Dutch Police Arrest Suspected ShinyHunters Member Linked to Alleged FBI Hack
Dutch authorities have arrested a 24-year-old man suspected of being a member of the cybercriminal group ShinyHunters, days before the group publicly claimed that it had hacked an FBI website and stolen information belonging to personnel and job applicants. The arrest, announced by Dutch police and the FBI, is part of an ongoing international investigation into a cybercrime operation accused of targeting organizations and demanding money in exchange for not releasing stolen data.
The suspect, who was arrested in Amsterdam on September 15, was already in Dutch custody when ShinyHunters publicly claimed responsibility for compromising the FBI's jobs website on September 22. Dutch police have not officially released his name, although U.S. media reports have identified him as Pepijn van der Stap. Authorities say he is suspected of involvement with ShinyHunters and have seized several data-storage devices as part of the investigation. Further arrests have not been ruled out.
The arrest follows a series of claims by ShinyHunters concerning the FBI's FBIJobs.gov portal. The group said it had obtained between two and three terabytes of information relating to FBI and Justice Department personnel and applicants. It claimed to have accessed systems containing information associated with human resources and employee medical services and said it exploited a vulnerability involving Oracle PeopleSoft, software used for human-resources management. The FBI has confirmed that the FBIJobs.gov portal was compromised and that an investigation is underway, but authorities have said the exact point of the breach and the full extent of the affected information were still being determined.
The FBI later acknowledged that employee information had been obtained in the incident. Reports have indicated that some of the compromised material included highly sensitive personal information. Reuters reported that documents reviewed by its journalists contained medical and employment-related information, although the full scope and authenticity of the data claimed by ShinyHunters could not be independently established. The FBI has said it is communicating with affected personnel and evaluating additional support and identity-protection measures.
FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director Brett Leatherman said the Dutch authorities had the bureau's full support in the investigation. According to the FBI, the suspect and his alleged co-conspirators have been linked to more than 140 breaches since last year and are accused of obtaining at least $70 million through extortion payments. Investigators say the group has frequently targeted third-party vendors and cloud-based platforms, where stolen information can be used to pressure victims into paying money.
FBI Director Kash Patel described the arrested individual as one of the alleged leaders of the organization and said FBI teams were continuing to work with international partners to pursue additional leads. Leatherman also publicly addressed the remaining members of ShinyHunters following the arrest, saying investigators had obtained information through the arrest and seizure of infrastructure and warning that further arrests could follow.
The investigation has also drawn attention because of the suspect's previous history. CBS News reported that he had previously been convicted in the Netherlands in connection with data theft and extortion. Dutch authorities are also investigating separate allegations involving attempts to incite two murders, although those allegations are distinct from the cybercrime case and remain subject to the legal process.
The ShinyHunters investigation remains ongoing, and authorities have not publicly established the full extent of the group's alleged access to FBI systems. The group has made a number of claims about the amount and sensitivity of the information it obtained, while U.S. investigators continue to verify what data was actually accessed and how the breach occurred. Meanwhile, the arrest in the Netherlands represents one of the most significant law-enforcement actions against individuals allegedly connected to ShinyHunters as investigators work to identify other people involved in the operation.
