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Washington Examiner ^ | 10/5/16 2:05 PM | SUSAN CRABTREE
The chief White House spokesman said the arrest of a National Security Agency contractor for alleged code theft is a potential breach that President Obama and his administration are examining and taking "seriously."
The FBI in late August secretly arrested an NSA contractor, who worked for the same cyberoperations firm as infamous leaker Edward Snowden, in connection with the theft of highly classified hacking codes, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.
Presidential press secretary Josh Earnest said he was limited in what he could discuss about the case because it's an ongoing investigation.
"Any time that we have information like this that is released in the context of a criminal complaint, the federal government is reminded about how important it is to be vigilant in protecting the national security of our country," Earnest told reporters.
"This is the situation that the Department of Justice takes seriously," he said. "This is also a situation that President Obama takes seriously. It's also a reminder for all of us with a security clearance about how important it is to protect sensitive national security information."
The FBI arrested Harold Thomas Martin III, 51, on Aug. 27, according to the DOJ complaint that was unsealed Wednesday. Martin, a Glen Burnie, Md. resident, was charged with theft of government property and unauthorized removal and retention of classified materials by a government employee or contractor.
He worked for the consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton and is charged with stealing "source code" used to break into computer systems of numerous U.S. rivals, such as China, Iran, Russia and North Korea, the Justice Department said.
Authorities uncovered six documents in a raid on Martin's home, and $1,000 in property that belongs to the government.
The Aug. 27 arrest was made after the August publication of NSA data by an online group calling itself "Shadow Brokers." The group claimed to have obtained the information by hacking the agency, but experts said it was probably taken by an insider with access to the agency's Tailored Access Operations division, responsible for conducting operations against foreign governments and intelligence agencies.
Martin had served as a lieutenant in the Navy. He enlisted in May 1987, was commissioned as a surface warfare officer in July 1988 and served until March 2000, according to Navy records. He was assigned to the fast combat support ship Seattle earned eight awards during his nearly 13 years of service, including the Kuwait Liberation Medal and a Pistol Marksmanship Ribbon with expert device.
Wednesday afternoon, Snowden tweeted a link to a report in the Baltimore Sun in which Martin's defender said the government has no evidence against his client.
"There's no evidence that Hal Martin has betrayed his country," said James Wyda. "What we do know is that Hal Martin loves his family and his country. He served this nation honorably in the US Navy and he has devoted his entire career to protecting his country. We look forward to defending Hal Martin in court."
The chief White House spokesman said the arrest of a National Security Agency contractor for alleged code theft is a potential breach that President Obama and his administration are examining and taking "seriously."
The FBI in late August secretly arrested an NSA contractor, who worked for the same cyberoperations firm as infamous leaker Edward Snowden, in connection with the theft of highly classified hacking codes, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.
Presidential press secretary Josh Earnest said he was limited in what he could discuss about the case because it's an ongoing investigation.
"Any time that we have information like this that is released in the context of a criminal complaint, the federal government is reminded about how important it is to be vigilant in protecting the national security of our country," Earnest told reporters.
"This is the situation that the Department of Justice takes seriously," he said. "This is also a situation that President Obama takes seriously. It's also a reminder for all of us with a security clearance about how important it is to protect sensitive national security information."
The FBI arrested Harold Thomas Martin III, 51, on Aug. 27, according to the DOJ complaint that was unsealed Wednesday. Martin, a Glen Burnie, Md. resident, was charged with theft of government property and unauthorized removal and retention of classified materials by a government employee or contractor.
He worked for the consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton and is charged with stealing "source code" used to break into computer systems of numerous U.S. rivals, such as China, Iran, Russia and North Korea, the Justice Department said.
Authorities uncovered six documents in a raid on Martin's home, and $1,000 in property that belongs to the government.
The Aug. 27 arrest was made after the August publication of NSA data by an online group calling itself "Shadow Brokers." The group claimed to have obtained the information by hacking the agency, but experts said it was probably taken by an insider with access to the agency's Tailored Access Operations division, responsible for conducting operations against foreign governments and intelligence agencies.
Martin had served as a lieutenant in the Navy. He enlisted in May 1987, was commissioned as a surface warfare officer in July 1988 and served until March 2000, according to Navy records. He was assigned to the fast combat support ship Seattle earned eight awards during his nearly 13 years of service, including the Kuwait Liberation Medal and a Pistol Marksmanship Ribbon with expert device.
Wednesday afternoon, Snowden tweeted a link to a report in the Baltimore Sun in which Martin's defender said the government has no evidence against his client.
"There's no evidence that Hal Martin has betrayed his country," said James Wyda. "What we do know is that Hal Martin loves his family and his country. He served this nation honorably in the US Navy and he has devoted his entire career to protecting his country. We look forward to defending Hal Martin in court."
