Former Trenchant exec’s sale of trade secrets harmed US intelligence

TechCrunch reports that the U.S. intelligence community was noted to have been directly damaged by former Trenchant executive Peter Williams' sale of surveillance and hacking tools from U.S. defense contractor L3Harris to a Russian firm contracted by the Russian government.

Millions of computers and other devices worldwide could have been compromised using the software peddled by Williams, who had entered a guilty plea over charges of trade secret theft in October, according to the Department of Justice. The prosecution said that these eight tools could have been used to spread ransomware attacks, cybercrime, and government surveillance across the world. Before Williams' hearing in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 24, prosecutors filed a sentencing memorandum in which they requested nine years in prison, three years of supervised release, $35 million in reparations, and a $250,000 fine.

The memorandum also states that Williams is poised to be deported to Australia upon completion of his term. Williams submitted a letter to the judge expressing regret for his actions in response to the prosecutors' memorandum.