Categories: Top story of the day

Man who hacked Zimbabwe government website released

A New York man who hacked into Zimbabwe government computers in 2011 and tried to steal information from the government email server was freed today largely because of the role he played as an informant to the Federal Bureau of Investigations. Hector Xavier Monsegur served only seven months and prosecutors said this was enough. Monsegur is said to have helped to thwart 300 planned cyber attacks. He also provided information that has led to the arrests of at least eight major co-conspirators, including Jeremy Hammond, who was the FBI’s No. 1 cybercriminal target when he was arrested in 2012. Hammond was sentenced to 10 years for his hacking-related activities. One of the Zimbabwean websites that was attacked and went down for months was that of the Ministry of Finance which was under Tendai Biti.

(179 VIEWS)

Charles Rukuni

The Insider is a political and business bulletin about Zimbabwe, edited by Charles Rukuni. Founded in 1990, it was a printed 12-page subscription only newsletter until 2003 when Zimbabwe's hyper-inflation made it impossible to continue printing.

Share
Published by
Charles Rukuni

Recent Posts

Zimbabwe third among the least free countries in SADC

Zimbabwe has been ranked third among the least free countries in Southern Africa but it…

May 24, 2026

Why I had a girlfriend two months after my wife’s death- Take 1

I had always considered it a curse for a wife to die before her husband.…

May 18, 2026

Why I had a girlfriend two months after my wife’s death

This is a true story about the challenges and loneliness I faced when my wife…

May 17, 2026

Coming soon

My first long-form article in booklet form: Why I had a girlfriend two months after…

May 16, 2026

Insider Publisher starts whatsapp channel

The editor and publisher of The Insider, Charles Rukuni, has started a whatsapp channel through…

May 15, 2026

Who propped whom: Masiyiwa vs Nyambirai?

A friend who knows about my legal battle with Zimbabwe’s richest man, Strive Masiyiwa, way…

May 1, 2026