while attempting to make the systems appear to be functioning normally.
Security researchers concluded that Stuxnet’s design was highly specialized. It used several previously unknown Windows vulnerabilities and spread through removable media and other routes, helping it reach networks that were not directly connected to the public Internet.
Stuxnet is frequently described as the first known cyberweapon to cause physical damage in the real world. Reports commonly link it to damage involving Iranian uranium-enrichment centrifuges, although the governments believed to have supported its development did not publicly accept responsibility at the time.