A group, known as the Handala Hack Team, shared Patel’s purported resume and photos of him on its website on Friday along with a statement that says: “This is just our beginning.”
The FBI said it was aware of “malicious actors” targeting Patel’s email information. “The information in question is historical in nature and involves no government information.”
The agency is offering up to $10m (£7.5m) for information that helps in identifying members of the Handala group.
Iranian-backed hackers were reported to have breached Patel’s private communications in 2024, weeks before he was appointed to lead the FBI. It is not clear if that breach was different from the one claimed by the Handala group on Friday.
Photos Handala claims to have taken from Patel’s email account have been circulating on social media with the group’s logo added as a watermark.
The photos show Patel at various unidentified locations, including standing beside a vintage convertible, smiling next to a jet, smoking and sniffing cigars, taking a selfie next to a bottle of liquor, and posing in what appear to be restaurants and hotels.
The BBC has not independently verified the leaked documents.
Cynthia Kaiser, senior vice-president at Halcyon Ransomware Research Center, told the BBC that Friday’s release was likely from a historical breach.
“The emails look very old and that makes me believe that this is likely a compromise that occurred from other groups in another time period, and is recycled today,” Kaiser, who has worked at the FBI’s Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch, said.
