Former Federal Contractor Convicted in Government Database Destruction
Summary
A former federal contractor was convicted of conspiring to destroy government databases after his 2025 dismissal. Prosecutors said he and his brother deleted about 96 databases, including sensitive investigative and FOIA records, and tried to conceal their actions.
Key points
- Sohaib Akhter was found guilty of conspiring to destroy dozens of government databases after he was fired in February 2025.
- Court documents say the brothers deleted roughly 96 government databases within hours, including sensitive investigative documents and Freedom of Information Act records.
- Prosecutors said the brothers accessed computers without authorization, prevented others from modifying targeted databases before deletion, and tried to destroy evidence.
- After deleting a Department of Homeland Security database, the brothers allegedly asked an AI assistant how to clear system logs; they also wiped company laptops before returning them.
- In 2016, the brothers pleaded guilty to unauthorized access to State Department systems and stealing personal information.
- Sohaib Akhter is scheduled to be sentenced on September 9, 2026; his brother Muneeb faces a maximum of 45 years on the listed charges.
Article Details
- Victim Organization
- U.S. federal government agencies; the federal contractor was not disclosed
- Incident Type
- Unauthorized access, theft of credentials and government information, and destruction of government databases
- Incident Date
- 2025-02-18
- Data Types Exposed
- Credentials
- Sensitive investigative documents
- Freedom of Information Act records
- Personal information of co-workers and a federal law enforcement agent in the separate 2016 case
- Affected Records
- Approximately 96 government databases were deleted; the article does not give a number of individual records.
- Operational Impact
- Approximately 96 government databases were deleted within several hours, affecting multiple federal agencies. The article does not report specific service outages.
- Ransom Or Extortion
- Unknown
- Claim Status
- confirmed
MITRE ATT&CK
People
Threat Actors
Muneeb AkhtarSohaib Akhter's brother and co-defendant; the article reports that he was charged in connection with database destruction, computer fraud, aggravated identity theft, and theft of government records. The article describes the brothers' destructive actions as alleged in court documents.Sohaib AkhterFound guilty of conspiring to destroy government databases after being fired from a federal contractor. The article also reports his participation in unauthorized access, credential theft, and destruction of government data.