3 former US officials charged in UAE hacking scheme

By ERIC TUCKER and ALAN SUDERMAN
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Three former U.S. intelligence and military operatives have admitted providing sophisticated hacking technology to the United Arab Emirates and agreed to pay nearly $1.7 million to resolve criminal charges. It is an agreement that the Justice Department describes as the first of its kind. A charging document in federal court in Washington accuses them of helping develop “advanced covert hacking systems for U.A.E. government agencies.” It says they used stolen credentials to access personal and private information from computers, including from companies in the United States. The Justice Department called the defendants “hackers-for-hire” and identified them as Marc Baier, Ryan Adams and Daniel Gericke.