WASHINGTON, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Three U.S. lawmakers have called on the American government to blacklist a set of Indian IT firms over what they describe as "more than fifteen years of targeted espionage against U.S. citizens, businesses, and the lawyers representing them."
In a letter issued Wednesday, Democratic Senators Ron Wyden and Sheldon Whitehouse, along with Republican Representative Pat Harrigan, asked the Commerce Department to add BellTroX, CyberRoot, and Sunkissed Organic Farms Pvt. Ltd. (formerly known as "Appin Technology Pvt. Ltd.") and its subsidiaries, to the Commerce Department's Entity List. Such a designation would cut them off from U.S. software, cloud infrastructure, and cybersecurity tools.
Sunkissed representatives, CyberRoot and the Commerce Department did not respond to requests for comment. BellTroX could not be reached for comment.
All three companies have been described in media coverage and in reports published by major tech firms as being fronts for hack-for-hire activities.
In 2022, Reuters named CyberRoot and BellTroX as key players in the cybermercenary industry, saying they were frequently tapped by Western lawyers and private investigators to spy on one another during legal and business disputes. A 2023 Reuters report identified Appin as a pioneer in the field, saying the company grew from an educational startup to a hack-for-hire powerhouse that stole secrets from executives, politicians, military officials and wealthy elites around the globe.
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In a letter issued Wednesday, Democratic Senators Ron Wyden and Sheldon Whitehouse, along with Republican Representative Pat Harrigan, asked the Commerce Department to add BellTroX, CyberRoot, and Sunkissed Organic Farms Pvt. Ltd. (formerly known as "Appin Technology Pvt. Ltd.") and its subsidiaries, to the Commerce Department's Entity List. Such a designation would cut them off from U.S. software, cloud infrastructure, and cybersecurity tools.
Sunkissed representatives, CyberRoot and the Commerce Department did not respond to requests for comment. BellTroX could not be reached for comment.
All three companies have been described in media coverage and in reports published by major tech firms as being fronts for hack-for-hire activities.
In 2022, Reuters named CyberRoot and BellTroX as key players in the cybermercenary industry, saying they were frequently tapped by Western lawyers and private investigators to spy on one another during legal and business disputes. A 2023 Reuters report identified Appin as a pioneer in the field, saying the company grew from an educational startup to a hack-for-hire powerhouse that stole secrets from executives, politicians, military officials and wealthy elites around the globe.
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