A US court has handed a jail sentence of more than seven years to a former Australian intelligence official who sold "incredibly powerful" hacking and surveillance tools to a Russian broker while working as a defence contractor in Washington DC.
Senior US prosecutors once again blasted Peter Williams, saying he "betrayed" the United States and allies while working as the general manager of Trenchant, a division of defence contractor L3Harris.
Analysts say L3Harris has specialised in developing cutting-edge tools it then sells to Five Eyes intelligence agencies to help them exploit vulnerabilities in computer networks and mobile devices.
In a statement, the US Justice Department said Williams had been handed an 87-month prison term — along with a further three years of supervised release with special conditions — for selling eight trade secrets to a Russian broker.
US attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said the "incredibly powerful" tools sold by Williams "would have allowed Russia to access millions of digital devices".
"By betraying a position of trust and selling sensitive American technology, Williams's crime is not only one of theft, it is a crime of national security," she said.
"Our nation's defence capabilities are not commodities to be auctioned off.
"People like Williams who endanger our national security will be met with swift and decisive consequences."
While the Russian broker was not initially identified, on Tuesday the US Treasury publicly confirmed it was Operation Zero, which "publicly advertises itself as a reseller of cyber exploits to various customers, including the Russian government".
The Treasury and the US State Department simultaneously announced sanctions against the company.
US prosecutors also confirmed Williams worked for the Australian Signals Directorate in Canberra before moving to the United States.
It is not clear exactly how much the 39-year-old earned.
Williams was ordered to forfeit $US1.3 million ($1.8 million) in cryptocurrency payments, but US authorities said he could have been paid much more, saying he received "up to $US4 million" for the exploits he sold.
He was also ordered to hand over property including a "house, and luxury items such as watches and jewellery".
The FBI's Counterintelligence and Espionage Division assistant director Roman Rozhavsky said Williams "stole a US defence contractor's trade secrets about highly sensitive cyber capabilities and sold them to a broker whose clients include the Russian government, putting our national security and countless potential victims at risk".
"Let this be a clear warning to all who consider placing greed over country: If you betray your position of trust and sell sensitive American technology to our foreign adversaries, the FBI will not rest until you're brought to justice."
