Daijiworld Media Network - Washington

Washington, Mar 27: Iran-linked hackers have claimed to have breached the personal inbox of Kash Patel, publishing photographs and documents online, according to a report by Reuters.

The hacker group, identifying itself as Handala Hack Team, said on its website that Patel “will now find his name among the list of successfully hacked victims.” A US Justice Department official confirmed that Patel’s email had been compromised and that the material released appears to be authentic.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has not issued an official response so far, while the hackers have also not replied to media queries.

Handala, which describes itself as a pro-Palestinian vigilante hacking group, is believed by Western cybersecurity researchers to be linked to Iranian cyber intelligence units.

The group had earlier claimed responsibility for a cyberattack on Stryker on March 11, alleging that it had deleted a large volume of company data.

However, reports noted that the Gmail address allegedly accessed matches one previously associated with Patel in earlier breaches documented by District 4 Labs, a dark web intelligence firm.

Samples of the leaked material reportedly include a mix of personal and professional correspondence dating between 2010 and 2019.