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High-profile hacking group ShinyHunters (the very same group that demanded a ransom from GTA 6 developer Rockstar Games earlier this year) has now claimed it's managed to breach the internal databases of the US Federal Bureau of Investigations.

Speaking to 404 Media, a representative of the group said that it now holds data on "all" FBI employees and applicants, while a sample provided to the outlet appears to contain the personal data of 5,000 FBI employees.

According to 404, the data includes addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and "in some cases details on their spouse." Reuters was also shown a data sample by the group, and says it was able to partially verify the leaked info by running the details against existing social security numbers, credit bureau records, and previously breached data—including info on current FBI director Kash Patel.

The FBI jobs website was also defaced as part of the hack, showing a message that said "this site has been seized by ShinyHunters," mimicking the message commonly seen on seized cybercriminal pages after an FBI raid.

"All FBI data was compromised including PII/PHI on incumbent and former FBI employees and all applicant information. We have a lot more than we claim here," the since-removed message is said to have continued. The site currently informs users that it's "down for maintenance."

In reaction to the leak, an FBI spokesperson told 404: "The FBI is aware of claims regarding unauthorized activity affecting FBIjobs.gov and is currently investigating."

As for what would cause a hacking group to target one of the biggest fish in the cybersecurity pond, the same ShinyHunters representative claimed the attack was not financially motivated, and that what they plan to do with the info is "not something I’d call extortion, maybe coercion."

The attack appears to be in response to a previously published FBI report, which claimed that ShinyHunters exaggerates its access to sensitive data to prompt payment from victims, and uses multiple methods of extortion including "harassment strategies, sending threatening text messages and phone calls to victims and their family members, and in some cases, swatting."

404 Media reports a post on the ShinyHunters website denouncing the allegations as false, and giving the FBI "a time of one week" to correct or remove the information. What happens after that is unclear, but it sure feels like there's an "or else" looming over the top.