Charges

Michigan attorney general charges right-wing political operatives with intimidating voters through robocalls

By Gertha Selvidge 1 week ago

Two notorious right-wing political operatives were charged Thursday for allegedly running a voter suppression operation targeting voters in Michigan, according to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.



a book sitting on top of a table

© David Ryder/Getty Images


The operatives, Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman, are accused of orchestrating a series of robocalls aimed at deterring Detroit residents from voting by mail. They are each charged with one count of intimidating voters, one count of conspiracy to commit an election law violation, one count of using a computer to commit the crime of intimidating voters and using a computer to commit the crime of conspiracy. The first two charges each carry a maximum of five years in prison and the latter two charges carry a maximum of seven years in prison.

“Any effort to interfere with, intimidate or intentionally mislead Michigan voters will be met with swift and severe consequences,” Nessel, a Democrat, said in a news

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Justice Dept. to announce charges for Chinese government-linked ‘computer intrusion campaign’

By Gertha Selvidge 2 weeks ago

The Justice Department plans to announce Wednesday charges involving a “computer intrusion campaign” tied to the Chinese government.

Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen, FBI Deputy Director David Bowdich and other officials will take part in a news conference at 11 a.m. ET to make the announcement, a DOJ statement obtained by Reuters said. 

Last month, White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien said that Chinese government-linked hackers have been targeting U.S. election infrastructure before the November election. China has denied claims that it hacked U.S. government agencies.

CHINESE FIRM COLLECTS DATA OF US LEADERS, MILITARY 

In July, U.S. security officials tracking Chinese hacking revealed that hackers backed by the Chinese government attempted to steal coronavirus vaccination data from U.S.-based biotech company, Moderna Inc.

China pushed back on this accusation and said, “Such allegations are pure slander.”

The week before, the DOJ indicted two Chinese nationals working for Chinese intelligence agency 

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U.S. charges seven in wide-ranging Chinese hacking effort

By Gertha Selvidge 3 weeks ago

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Justice Department said on Wednesday it has charged five Chinese residents and two Malaysian businessmen in a wide-ranging hacking effort that encompassed targets from videogames to pro-democracy activists.

FILE PHOTO: Chinese and U.S. flags flutter near The Bund, before U.S. trade delegation meet their Chinese counterparts for talks in Shanghai, China July 30, 2019. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo

Federal prosecutors said the Chinese nationals had been charged with hacking more than 100 companies in the United States and abroad, including software development companies, computer manufacturers, telecommunications providers, social media companies, gaming firms, nonprofits, universities, think-tanks as well as foreign governments and politicians and civil society figures in Hong Kong.

U.S. officials stopped short of alleging the hackers were working on behalf of Beijing, but in a statement Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen expressed exasperation with Chinese authorities, saying they were – at the very least –

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Justice Department Charges 5 Chinese Nationals with Hacking More than 100 Companies

By Gertha Selvidge 3 weeks ago

The Justice Department continued its pressure campaign on hackers connected to China Wednesday, charging five Chinese citizens with various computer crimes against more than 100 companies in the United States and abroad.

According to unsealed indictments, the five defendants—who remain fugitives in China—are members of the hacking group “APT41,” which compromised networks belonging to software development companies, hardware manufacturers, video game companies, non-profits, think-tanks, foreign governments and pro-Democracy activists in Hong Kong.

In doing so, the Justice indictments indicate the hackers stole source code, customer account data and other valuable information in part to facilitate still more schemes, including ransomware attacks and unauthorized cryptocurrency mining.

“The Department of Justice has used every tool available to disrupt the illegal computer intrusions and cyberattacks by these Chinese citizens,” Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen said in a statement. “Regrettably, the Chinese communist party has chosen a different path of making China safe for

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