Hacktivist group leaks personal data on more than 40,000 DHS employees and contractors

A hacktivist group called the Department of Peace published personal data identifying more than 40,000 DHS employees and contractors on Wednesday, exposing names, phone numbers, and job titles across the department’s component agencies.

The leak is the third government data leak to make headlines in the past month, and reporters at multiple outlets have described it as unprecedented. The data was hosted by DDoSecrets, a transparency nonprofit, in a database called Icepick, with a searchable tool built by maia arson crimew, a Swiss hacker. The disclosure follows breaches at the FBI and the Pentagon, and arrives as federal agencies face mounting scrutiny over both data security and immigration enforcement.

What the data contains

The Icepick database includes more than 21,000 CBP records and about 6,600 ICE records, according to the Guardian and the BBC, though NPR puts the ICE and HSI combined figure at 10,000. The records span ICE, CBP, HSI, CISA, USCIS, and the Federal Protective Service. They contain names, phone numbers, and email addresses, along with job titles, details of undercover operations, and surveillance programs. The leaked information also includes dozens of previously unknown operation names, the agents who led and worked on those operations, and some of the technology they used, including tech provided by Cellbrite and Palantir. Other records reference DHS groups with access to surveillance tools including the facial recognition app Mobile Fortify and PenLink, which can collect and analyze data from phones and online services.

The database represents about a fifth of the DHS workforce, which staffs a little more than 220,000 people, according to NPR. Reuters matched personal information of about six DHS employees named in the leak to credit bureau records and dark web breach data carried by the intelligence platform District 4 Labs. Reuters also called three employees directly and confirmed their phone numbers and other details; one said it was the first they had heard of a breach. Reuters could not verify the authenticity of the entire trove.

How the group says it got in

The Department of Peace claimed it accessed the data through Okta, the single sign-on service used by DHS. Okta says it is secure and has no evidence its data or systems were compromised. The exact method of compromise has not been established. DHS said in a statement that it is “aware of a potential breach and is actively working to address the situation swiftly and effectively.”

Motivation and message

In a statement accompanying the data, the Department of Peace said DHS employees “have our information, so it’s only fair that we have theirs.” A spokesperson for the group referenced Markwayne Mullin, who became DHS Secretary in March, saying he was “turning up the heat” on July 17th. “This is what happens to ICE when you do that,” the spokesperson wrote. DHS has sought to keep its agents anonymous while conducting enforcement, using masks and plain clothes, and according to the BBC, ICE agents rarely identify themselves despite being required by law to do so.

The Department of Peace shared the data with Ryan Ottignon, a U.S.-based journalist, and maia arson crimew before publication. Ottignon told NPR that crimew did all of the technical work on the searchable database. He rejected the characterization that the group was doxing government employees. “We are in a situation in which a group of public officials go around into cities and states and all around the country, and they seek to hide who they are,” Ottignon said. “Very frequently using masks, wearing plain clothes. And they do universally unspeakable things to these communities.”

A month of federal breaches

The disclosure follows a string of federal breaches. In September, the hacking group ShinyHunters claimed the theft of data from the FBI. Last week, the Defense Department was hit with a class action lawsuit following a breach that exposed data on millions of current and former military personnel. In recent days, the Federal Election Commission was taken offline because of a suspected hacking attempt. The Department of Peace previously hacked DHS in March and posted documents related to contracts with outside vendors.

The leak lands amid escalating immigration enforcement. According to the BBC, immigration operations this year have repeatedly turned violent, with ICE agents shooting at more than two dozen people and killing at least nine. Those killings include the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good, both shot and killed by ICE agents this year in Minnesota, despite not being the targets of arrests. The BBC, citing data from the Migration Policy Institute, reported that the U.S. has enacted nearly 1 million deportations since President Donald Trump returned to office in 2025, and more than 70% of those deportations have been of people with no criminal record. Emma Best, a DDoSecrets co-founder, said the leak was remarkable for how straightforward it was, noting that it identifies officials who oversee covert and undercover operations, the government’s hunt for leakers, and the failed BlueLeaks investigation, as well as key personnel in DHS’s ever-escalating rendition and deportation programs.