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FBI informant directed cyberattacks on Iran, Pakistan, and Syria

FBI informant directed cyberattacks on Iran, Pakistan, and Syria

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Hector Xavier Monsegur, also known as Sabu, is already infamous among Anonymous members as an FBI informant, but new documents uncovered by The New York Times suggest he may have been directing offensive actions for the government against government websites for Iran, Pakistan, and Syria. According to recently unredacted court statements, Monsegur also directed actions against the Polish Embassy in Britain and Iraq's Ministry of Electricity, well after he had been arrested and began cooperating with the FBI.

Monsegur is best known for his role in the Anonymous attack on the intelligence firm Stratfor, which resulted in a 10-year prison sentence for activist Jeremy Hammond, based largely on Monsegur's testimony. But the new documents suggest that Stratfor was far from the only target, and that Monsegur may have been recruiting Anonymous members to do the government's dirty work. It's still unclear if the actions were directed by the FBI, a separate agency, or simply part of a larger plan to catch Anonymous hackers in the act, but the court documents show Monsegur's role as much larger than previously thought. Reached by The New York Times, the FBI declined to comment.