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RPT: Iran-backed group hacks Patel's email
According to Reuters, an Iran-backed group hacked FBI Directors Kash Patel's personal email. According to Reuters, the hackers accessed his resume.
Hackers linked to a group in Iran claimed on Friday it had breached FBI Director Kash Patel’s email and published photographs and documents to the internet.
The group, Handala Hack Team, shared on its website that Patel’s name was now "among the list of successfully hacked victims," according to a Reuters report.
FILE - Kash Patel, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), during a House Intelligence Committee hearing on worldwide threats in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, March 19, 2026. (Photographer: Daniel Heuer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The message was accompanied by more than a half dozen photos of Patel, including ones of him standing beside an antique sports car and another with a cigar in his mouth. The group also said that it was making available for download emails and other documents from Patel's account. Many of the records appeared to relate to his personal travels and business from more than 10 years ago.
Handala’s cyberattacks
Dig deeper:
Handala, which calls itself a group of pro-Palestinian vigilante hackers, claimed credit for a previous disruption at Stryker earlier this month.
The Michigan-based medical technology company shared on March 11 its global networks were disrupted.
Stryker makes a variety of medical products, from artificial joints to hospital beds. It had revenue of more than $25 billion in 2025. The company says it has 56,000 employees around the world.
Handala stated the hack was in retaliation for suspected U.S. strikes that killed Iranian schoolchildren.
Cyberattacks on the rise since Iran war began
Big picture view:
Since the war in Iran began on Feb. 28, global cyberattacks have been on the rise.
In addition to this month, Handala claimed to have targeted data centers in the region, as well as industrial facilities in Israel, a school in Saudi Arabia and an airport in Kuwait.
Polish authorities were investigating a cyberattack on a nuclear research facility that may have ties to Iran, though they acknowledged that another group could be behind the attack and used the Iran war to mask its identity.
The Justice Department singled out Handala in an announcement last week in which it said it had seized four web domains tied to Iranian hacking schemes and the threatening of dissidents.
Going forward, U.S. defense contractors, government vendors and businesses that work with Israel are likely targets, as is critical infrastructure such as hospitals, ports, water plants, power stations and railways.
The Source: Information for this article was taken from a Reuters report, previous reporting from The Associated Press and LiveNOW from FOX. This story was reported from San Jose.