COURT DOC: Computer Hacking Conspiracy Charges Unsealed Against Members of Syrian Electronic Army

Three Syrian nationals, all current or former members of the Syrian Electronic Army (SEA), were charged with multiple conspiracies related to computer hacking, according to two criminal complaints unsealed today in the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Virginia.

Ahmad Umar Agha, 22, known online as ‘The Pro,’ and Firas Dardar, 27, known online as ‘The Shadow,’ were charged with a criminal conspiracy relating to: engaging in a hoax regarding a terrorist attack; attempting to cause mutiny of the U.S. armed forces; illicit possession of authentication features; access device fraud; unauthorized access to, and damage of, computers; and unlawful access to stored communications. Dardar and Peter Romar, 36, also known as Pierre Romar, were separately charged with multiple conspiracies relating to: unauthorized access to, and damage of, computers and related extortionate activities; receiving the proceeds of extortion; money laundering; wire fraud; violations of the Syrian Sanctions Regulations; and unlawful interstate communications. The court has issued arrest warrants for all three defendants.

According to allegations in the first complaint, beginning in or around 2011, Agha and Dardar engaged in a multi-year criminal conspiracy under the name ‘Syrian Electronic Army’ in support of the Syrian Government and President Bashar al-Assad. The conspiracy was dedicated to spear-phishing and compromising the computer systems of the U.S. government, as well as international organizations, media organizations and other private-sector entities that the SEA deemed as having been antagonistic toward the Syrian Government. When the conspiracys spear-phishing efforts were successful, Agha and Dardar would allegedly use stolen usernames and passwords to deface websites, redirect domains to sites controlled or utilized by the conspiracy, steal email and hijack social media accounts. For example, starting in 2011, the conspirators repeatedly targeted computer systems and employees of the Executive Office of the President (EOP). Despite these efforts, at no time was an EOP account or computer system successfully compromised. Additionally, in April 2013, a member of the conspiracy compromised the Twitter account of a prominent media organization and released a tweet claiming that a bomb had exploded at the White House and injured the President. In a later 2013 intrusion, through a third-party vendor, the conspirators gained control over a recruiting website for the U.S. Marine Corps and posted a defacement encouraging U.S. marines to ‘refuse [their] orders.’

According to allegations in the second complaint, beginning in or around 2013, SEA members Dardar and Romar engaged in multiple conspiracies dedicated to an extortion scheme that involved hacking online businesses in the United States and elsewhere for personal profit. Specifically, the complaint alleges that the conspiracy would gain unauthorized access to the victims computers and then threaten to damage computers, delete data or sell stolen data unless the victims provided extortion payments to Dardar and/or Romar. In at least one instance, Dardar attempted to use his affiliation with the SEA to instill fear into his victim. If a victim could not make extortion payments to the conspiracys Syrian bank accounts due to the Syrian Sanctions Regulations or other international sanctions regulations, Romar would act as an intermediary in an attempt to evade those sanctions. (Source: U.S. Department of Justice)