A bureau spokesperson confirmed the hack to PEOPLE; Patel boasted of seizing the hacker group's websites last week
Credit: Kevin Dietsch/Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- The FBI confirmed on Friday, March 27, that director Kash Patel’s personal email was hacked by a group of hacktivists linked to Iran
- The group shared photos of a seemingly younger Patel standing by a convertible, sniffing and smoking cigars, making a funny face in the mirror and standing next to a statue of Ernest Hemingway in Havana, Cuba
- Patel boasted of seizing the hacker group’s websites last week
FBI director Kash Patel’s personal email was hacked by a group of hacktivists linked to Iran, the FBI confirmed on Friday, March 27.
A bureau spokesperson confirmed the hack after several news outlets began to report that Patel’s personal information and old photos were being posted by the group, the Handala Hack Team, on its website. The FBI claimed “the information in question is historical in nature and involves no government information.”
“The FBI is aware of malicious actors targeting Director Patel’s personal email information, and we have taken all necessary steps to mitigate potential risks associated with this activity,” the FBI said in an emailed statement to PEOPLE.
It continued, reading, “The Department of State's Rewards for Justice program offers up to a $10 million reward for information leading to the identification of the Handala Hack Team out of Iran — a group that has frequently targeted U.S. government officials.”
On an archived version of the Handala Hack Team’s website viewed by PEOPLE, the group shared photos of a seemingly younger Patel, which the hackers claimed to have acquired from his email. The photos include Patel standing by a convertible, sniffing and smoking cigars, making a funny face in the mirror and standing next to a statue of Ernest Hemingway in Havana, Cuba.
The hackers also posted a document they claim to be Patel’s resume while he worked at the Pentagon during President Donald Trump’s first term.
“Kash Patel, the current head of the FBI, who once saw his name displayed with pride on the agency’s headquarters, will now find his name among the list of successfully hacked victims,” the group wrote. “The so-called ‘impenetrable’ systems of the FBI were brought to their knees within hours by our team. All personal and confidential information of Kash Patel, including emails, conversations, documents, and even classified files, is now available for public download.”
“This is the security that the U.S. government boasts about?! This is the cyber giant that thinks threats and bribes can silence the voice of resistance?!” the group continued. “To the whole world, we declare: the FBI is just a name, and behind this name, there is no real security. If your director can be compromised this easily, what do you expect from your lower-level employees?”
The group dedicated the hack to “the martyrs of the Dena destroyer,” an Iranian warship sunk by the U.S. military in the Indian Ocean earlier this month after it had participated in naval exercises with India. Dozens were killed and dozens more were rescued by Sri Lanka’s navy.
Iran’s government claimed the ship was unarmed, but the U.S. has disputed that.
Credit: Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty
Last week, the Justice Department and Patel boasted they had seized the web domains of Handala Hack Team in a victory in the “ongoing effort to disrupt hacking and transnational repression schemes conducted by” Iranian intelligence.
"Iran thought they could hide behind fake websites and keyboard threats to terrorize Americans and silence dissidents,” Patel said in a statement on March 19. “We took down four of their operation's pillars and we're not done. This FBI will hunt down every actor behind these cowardly death threats and cyberattacks and will bring the full force of American law enforcement down on them.”
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The group cited the domain seizure in its post about hacking Patel on Friday.
“Today, once again, the world witnessed the collapse of America’s so-called security legends,” the group wrote. “While the FBI proudly seized our domains and immediately announced a $10 million reward for the heads of Handala Hack members, we decided to respond to this ridiculous show in a way that will be remembered forever.”
Thousands have died in Iran and throughout the Middle East since the U.S. and Israel began their latest rounds of bombing in late February. At least 13 U.S. service members have been killed during the fighting so far.
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