Dutch authorities have arrested a 24-year-old man suspected of links to the cybercrime group ShinyHunters, as investigators examine the group’s claim that it accessed sensitive information involving around 38,000 FBI employees.
The Amsterdam resident was arrested on September 15, Dutch police said. The arrest took place before ShinyHunters later claimed on September 21 that it had breached FBI systems.
Police said the suspect is accused of involvement with the cybercrime group as well as attempting to encourage 2 murders abroad. Investigators seized his electronic devices and found a large amount of information on his laptop, including details connected to 2 alleged planned killings. Authorities suspect he may have been involved in arranging the murders.
The suspect has remained in custody since his arrest, while Dutch authorities have not ruled out additional arrests.
The official leading cybercrime investigations in the Netherlands said ShinyHunters has been linked to a large number of victims in the country and abroad. He described the arrest as an important development in the investigation.
FBI Director Kash Patel thanked Dutch authorities for their cooperation, saying FBI teams were working with international partners to pursue additional leads emerging from the arrest.
Brett Leatherman, assistant director of FBI Cyber, also urged other suspected ShinyHunters members to surrender. He said investigators can gather more information about their activities and identities the longer they remain involved in cybercrime.
ShinyHunters claimed it breached FBI servers on September 21 and began sharing samples and screenshots of allegedly stolen information the following day. The group claims the data includes employee names, roles, badge numbers, home addresses and phone numbers. A small portion of the material reviewed so far appeared to be genuine, but the full extent of the alleged breach has not been independently confirmed.
The group said it exploited a vulnerability in an Oracle cloud storage system used by the FBI to access multiple systems, allegedly including FBIJOBS, FBI BEAST, FBI MedLink and FBI BICS. These systems are associated with areas including recruitment, background checks, medical information and investigations.
ShinyHunters also claimed the attack was not financially motivated and demanded that the FBI withdraw a May security advisory describing the group as a cybercrime operation. The advisory said the group often uses real or exaggerated claims of access to sensitive information to pressure victims into paying.
Authorities are now examining ShinyHunters’ wider network, the possible involvement of other members and what information, if any, was actually compromised in the alleged FBI breach.
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