Cyber Incident Victim: FBI Fusion Center
Date:
Jan 2014
Location:
United States of America
Summary
Hackers from Team Berserk infiltrated an FBI Fusion Center, exfiltrating and publicly leaking unclassified documents marked for official use only, which had not previously appeared online. The compromised data, distributed as a compressed file containing folders and files related to domestic security events, terrorism investigations, and drug enforcement operations, was accompanied by public statements criticizing the agency's counterterrorism policies and alleged protection of financial elites. The group justified the breach as an effort to expose government corruption while paradoxically warning citizens about legitimate threats, emphasizing their opposition to human trafficking and organized crime. Following the leak, Team Berserk shifted focus by declaring intent to target a transnational criminal organization via social media.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 3 motives | 2 techniques |
| Threat Actor | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1 actor | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
On January 17, 2014, hackers operating under the name Team Berserk publicly announced a data leak originating from an FBI Fusion Center via their Twitter account @BerserkTeam. The group claimed the leaked documents consisted exclusively of unclassified materials marked "for official use only" that had not previously been publicly available online. Team Berserk disseminated a Pastebin link containing a metaphorical narrative about "sailing the seas" that referenced the data breach, accompanied by separate statements addressing Anonymous affiliates, the general public, and sovereign citizens. The hackers emphasized their opposition to human trafficking, gang activity, and illegal drugs while criticizing government corruption and counterterrorism policies they viewed as infringing on civil liberties. They released a 54MB compressed archive through AnonFiles that expanded to approximately 20 folders and 45 files when decompressed, containing intelligence documents related to domestic security matters including the Boston Marathon bombing, terrorism threats, drug enforcement operations, and routine law enforcement activities. The archive included empty folders labeled as classified material, with Team Berserk declining to provide further details about these directories due to potential harm.
The leaked documents revealed FBI Fusion Center assessments of domestic security threats, including warnings about foreign spies targeting law enforcement officials and suspicions of sleeper cells within government institutions. Team Berserk simultaneously engaged in direct taunting of the FBI through tweets directed at the bureau's press office, confirming their intrusion. Following the initial disclosure, the hackers shifted focus by issuing a public threat against the Los Zetas drug cartel via Twitter, signaling an expansion of their targeting beyond government entities. The group indicated that more sensitive documents remained in their possession and were being circulated among Anonymous affiliates, with potential future public release contingent on collective agreement within that community. No official FBI response or containment measures were documented in the available source material, though the breach exposed non-public law enforcement methodologies and threat assessments while demonstrating vulnerabilities in fusion center security protocols. The incident highlighted emerging risks of hacktivist groups targeting both government agencies and organized criminal networks during this period.