Hacktivist group claims breach of Homeland Security systems, exposing ICE contract records

A hacktivist group identifying itself as the “Department of Peace” says it breached systems belonging to the Department of Homeland Security, or DHS, and has published what it claims are stolen documents online.

On Sunday, the nonprofit transparency organisation DDoSecrets released data on contracts involving DHS, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and more than 6,000 companies. Those firms reportedly include defence contractors such as Anduril, L3Harris, and Raytheon, as well as surveillance-linked Palantir, along with major technology companies such as Microsoft and Oracle.

According to the hacktivist group, the leaked information originated from the Office of Industry Partnership, a division within DHS that is responsible for procuring technology from private-sector companies.

Neither DHS nor ICE immediately responded to a request for comment.

In a statement published alongside the leaked material, the Department of Peace explained its motive for the attack, pointing to the killings earlier this year of two peaceful protesters and U.S. citizens, Alex Pretti and Renée Good, in Minneapolis by federal agents.

“Why hack the DHS? I can think of a couple of pretty good reasons! I’m releasing this because the DHS is killing us, and people deserve to know which companies support them and what they’re working on,” the group wrote.

Since the start of the Trump administration, DHS and federal immigration agents with ICE have carried out a campaign of mass deportations, arresting people who,o in many cases,s have little or no criminal record and holding them in overcrowded detention facilities that critics say subject detainees to inhumane conditions. Several technology companies have supported that deportation effort, with Palantir frequently cited as one of the most prominent.

Security researcher Micah Lee organised the leaked records into a dedicated website, making the information easier for the public to search and review.

The site lists contractor names, the amounts awarded to each, and contact details, including full names, email addresses, and phone numbers.

Among the biggest contracts by total value were a $70 million award to Cyber Apex Solutions, a company that says on its sparse website that it is “focused on filling the security gaps of critical infrastructure” in the United States, and a $59 million award to Science Applications International Corporation, or SAIC, which provides AI services to government agencies. Underwriters Laboratories was also awarded $29 million to deliver testing, certification, and market intelligence services to customers.