BREAKING: DOJ Confirms Iran-Backed Hackers Have Breached FBI Director Kash Patel’s Personal Email, Are Publishing His Private Photos and Documents
The Department of Justice has confirmed that Iran-linked hackers breached the personal email account of FBI Director Kash Patel and leaked personal photos along with other documents online.
The hacking group known as the “Handala Hack Team” claimed responsibility, posting the materials to its website and Telegram channel.
“Soon you’ll realize the FBI’s security was nothing more than a joke,” the group wrote on Telegram, along with photos from Patel’s account.
JUST IN – FBI director Kash Patel’s personal email address hacked, says DOJ. This comes only a day after Iran-linked Handala hacking group claims it breached the FBI: “Soon you will realize that the FBI’s security was nothing more than a joke.” pic.twitter.com/XeuogL8I0Y
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) March 27, 2026
The group stated that Patel “will now find his name among the list of successfully hacked victims.”
A DOJ official told Reuters that the materials posted online “appeared to be authentic.” The leaked files reportedly include a purported resume and a mix of personal and work-related correspondence dating from 2010 to 2019.
Reuters reports:
A Justice Department official confirmed that Patel’s email had been breached and said the material published online appeared authentic. The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The hackers did not immediately respond to messages.
Handala, which calls itself a group of pro-Palestinian vigilante hackers, is considered by Western researchers to be one of several personas used by Iranian government cyberintelligence units. Handala recently claimed the hack of Michigan-based medical devices and services provider Strykeron March 11, claiming to have deleted a massive trove of company data.
Reuters was not able to independently authenticate the Patel emails, but the personal Gmail address that Handala claims to have broken into matches the address linked to Patel in previous data breaches preserved by the dark web intelligence firm District 4 Labs. Alphabet-owned Google, which runs Gmail, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Gmail address targeted by the hackers matches one previously linked to Patel in older data breaches, according to reports.
The Handala Hack Team is believed to be connected to Iran’s cyberintelligence operations.
FBI Director Kash Patel’s personal email has reportedly been hacked, just a day after the Iran-linked Handala group claimed it breached the FBI, warning: “Soon you’ll realize the FBI’s security was nothing more than a joke.” pic.twitter.com/QUzrhJflig
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) March 27, 2026
The breach was reported just days after the Justice Department and FBI disrupted several Iranian-linked cyber operations and seized multiple domains used by the group.
Newsweek reports, “Handala posted on its website that after the FBI had seized its domain names and announced $10 million rewards for its members, the group decided to fight back with the hack.”
“The so-called ‘impenetrable’ systems of the FBI were brought to their knees within hours by our team,” Handala’s website states. “All personal and confidential information of Kash Patel, including emails, conversations, documents, and even classified files, is now available for public download.”
The FBI has not issued a public comment on the incident as of the time of publishing.
The post BREAKING: DOJ Confirms Iran-Backed Hackers Have Breached FBI Director Kash Patel’s Personal Email, Are Publishing His Private Photos and Documents appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.