Hacker group ShinyHunters says it stole sensitive records tied to nearly every FBI job applicant and posted a PSA on the bureau's recruitment site on Sept. 22. The group says the action was retaliation for "substantial false allegations" in a May report and demanded the bureau correct or remove specific passages within one week. The FBI says the breach point is undetermined and that investigators are working with third-party providers to contain the risk.
ShinyHunters Claim They Stole Nearly All FBI Job Applicants' Data, Demand Corrections to May Report
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On Tuesday, Sept. 22, a hacker group calling itself ShinyHunters posted a public service announcement on the FBI’s recruitment site claiming to have obtained sensitive records for nearly every person who has applied for an FBI job.
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The message named Director Kash Patel and Assistant Director Brett Leatherman and said the intrusion was prompted by what the group described as "substantial false allegations" in a May report. ShinyHunters said the action was intended to force the bureau to correct those allegations and to ensure the group's response would be acknowledged.
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"For us to properly address and correct these unfounded allegations, we were compelled to adopt a forceful and assertive posture to ensure our response was fully acknowledged. This PSA today does just that," the group wrote.
Before posting the PSA, ShinyHunters defaced the FBI Jobs page with a claim that "All FBI data was compromised including sensitive PII/PHI on incumbent and former FBI employees and all applicant information. We have a lot more than what we claim here. Thank you for your attention to this matter." The group explicitly referenced both personally identifiable information (PII) and protected health information (PHI).
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ShinyHunters gave the FBI one week to "correct or simply REMOVE" specific passages of the May report that allegedly accused the group of harassing victims with threatening phone calls or text messages and of making real or exaggerated claims to obtain payment.
The FBI responded through a spokeswoman, saying the point of breach remained undetermined — whether a third party or the FBI enterprise itself — and that investigators are "actively and aggressively" probing the incident while working closely with third-party providers that support FBIJobs.gov to mitigate risk. The bureau's statement was reported by The New York Times.
Current Status and Risks
At this time, the claims by ShinyHunters have not been independently verified in public reporting. If confirmed, the exposure of PII and PHI for applicants and current or former employees could carry significant privacy and security consequences. Federal investigators and vendor partners are continuing their review.
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