Group of bipartisan lawmakers ask US government to ban several hack-for-hire firms
Bipartisan US lawmakers urged the Commerce Department to add hack-for-hire firms BellTroX, CyberRoot, and Appin/Sunkissed Organic Farms to the entity list.
Senators Ron Wyden and Sheldon Whitehouse and Representative Pat Harrigan asked Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to place three Indian firms on the entity list, which would bar US businesses from transacting with them. The letter says BellTroX, CyberRoot, and Sunkissed Organic Farms (formerly Appin) have conducted cyberattacks and targeted espionage against Americans for over a decade, allegedly at the behest of the Qatari government, and used foreign courts to censor reporting on their activities. Appin previously secured a global takedown order against Reuters that was later lifted, and has been linked to hacks of FIFA officials tied to Qatar's 2022 World Cup plans.
- Entity-listing would restrict firms' access to software licenses and cloud infrastructure
- Firms accused of stealing data from thousands of Americans to manipulate litigation
- Lawmakers call it an aggressive censorship campaign using foreign courts against US media
- Appin was previously linked to cyberattacks against FIFA officials directed by Qatar
From the original article
3 min read at techcrunch.com
The three Indian companies are accused of using hackers to steal information used to sway litigation.
By Zack Whittaker · techcrunch.com
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