Syrian Electronic Army Hacker Jailed for 42 Months After Targeting Nearly 50 Western Organisations

Ahmad Umar Agha, who used the online name "Th3Pr0", was sentenced in a federal court in Virginia to 42 months in prison, the US Justice Department announced. He was part of the Syrian Electronic Army, a hacking group active since at least 2011 in support of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The DOJ says Agha hacked about 47 Western media outlets, non-profit groups and other entities allied with the US. It also said the group's conspiracy collected intelligence for Assad's government before its fall.

Two incidents stand out. In 2013, the group said it hijacked the Associated Press's Twitter account and posted a false report of an explosion at the White House, which briefly dented the stock market by $136 billion. A 2014 FBI affidavit said Twitter's password reset confirmation for the account was sent to an email address used by Agha. In another attack, Agha gained access to a company hosting the Marine Corps' recruiting website and redirected visitors to a propaganda message.

The US first charged Agha in 2014, and in 2016 the FBI added him and fellow member Firas Dardar to its Cyber's Most Wanted list. Both were indicted in 2018. Agha was taken into US custody last year, though the DOJ has not shared details of his arrest. Dardar remains a fugitive.