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U.S. charges three Syrian hackers: Justice Department
Source: Reuters
World | Tue Mar 22, 2016 12:23pm EDT
U.S. charges three Syrian hackers: Justice Department
WASHINGTON | BY DUSTIN VOLZ AND MOHAMMAD ZARGHAM
U.S. authorities have charged three Syrian nationals who are current or former members of the Syrian Electronic Army with multiple conspiracies related to computer hacking, the U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday.
Ahmad Umar Agha, 22, and Firas Dardar, 27, were charged with a criminal conspiracy that included "a hoax regarding a terrorist attack" and "attempting to cause mutiny of the U.S. armed forces," the department said in a statement. Dardar and Peter Romar, 36, were separately charged with other conspiracies, including extortion and wire fraud, it said.
The FBI said on Tuesday it was adding Agha and Dardar to its Cyber Most Wanted list and offering a reward of $100,000 for information leading to their arrest, the statement said.
Agha and Dardar, who are believed to reside in Syria, began their criminal activities in or around 2011 under the name of the Syrian Electronic Army in support of the Syrian government, the statement said. Romar is believed to live in Germany.
The alleged hackers are said to have used a common and relatively unsophisticated attack known as spear phishing, in which perpetrators send deceptive emails in an effort to trick recipients into clicking on malicious links and downloading malware onto their networks.
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U.S. charges three Syrian hackers: Justice Department
WASHINGTON | BY DUSTIN VOLZ AND MOHAMMAD ZARGHAM
U.S. authorities have charged three Syrian nationals who are current or former members of the Syrian Electronic Army with multiple conspiracies related to computer hacking, the U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday.
Ahmad Umar Agha, 22, and Firas Dardar, 27, were charged with a criminal conspiracy that included "a hoax regarding a terrorist attack" and "attempting to cause mutiny of the U.S. armed forces," the department said in a statement. Dardar and Peter Romar, 36, were separately charged with other conspiracies, including extortion and wire fraud, it said.
The FBI said on Tuesday it was adding Agha and Dardar to its Cyber Most Wanted list and offering a reward of $100,000 for information leading to their arrest, the statement said.
Agha and Dardar, who are believed to reside in Syria, began their criminal activities in or around 2011 under the name of the Syrian Electronic Army in support of the Syrian government, the statement said. Romar is believed to live in Germany.
The alleged hackers are said to have used a common and relatively unsophisticated attack known as spear phishing, in which perpetrators send deceptive emails in an effort to trick recipients into clicking on malicious links and downloading malware onto their networks.
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-usa-cyber-idUSKCN0WO2AO