Page 7 - Fbi

Chinese hackers determined to 'wreak havoc' on US infrastructure: FBI chief

Chinese government hackers are busily targeting water treatment plants, the electrical grid, transportation systems and other critical infrastructure inside the United States, FBI Director Chris Wray told House lawmakers Wednesday in a fresh warning from Washington about Beijing's global ambitions. Underscoring the threat, the Justice Department and FBI announced just before the hearing that they had disrupted a botnet of hundreds of US-based small office and home routers owned by private citizens and companies and hijacked by the Chinese state hackers to cover their tracks and hide their origin as they sowed the malware. Speaking before the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, Wray said there's been far too little public focus on a cyber threat that affects every American". China's hackers are positioning on American infrastructure in preparation to wreak havoc and cause real-world harm to American citizens and communities, if or when China decides the time has co

Chinese hackers determined to wreak havoc on US critical infra: FBI

Chinese government hackers are busily targeting water treatment plants, the electrical grid, transportation systems and other critical infrastructure inside the United States, FBI Director Chris Wray will tell House lawmakers on Wednesday in a fresh warning from Washington about Beijing's global ambitions. Wray will say that that there's been far too little public focus on a cyber threat that affects every American, according to a copy of prepared remarks that he is to give before the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. China's hackers are positioning on American infrastructure in preparation to wreak havoc and cause real-world harm to American citizens and communities, if or when China decides the time has come to strike, Wray will say. The comments align with assessments from outside cybersecurity firms including Microsoft, which said in May that state-backed Chinese hackers have been targeting US critical infrastructure and could be laying the technical ...

FBI arrests 3 in Florida on assault charges in Jan 6 insurrection

The FBI arrested three Florida residents on Saturday, the third anniversary of their alleged attack on Capitol police officers during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. Jonathan D. Pollock, 24; his sister, Olivia M. Pollock, 33; and Joseph D. Hutchinson, 27, were arrested at a ranch in Groveland, Florida, and will be arraigned on Monday, the FBI said in a statement. Groveland is about 30 miles (50 kilometers) west of Orlando and about 45 miles (75 kilometers) north of their Lakeland homes. They had been indicted in April 2021. Jonathan Pollock had gone into hiding shortly after the attack. His sister and Hutchinson had been arrested in June 2021 and released on bond, but fled shortly before they were set to go on trial in Washington, D.C., last March. According to a 53-page indictment, Jonathan Pollock and Hutchinson are on video recordings repeatedly punching officers during the riots. Pollock is also alleged to have grabbed riot shields from officers, and he and Hutchinson are accuse

CBI, FBI discuss greater collab in tackling cybercrime, sharing evidence

FBI Director Christopher Wray met CBI Director Praveen Sood here on Monday where they discussed among things greater cooperation in cyber-related financial crimes and sharing of evidence in bringing criminals and fugitives to face justice, officials said. In an hour-long meeting that started with the arrival of Wray and other US officials at the agency headquarters around 02.00 pm, the two sides recognised the challenges posed by organized crime networks, cyber-enabled financial crimes, ransomware threats, economic crimes and transnational crimes. It was also decided that training academies of both the investigation agencies will share best practices with each other, a CBI spokesperson said in a statement. Wray arrived in the national capital on Sunday evening for a two-day visit during which he is also scheduled to meet top officials of Indian security and law-enforcement establishments, the official said. The meeting between Wray and Sood focused on "strengthening exchange of ...

NIA may take up Khalistani terrorist Pannun issue during FBI chief's visit

It is expected that Wray will meet officials of both the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as well as NIA here in the national capital during his India visit, said sources

FBI seizes NY Mayor Eric Adams' electronic devices in criminal inquiry

A lawyer for Adams and his campaign said in a statement that the mayor was cooperating with federal authorities and had already "proactively reported" at least one instance of improper behaviour

Biden admin elevated hate crimes to national threat priority: FBI Director

The Biden Administration has elevated hate crimes to a national threat priority, a top US Government official has told lawmakers, stressing that the Jewish community faces nearly 60 per cent of all such religious-based assaults by every terrorist organisations across the spectrum. Speaking during a US Congressional hearing, FBI Director Christipher Wray told lawmakers that FBI is tackling the rise in hate crimes through a series of law enforcement efforts, including joint terrorism task forces, hate crime investigations, and intelligence sharing. "We are tackling both through investigations and outreach and intelligence sharing investigations, both through all 56 joint terrorism task forces. And on the hate crime side, we've elevated hate crimes to a national threat priority. We've done lots of outreach with the Jewish community, both nationally with organisations, he said. Wray said he has personally participated in any number of times and then each of the FBI field offices does as

FBI director warns about threats to Americans from those inspired by Hamas

FBI Director Christopher Wray warned that Hamas' rampage inside Israel could inspire violence in the US, telling lawmakers that multiple foreign extremist groups have called for attacks against Americans and the West in recent weeks. We assess that the actions of Hamas and its allies will serve as an inspiration the likes of which we haven't seen since ISIS launched its so-called caliphate years ago, Wray said, using an acronym for the Islamic State group. In his testimony before the Senate Homeland Security Committee, Wray gave his most detailed and ominous assessment of potential threats to the US since the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israeli soldiers and civilians. His reference to the Islamic State, a reminder of when the FBI scrambled to disrupt hastily developed plots of violence by people inspired by the group's ascendancy, underscores the bureau's concerns that the current Middle East conflict could create a similarly dangerous dynamic. Though the FBI isn't currently track

Won't shy to adjust security stance to protect Americans: FBI on Israel war

"We are closely coordinating with our counterparts in the region as well as other international partners," the agency added in its post

Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy proposes mass federal layoffs

Republican presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy on Wednesday laid out his ideas to shut down the FBI and fire more than one million federal workers, lining up with increasingly sweeping conservative proposals targeting the federal government and particularly law enforcement. Candidates trying to beat former President Donald Trump have responded to growing anger among GOP primary voters about the indictments against Trump as well as federal investigations and policies seen as unfairly targeting conservatives. Ramaswamy's proposals are among the broadest in the field. Speaking at the America First Policy Institute in Washington, he said he would try to reduce the federal employee headcount by half in his first year in office and by 75 per cent during his first term if he makes it to the White House. He wants to shut down five federal agencies, including the FBI and the Department of Education. He said he would also eliminate the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Bureau of Alcohol, ..

Court scales back order on Biden admin contact with social media platforms

A federal appeals court Friday significantly whittled down a lower court's order curbing Biden administration communications with social media companies over controversial content about COVID-19 and other issues. The 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans on Friday said the White House, the Surgeon General, the Centers for Disease Control and the FBI cannot coerce social media platforms to take down posts the government doesn't like. But the court threw out broader language in an order that a Louisiana-based federal judge issued on July 4 that effectively blocked multiple government agencies from contacting platforms such as Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) to urge that content be taken down. Even the appeals court's softened order doesn't take effect immediately. The administration has 10 days to seek a Supreme Court review. Friday evening's ruling came in a lawsuit filed in northeast Louisiana that accused administration officials of coercing platforms to take down conte

FBI dismantles malware system that took millions in ransom globally

US officials estimated that, since its creation in 2008, Qakbot had infected around 200,000 computers in the US and 700,000 globally

Plea negotiations could mean no 9/11 defendants face death penalty: US

The suspected architect of the September 11, 2001, attacks and his fellow defendants may never face the death penalty under plea agreements now under consideration to bring an end to their more than decadelong prosecution, the Pentagon and FBI have advised families of some of the thousands killed. The notice, made in a letter that was sent to several of the families and obtained by The Associated Press, comes 1 1/2 years after military prosecutors and defence lawyers began exploring a negotiated resolution to the case. The prosecution of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four others held at the US detention centre in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, has been troubled by repeated delays and legal disputes, especially over the legal ramifications of the interrogation under torture that the men initially underwent while in CIA custody. No trial date has been set. The Office of the Chief Prosecutor has been negotiating and is considering entering into pre-trial agreements, or PTAs, the letter said. It to

FBI Director Chris Wray defends 'real FBI' from House of Republicans

FBI Director Chris Wray defended the "real FBI during a contentious congressional hearing Wednesday, dismissing a litany of grievances from Republicans who are harshly critical of the bureau, threatening to defund some operations and claiming the Justice Department is unfair to political conservatives. Wray refused to engage in specific questions about ongoing federal investigations, including those involving former President Donald Trump and Hunter Biden. The son of President Joe Biden recently reached an agreement to plead guilty to misdemeanor federal tax charges; Republicans have derided that as a sweetheart deal. In testy exchanges with Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee, Wray rejected the GOP assertion that the bureau was favoring the Biden family and said the notion that the bureau was involved the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol was ludicrous. "The work the men and women of the FBI do to protect the American people goes way beyond one or two investigations that

FBI director set to clash with Republicans on Trump, Hunter Biden case

The director of the FBI will face some of his harshest critics in Congress on Wednesday as he testifies before a House committee that is leading several investigations into claims that the law enforcement agency unfairly targets conservatives. FBI Director Chris Wray's appearance before the House Judiciary Committee is expected to be contentious. Republicans are prepared to aggressively question the director on several fronts, including the recent indictment of former President Donald Trump, the ongoing investigation into President Joe Biden's son and the push for a new FBI headquarters. It's just the latest display of the new normal on Capitol Hill, where Republicans who have long billed themselves as the champions of police and law and order are growing deeply at odds with federal law enforcement and the FBI, accusing the bureau of bias dating back to investigations of Trump when he was president. The new dynamic has forced Democrats into a new position of defending these law ...

FBI ignored 'massive amount' of intelligence before January 6: Senate

The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security downplayed or ignored a massive amount of intelligence information ahead of the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol, according to the chairman of a Senate panel that on Tuesday released a new report on the intelligence failures ahead of the insurrection. The report details how the agencies failed to recognize and warn of the potential for violence as some of then-President Donald Trump's supporters openly planned the siege in messages and forums online. Among the multitude of intelligence that was overlooked was a December 2020 tip to the FBI that members of the far-right extremist group Proud Boys planned to be in Washington, DC, for the certification of Joe Biden's victory and their "plan is to literally kill people", the report said. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee said the agencies were also aware of many social media posts that foreshadowed violence, some calling on Trump's supporters to come

Former FBI agent, who was convicted of spying for Russia, dies in prison

A former FBI agent who took more than $1.4 million in cash and diamonds to trade secrets with Russia and the former Soviet Union in one of the most notorious spying cases in American history died in prison Monday. Robert Hanssen, 79, was found unresponsive in his cell at a federal prison in Florence, Colorado, and later pronounced dead, prison officials said. Hanssen is believed to have died of natural causes, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. The person was not authorized to publicly discuss details of Hanssen's death and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. He had been serving a sentence of life in prison without parole after pleading guilty to 15 counts of espionage and other charges in 2001. He had begun providing highly classified national security information to Moscow in 1985, and got more than $1.4 million worth of cash, bank funds and diamonds in exchange over the course of 16 years, according to an FBI history of his case. The FBI has bee

Wrote to Centre for FBI's assistance in minister's murder case: Odisha govt

The Odisha government on Saturday said it has approached the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for taking assistance from the FBI to investigate the murder of minister Naba Kishore Das. In a statement, the government said assistant sub-inspector of police Gopal Krishna Das, who allegedly shot the minister dead at a public function in January, told the investigators that he was taking medicine for mental illness. However, medical experts found him mentally fit but suggested further examination, it said. As it is a very important, sensitive and rare case, it was decided to use the best techniques and experts to help in the investigation, the statement said. In order to clearly establish that the accused has sound mental health, the Crime Branch decided to approach the Behavioural Analysis Unit of FBI, which has the best experts and equipment for such criminal investigation, it said. Accordingly, the state Home Department approached the MHA for the assistance of FBI for the help in the

9/11, crime & punishment

Caught napping on 9/11 - in part because of a turf war with the FBI - the CIA was eager to get ahead of the game and gather intelligence on a rumoured second wave of attacks

Prosecutor ends FBI's Trump-Russia investigation probe with no new charges

A special prosecutor found that the FBI rushed into its investigation of ties between Russia and Donald Trump's 2016 campaign and relied too much on raw and unconfirmed intelligence as he concluded a four-year probe that fell far short of the former president's prediction that the crime of the century" would be uncovered. The report on Monday from special counsel John Durham represents the long-awaited culmination of an investigation that Trump and allies had claimed would expose massive wrongdoing by law enforcement and intelligence officials. Instead, Durham's investigation delivered underwhelming results, with prosecutors securing a guilty plea from a little-known FBI employee but losing the only two criminal cases they took to trial. The roughly 300-page report catalogs what Durham says were a series of missteps by the FBI and Justice Department as investigators undertook a politically explosive probe in the heat of the 2016 election into whether the Trump campaign was colluding