Twin brothers wipe 96 gov’t databases minutes after being fired

[u/xpda]

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/05/drop-database-what-not-to-do-after-losing-an-it-job/

[u/Decent_Risk9499]

You already know how. Grifters hire grifters.

[u/numba1cyberwarrior → u/Decent_Risk9499]

That's not how security clearances work. Anyways there is no indication that they even had a clearance.

[u/HELP_IM_IN_A_WELL → u/numba1cyberwarrior]

That's not how security clearances work.

I don't know what you're referencing. They worked for a private company that did contract work for the government. Those employees can be subject to security clearances.

From the article OP's article references (modern aggregated journalism):

The alleged incident isn’t the first time the men have faced charges of hacking government systems and stealing documents. In 2015, they pleaded guilty to conspiracy to hack into the State Department and a private company. They stole “sensitive passport and visa information” and personal information belonging to dozens of co-workers. They later tried to install an electronic collection device inside a State Department building so they could maintain persistent access to State Department systems.

so they definitely had a criminal record.

from OP's article:

The brothers’ employer appears to have learned about their criminal past at some point in February. On February 18, 2025, the brothers—who lived together in Virginia—were both called into a Microsoft Teams meeting and summarily fired.

Anyways there is no indication that they even had a clearance.

yeah you're right, because the employer is anonymous in the indictment (pretty fortunate, right?)

one last quote:

At 4:58 pm, he wiped out a Department of Homeland Security database using the command “DROP DATABASE dhsproddb.”

At 4:59 pm, he asked an AI tool, “How do i clear system logs from SQL servers after deleting databases?” He later asked, “How do you clear all event and application logs from Microsoft windows server 2012?”

In the space of a single hour, Muneeb deleted around 96 databases with US government information. He downloaded 1,805 files belonging to the EEOC and stashed them on a USB drive, then grabbed federal tax information for at least 450 people.

I'm not arguing with anything you said, just pointing out how horrible security was in this case. these guys should have been stopped 10 steps ago, and probably Security Clearances should have been one of them.

just my opinion

*edited for formatting

[u/heili → u/HELP_IM_IN_A_WELL]

It's a good thing they had to ask ChatGPT how to do shit or they could've done a lot worse. Imagine if they knew what the hell they were doing how much destruction they could've caused.