US Official Confirms Iran-Linked Hackers Breached FBI Director’s Emails, Published What They Found
- Iran-linked hackers have claimed they breached the personal inbox of FBI Director Kash Patel
- The group, Handala Hack Team, published photographs and documents online, saying Patel is now among their victims
- A Justice Department official confirmed the breach, noting the leaked material appeared authentic
Iran-linked hackers have claimed responsibility for breaching the personal inbox of FBI Director Kash Patel.
The group, known as Handala Hack Team, published photographs of Patel alongside documents online.
Source: Getty Images
On their website, the hackers declared that Patel "will now find his name among the list of successfully hacked victims."
Justice Department confirms breach
Accordign to CNBC, a Justice Department official confirmed that Patel’s email had indeed been compromised. The official added that the material released online appeared authentic.
The FBI has not yet issued a comment, and the hackers themselves did not respond to messages.
Who are Handala hackers?
Handala describes itself as a pro-Palestinian vigilante group. However, Western researchers believe it is one of several personas used by Iranian government cyberintelligence units.
The group has been linked to previous attacks, including a claim on March 11 that it hacked Michigan-based medical devices provider Stryker SYK.N, allegedly deleting large amounts of company data.
Authenticity of Patel emails
Reuters reported that it was unable to independently verify the authenticity of Patel’s emails. However, the Gmail address targeted by Handala matches one previously associated with Patel in past breaches tracked by dark web intelligence firm District 4 Labs.
A sample of the leaked material reviewed by Reuters appears to include both personal and work-related correspondence dating between 2010 and 2019.
This incident highlights the growing threat posed by state-linked hacker groups. With sensitive personal and professional information exposed, the breach underscores the vulnerability of even high-ranking officials to cyberattacks.
See more on what was found and screenshot here.
Who is Kash Patel?
Kash Patel is an American lawyer and government official who became Director of the FBI on February 20, 2025, under President Donald Trump. He studied criminal justice and history at the University of Richmond before earning a law degree in New York and completing a certificate in international law at University College London.
Patel began his career as a public defender in Florida in 2005, later serving as a national security prosecutor at the Department of Justice, where he handled terrorism cases against al-Qaida and ISIS. He went on to hold senior roles at the Department of Defense and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence before his appointment as FBI Director.
Source: Getty Images
US military airplane crashes amid ongoing war
Legit.ng earlier reported that a US Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker, a refuelling aircraft, crashed in western Iraq on March 12, according to the US military. Officials confirmed that the incident was “not due to hostile fire or friendly fire” but involved a second US tanker.
At least five crew members were aboard the aircraft when it went down, a US official told CNN. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said rescue efforts were ongoing but did not confirm whether any service members had been injured or killed.
Source: Legit.ng
