US accuses Army vet cyber-Casanova of sharing Russia-Ukraine war secrets
- Reference: 1709658370
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2024/03/05/us_indicts_army_vet/
- Source link:
David Franklin Slater, 63, was indicted on Monday and faces three counts of conspiracy to disclose NDI. On the same day, Pentagon documents leaker Jack Teixeira also pleaded guilty to his crimes, [1]as expected .
Slater is said to have developed a relationship with a co-conspirator, believed by him to be a woman in Ukraine, via a foreign dating app and used the same app to send secret data back to the recipient at their request.
[2]
A civilian employee of the US Air Force at the time, Slater held a Top Secret security clearance from around August 2021 to April 2022 and with that attended numerous Top Secret briefings concerning the war in Ukraine.
[3]
[4]
During this time he allegedly transmitted the knowledge gained from these briefings to the individual on the dating app, the Department of Justice said.
NDI has three different categorizations. Top Secret refers to information that could reasonably be expected to cause "exceptionally grave damage" to US national security if communicated to those who don't have the necessary clearance.
[5]
Information categorized as Secret refers to data that could reasonably be expected to cause "serious damage", and Confidential information could lead to cause "damage" to US national security.
Slater, a retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel, is said to have transmitted Secret-category information to the woman in Ukraine.
According to the [6]indictment , the supposed Ukrainian woman communicating with Slater sent a number of messages requesting information from him, seemingly fascinated and infatuated with his role in the US armed forces.
[7]
For example, on or about March 7, 2022, the woman messaged Slater saying: "American Intelligence says that already 100 percent of Russian troops are located on the territory of Ukraine. Do you think this information can be trusted?"
Four days later, she asked about the information being communicated during the Top Secret meetings.
"Dear, what is shown on the screens in the special room?? It is very interesting," the person wrote.
On or about March 23, 2022, according to the indictment, Slater received the following: "Dave, it's great that you get information about [unspecified country] first. I hope you will tell me right away? You are my secret agent. With love."
Five days after, Slater is alleged to have sent NDI about military targets in [8]the Russia-Ukraine war , and on April 13, 2022, he sent NDI about Russian military capabilities, the indictment reads.
No allegations have been made about the motives or the real identity of the individual presenting as a Ukrainian woman.
[9]German defense chat overheard by Russian eavesdroppers on Cisco's WebEx
[10]Air National Guardsman Teixeira to admit he was Pentagon files leaker
[11]IT suppliers hacked off with Uncle Sam's demands in aftermath of cyberattacks
[12]US govt IT help desk techie 'leaked top secrets' to foreign nation
"As alleged, Mr. Slater, an Air Force civilian employee and retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel, knowingly transmitted classified national defense information to another person in blatant disregard for the security of his country and his oath to safeguard its secrets," [13]said assistant attorney general Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department's National Security Division.
"The Department of Justice will seek to hold accountable those who knowingly and willfully put their country at risk by disclosing classified information."
Slater is due to appear in a Nebraska court today and if convicted, will serve a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine for each of the three counts. ®
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[1] https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/01/pentagon_leaks_teixeira/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2ZeekF2T@GgReI3ybYSYyKgAAAVg&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZeekF2T@GgReI3ybYSYyKgAAAVg&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZeekF2T@GgReI3ybYSYyKgAAAVg&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZeekF2T@GgReI3ybYSYyKgAAAVg&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://regmedia.co.uk/2024/03/05/david_slater_indictment_march_2024.pdf
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZeekF2T@GgReI3ybYSYyKgAAAVg&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2023/06/01/ukraine_romcom_malware/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/04/germany_confirms_russia_leak_genuine/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/01/pentagon_leaks_teixeira/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/08/us_tech_industry_changes/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2023/09/21/it_help_desk_guy_arrested/
[13] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/air-force-employee-indicted-unlawful-disclosure-classified-national-defense-information
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
innocent fool => guilty tool ?
And didn't even get to try it.
That's some expensive "personal services". A fine and jail time over some skin.
Re: And didn't even get to try it.
No guarantee it was the woman he thought it was.
Just for curious...
What happens in the US if you're fined significantly more than your assets (I don't know how much cash the miscreant has in the bank, or what happens to his pension, but I'm guessing nothing much and nothing good respectively).
Re: Just for curious...
Depends on your skin colour and who you know.
Depends more on the cause of your fines
Some debt obligations can still be discharged in bankruptcy, and there are some limits on what assets can be seized.
Others can be very hard to get out from under, child support and tax liens being particularly brutal. by design.
Though as the other poster pointed out, rich people will figure out how to transfer most of their assets before the penalty is assessed, and their lawyer will ensure that things like their car and house are shielded, possibly including insurance and retirement funds.
Those that can't afford 10,000-20,000 in legal fees(disproportionately brown people like me) may have even protected assets seized if they can't raise the proper legal defense on their own. The government doesn't care about being just or fair, and in civil asset cased the burden of proof is reversed leading to a mountain of what amounts to be theft on the part of the government.
Re: Depends more on the cause of your fines
That all sounds weirdly Soviet.
I wonder how he got caught
It's obvious how you get caught posting classified info to a public forum (like Jack Teixeira). But none of the articles I've seen about Slater mention how he ended up getting caught. Presumably the "Ukrainian woman" with which he was corresponding didn't turn him in.
Re: I wonder how he got caught
I'm assuming that despite being a retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel he's thick as pig shit and boasted about the "hot Ukrainian" he had as a girlfriend and was turned in.
There is nothing dumber than a man with an erection -- proverb in probably every language and culture, ever
Maybe an old man who thinks he be getting some, as a subset of the above.
I too used to hold a Top Secret clearance from Uncle Sam, and back then I was single and socially active. The vast majority of the ladies had no interest whatsoever in NDI and probably wouldn't have been in a position to formulate intelligent questions about it. So when a lady was able to formulate such questions (yes, it happened occasionally) that stood out pretty obviously and I would report it immediately to the security staff. So from personal experience I find it hard to believe this guy's claim to be an innocent fool.