Cyber Incident Victim: Department of Veterans Affairs
Date:
Jan 2023
Location:
United States of America
Summary
A Tennessee man pleaded guilty to computer fraud for hacking into multiple U.S. government systems, including the Department of Veterans Affairs' "MyHealtheVet" platform, using stolen credentials. He illegally accessed a Marine Corps veteran's personal account on the agency's electronic health portal and posted screenshots of compromised information from this and other federal systems to a public Instagram account. The unauthorized intrusions involved repeated breaches over multiple days, exposing sensitive personal records belonging to the credential holders. The defendant admitted to targeting additional government entities, including the Supreme Court's filing system and AmeriCorps servers, before facing misdemeanor charges carrying a maximum one-year prison sentence.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 1 motive | 2 techniques |
| Threat Actor | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1 actor | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
Nicholas Moore, a 24-year-old resident of Springfield, Tennessee, engaged in unauthorized computer intrusions targeting multiple U.S. government systems between 2023 and his January 19, 2026 guilty plea. Court documents reveal Moore used stolen credentials to access the Supreme Court's filing system on 25 separate days in 2023, where he obtained personal records belonging to the credential holder. He subsequently posted this information through the Instagram account "@ihackedthegovernment." Moore expanded his activities to include AmeriCorps computer servers and the Department of Veterans Affairs' MyHealtheVet platform, where he specifically accessed a U.S. Marine Corps veteran's account. The intrusions involved harvesting personal information from these systems, which Moore then disseminated publicly via screenshots posted to the same Instagram account. Federal authorities charged Moore with computer fraud violations after documenting these unauthorized accesses and online disclosures.
The intrusions resulted in confirmed compromise of personal data belonging to at least three entities: the Supreme Court credential holder, AmeriCorps users, and a Marine Corps veteran using VA services. Moore's social media posts publicly exposed sensitive information obtained from these systems, though the exact scope of compromised records remains unspecified in charging documents. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro's office formally charged Moore with one misdemeanor count of computer fraud, to which he pleaded guilty on January 19, 2026. The charge carries a maximum penalty of one year imprisonment. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell scheduled sentencing for April 17, 2026, concluding the judicial phase of the case. No additional remediation efforts or system security enhancements were detailed in the available court records beyond the criminal prosecution.