Peter Williams, a veteran cybersecurity executive and former head of the hacking and surveillance tech division of U.S. defense contractor L3Harris, has been ordered to pay $10 million to his former employer. Williams was a central figure in one of the worst leaks of advanced hacking tools in U.S. history and its closest allies.
A judge ordered Williams to pay this amount in restitution, in addition to the $1.3 million he had already been ordered to pay L3Harris. Williams, a 39-year-old Australian who previously worked for one of Australia’s intelligence agencies, was formerly the general manager of Trenchant. This division, formed from the acquisition of two sister startups, develops spyware and hacking tools for the U.S. government and allies in the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, which includes Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the U.K., and the U.S.
The restitution order was first reported by veteran cybersecurity reporter Kim Zetter. Williams’ lawyers did not respond to requests for comment.
Last year, Williams was arrested and accused of stealing seven unspecified trade secrets, likely cyber exploits and surveillance technology, from Trenchant, and selling them to Operation Zero, a Russian firm that acts as a broker for hacking tools exclusively for the Russian government and local companies.
Williams pleaded guilty and was sentenced to more than seven years in prison. He made $1.3 million from selling the trade secrets, which he used to purchase luxury watches, a house near Washington D.C., and family vacations. Trenchant claimed losses of up to $35 million due to Williams’ theft.
U.S. prosecutors stated Williams “betrayed” the U.S. and its allies by providing Operation Zero, deemed “one of the world’s most nefarious exploit brokers” by the U.S. government, with tools that could hack “millions of computers and devices worldwide.”
Williams exploited his privileged “full access” to Trenchant’s internal network to extract tools from the company’s offices. After he sold the hacking tools to Operation Zero, some were used by Russian government spies in Ukraine and later by Chinese cybercriminals, identified by former L3Harris employees in Google-published cybersecurity research.
Williams also attempted to frame an employee for the theft.