Amsterdam, Netherlands— Dutch police seized a 24‑year‑old man on 15 September, linking him to the ShinyHunters hacking collective that claimed to have exfiltrated sensitive data on all FBI bureau staff, roughly 38,000 people.
According to the Dutch investigation, the suspect was already on authorities’ radar after ShinyHunters publicly posted screenshots of the alleged breach the day after the hack on 21 September. The group asserted that they possessed every agent’s name, badge number, role, home address and phone number.
Police said the suspect’s laptop housed a large volume of information, including what the investigators characterised as “details about two murders that were to be committed abroad” – an element that adds an extra dimension of criminal intent to the case.
Speaking on behalf of Dutch cyber‑crime authorities, Stan Duijf highlighted the reach of ShinyHunters, noting that the gang “has been responsible for a large number of national and international victims.” He praised the arrest as a milestone in ongoing investigations.
FBI officials joined the press briefing, thanking their Dutch counterparts. Special Agent Brett Leatherman urged members of ShinyHunters to hand themselves in, saying that arrests reveal how agencies can locate perpetrators despite the hackers’ belief in anonymity.
ShinyHunters is believed to have originated in France and has carried out several high‑profile hacks, including a breach of Rockstar Games’ systems in April and a disruption of the Canvas education platform in May. Their reported vulnerability targets the Oracle cloud storage system, which the FBI uses for multiple internal services.
The FBI’s public service announcement still describes ShinyHunters as “threat actors” who exploit access to sensitive information to threaten for payment. The group’s message on the dark web stated they were not hacking for monetary gain but demanded retraction of an advisory issued in May that portrayed them unfavourably.
While the suspect remains in custody, Dutch officials have indicated further arrests may follow as the investigation into the network deepens.
