Hacker reportedly breached FBI systems and accessed sensitive Epstein investigation files

An unidentified foreign hacker gained access to systems at the FBI’s field office in New York in 2023 and compromised files connected to the bureau’s investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to a report from Reuters.

The news agency cited both a source familiar with the incident and court documents, stating that the intrusion occurred after the attacker exploited a server at the Child Exploitation Forensic Lab in the FBI’s New York field office. The server had reportedly been left vulnerable unintentionally by an FBI special agent involved in the case. According to a court filing, the breach involved the hacker searching through certain files linked to the Epstein investigation.

An FBI spokesperson said the matter is still under investigation. “Following the 2023 cyber incident, the FBI contained the affected network and determined the incident to be an isolated one. The FBI restricted access to the malicious actor and rectified the network,” the spokesperson said in a statement provided via email.

A source also told Reuters that the hacker was initially unaware that the system they had accessed belonged to the FBI. According to the report, agents later contacted the individual. They asked them to join a video call, during which they displayed their credentials and confirmed that the network belonged to the bureau.