Iran’s leadership has vowed to retaliate after a U.S. drone strike killed a high-ranking Iranian general in Baghdad, and as a result, American consumers could face higher gas prices and potential cyber attacks.
DePaul University international security expert Professor Tom Mockaitis told NBC 5 that while a physical attack in the U.S. or Illinois is unlikely, people will be indirectly affected by the heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iran.
“I think the biggest concern they’re going to see is in terms in effect of oil prices, but the other thing they’re going to see is quite potentially an increase in U.S. casualties in Iraq and in the larger region,” Mockaitis said.
Patrick DeHaan of GasBuddy.com said gas prices could be impacted in the days ahead, should Iran retaliate. However, he said the U.S. has a larger supply of oil compared to several years ago, and therefore, any gas price increases may be smaller than previous instances that resulted from an international situation.
Still, defense experts are warning Americans about the potential for cyberattacks.
“It is a classic Iranian tool," said NBC News Anaylist Admiral James Stavridis. "They're very capable. Probably one of the top five nations in the world in this offensive cyber ability."
Darren Guccione, of the Chicago-based cybersecurity firm Keeper Security, said over the past two years, Iran has ramped up its cybercrime activities. Guccione said password security will be a primary attack vector and that consumers and businesses should make sure they have password security in place.
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“Every business of every size and across every industry should have a robust cybersecurity plan in place to mitigate the risk of a data breach,” Guccione said.
Keeper Security also urges consumers to be mindful of phishing emails and not to respond to or click on any emails - or links in emails - requesting them to enter or provide usernames, passwords or payment credentials.
