Cyber Incident Victim: United States Military
Date:
Dec 2015
Location:
United States of America
Summary
ISIS-affiliated hackers leaked personal information of U.S. and French military personnel, including full names, addresses, phone numbers, and emails, in retaliation against Anonymous hacktivist operations targeting the group. The compromised data involved mid-level officials and communications officers from the U.S. Strategic Command, with claims of possessing additional unreleased records on hundreds more individuals. This incident aligns with prior cyber campaigns by the group to expose military personnel details, escalating tensions in an ongoing digital conflict between the entities.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 3 motives | 1 technique |
| Threat Actors | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 2 actors | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
In mid-December 2015, ISIS-affiliated hackers known as the Islamic Cyber Army, operating under the Cyber Caliphate banner, leaked personal information of approximately 160 military personnel from France and the United States. This action occurred on December 14th, directly responding to Anonymous' coordinated "ISIS Troll Day" on December 11th, during which the hacktivist group publicly mocked ISIS through memes and website defacements. The leaked dataset contained full names, physical addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of mid-level military officials, including at least one French lieutenant general, multiple French colonels, and communications officers from the U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM). The Islamic Cyber Army disseminated this information through ISIS-controlled social media channels while threatening to release additional data on 700 more military personnel. Security firm SITE Intelligence Group confirmed the authenticity of the breach, noting it represented an escalation in ongoing cyber hostilities between the groups. No immediate verification or response came from the U.S. Department of Defense or French Ministry of Defense regarding the compromise's validity or scope.
This incident formed part of a protracted cyber conflict that began after Anonymous declared war on ISIS following the November 2015 Paris attacks. Prior engagements included Anonymous' takedown of ISIS-affiliated social media accounts and forums, along with a website defacement replacing ISIS content with viagra advertisements. Concurrently, Anonymous targeted Donald Trump's digital assets, claiming his anti-Muslim rhetoric aided ISIS recruitment efforts. The December leak mirrored previous ISIS cyber operations, including a March 2015 release of a "Hacked Hit List" targeting 100 U.S. military personnel for physical attacks and an August 2015 breach exposing hundreds of government and military personnel records from compromised U.S. systems. These repeated breaches demonstrated sustained targeting of military personnel data by ISIS-aligned actors, though the article provides no evidence of operational disruptions or physical harm resulting specifically from the December leak. The Cyber Caliphate's public taunting of Anonymous as "idiots" underscored the psychological warfare dimension accompanying these technical intrusions.