Two informed sources told Reuters that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) fired, yesterday, Monday, one of Accenture’s contractors, due to a negligence that led to the disclosure of sensitive personal details of thousands of the office’s employees.
In a statement to Reuters, a senior official in the office confirmed that a contractor whose identity was not revealed did not properly update or repair the system for which he was responsible.
“To date, our review has concluded that the incident occurred as a result of a security flaw in a platform operated by an external organization, after a contractor failed to implement a security patch issued to secure the platform,” FBI Cybersecurity Division Chief Brett Laserman said in the statement. Accordingly, the FBI has dismissed the contractor and taken all necessary steps to mitigate any additional risks and protect our employees.”
The FBI did not reveal the identity of the platform or the external organization, but the two sources familiar with the matter said that the platform is Oracle's PeopleSoft, a human resources platform that a hacker group called Shiny Hunters said it exploited to hack the FBI's job site last month.
Oracle has not yet responded to a request for comment.
The two sources also said that the external organization is Accenture. Reuters has not yet been able to identify the contractor in question or know his current employment status.
Accenture said in a statement that it is “proud to support the FBI’s mission, and will continue to do so.” It did not respond to questions related to the contractor or what was said about his failure to make the required correction.
President Donald Trump approved the execution by firing squad of Nidal Hassan, a US Army psychiatrist who opened fire and killed 13 people at a military base in 2009, according to what the Pentagon announced on Monday.
On September 5, 2009, Nidal Hassan opened fire with a semi-automatic pistol at Fort Hood, Texas, killing 13 and wounding 30. Hassan's execution will be the first execution carried out by the US military since 1961.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said on the X platform that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth “recommended, and President Donald J. Trump agreed to carry out the death sentence by firing squad by a US Army firing squad against the convicted terrorist Nidal Malek Hassan.
He added: “The Minister of the Army will determine the date and place of the sentence’s implementation.” The day of reckoning has finally come for Hassan.”
According to Agence France-Presse, a military jury sentenced Hassan to death in 2013 for carrying out a mass shooting at Fort Hood in an attack inspired by Al-Qaeda.
He chose to defend himself during the trial, but he did not call any witnesses or give any testimony, nor did he attempt to deny the charges against him. Court-appointed defense lawyers expressed concern that he was seeking the death penalty.
On November 5, 2009, Hassan, an American Muslim of Palestinian origin, opened fire inside a medical facility at Fort Hood, which was being used as a starting point for deploying soldiers in combat zones.
All the victims were dead and wounded soldiers. Hassan was shot by a civilian policeman who responded to the attack, and was partially paralyzed.
The court that convicted Hassan was informed that he opposed the American military occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, and that he communicated via the Internet with the extremist American preacher Anwar al-Awlaki, one of the most prominent leaders of Al-Qaeda, who was later killed in a raid launched by an American drone in Yemen.
Fox News announced on Monday that Carolyn Leavitt, a former White House spokeswoman and close ally of President Donald Trump, will join it to provide “commentary and analysis.”
Levitt will begin appearing on Fox News on November 1, according to a statement issued by Susan Scott, CEO of Fox News Media, who praised the former White House spokeswoman’s “understanding of the current political landscape.”
Levitt, who gave birth to her second child in the spring, stepped down from her position in late August to focus on her family, while at the same time confirming her intention to continue promoting the “MAGA” approach (Make America Great Again) in right-wing American politics.
Levitt said: “I look forward to presenting my unique vision derived from my experience as White House spokeswoman, accompanied by the same energy and frankness that distinguished my tenure,” according to what was reported by “Agence France-Presse.”
Leavitt appeared regularly as a guest on Fox News while in her previous position.
Trump has not yet appointed a new White House spokesman. Since her departure, the White House has stopped holding regular press conferences.
