A likely Russian-speaking cybercriminal gang on Monday leaked what appear to be sensitive law enforcement files it stole from the Justice Department’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The dumped files appear to include information on targets of past ATF investigations and analyses of their phone communications, according to a review of the data by CNN and an independent cybersecurity researcher. Some of the files correspond to specific ATF agents and high-profile cases they apparently worked on.
The data cover investigations related to armed robbery, arson, explosives and homicide, according to the researcher, Ron Fabela. A chunk of the cases mentioned in the files fall under the work the ATF’s Houston Field Division, Fabela said.
In a statement on Monday, ATF said it “cannot confirm the authenticity, nature, or scope” of the leaked data at this time and that the agency was working with the Department of Justice and other federal agencies to “assess the claims and take appropriate actions.”
“As ATF previously stated, the affected system was not connected to – and the incident did not affect – ATF’s other operational systems. ATF’s ability to carry out its mission has not been impacted,” the agency’s statement continued.
