Elliot Doxer, 42, allegedly wanted to “help our homeland,” gave confidential documents to an FBI agent posing as an Israeli.
An Akamai Technologies Inc. employee was charged attempting to spy for a foreign country, most likely Israel, Reuters reported Wednesday.
Elliot Doxer, 42, reportedly worked in Akamai’s finance department, and was charged of wire fraud for providing contract details, employee information and customer lists to an undercover FBI agent he thought worked for the a foreign government.
Doxer reportedly sought $3,000 in compensation.
Court papers showed that Doxer had e-mailed a foreign consulate in Boston to offer assistance. He reportedly wrote in the e-mail that he is a Jewish American who wants “to help our homeland and our war against our enemies,” therefore, it is likely that Doxer thought he was helping Israel.
The Justice Department declined to confirm or deny that it was Israel.
A year later, an undercover FBI agent reportedly contacted Doxer, pretending to be a representative of Israel to see if he wanted to help.
According to the criminal complant, Doxer visited a drop site 62 times over 18 months and gave contractual papers between Akamai and the US Department of Homeland Security to the undercover agent.
Doxer also reportedly said he would reduce his price in exchange for pictures or information about his son, who lived abroad with his mother and stepfather.
Prosecutors told Reuters that the foreign government cooperated with the investigation.
Doxer could face up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine if he is convicted.
related–
US: Ex-tech worker pleads guilty to attempting to spy for Israel
Elliot Doxer admits he provided tech company’s trade secrets to FBI agent posing as Israeli spy
A former employee of a company that helps websites deliver content to users pleaded guilty Tuesday to a charge of foreign economic espionage for providing trade secrets to an FBI agent posing as an Israeli intelligence officer.
Elliot Doxer, 43, admitted at a plea hearing in federal court in Boston to providing trade secrets from Cambridge-based Akamai Technologies Inc. over an 18-month period to the agent, the US Attorney’s Office for Massachusetts said in a statement.
The prosecutor’s office said Doxer believed the agent was an Israeli spy.
Doxer’s attorney, Thomas J. Butters, said his client “has accepted the responsibility for what he did and he looks forward to his sentencing so that he could put this matter behind him.”
Doxer accepted a plea deal that says he sent an email to the Israeli consulate in June 2006, while he worked in Akamai’s finance department, offering to provide any information he had access to that would help Israel in exchange for money. Doxer said in plea documents that his main goal was “to help our homeland and our war against our enemies.”
Israeli officials contacted US authorities about the offer. An FBI agent posed as an Israeli agent in September 2007 and arranged to use a “dead drop” location to exchange information with Doxer to avoid detection. From then until March 2009, Doxer visited the drop location at least 62 times and provided an extensive list of Akamai’s customers and employees, including their full contact information and details of contracts, according to the documents.
He also described Akamai’s physical and computer security systems to the agent and said he could travel to Israel and support special operations in his area if needed, according to the documents.
‘Information was never in danger’
Akamai, which provides remote or “cloud-based” services for its clients, previously said it cooperated with the FBI.
“Because Akamai’s information was disclosed only to an undercover agent from the beginning, the information was never in danger of actual exposure outside the company,” the US Attorney’s office said in a statement.
Authorities arrested Doxer in October 2010 and charged him with one count of wire fraud. That charge will be dismissed at the end of the case as part of the plea agreement.
Doxer faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, a three-year term of supervised release and a $500,000 fine at his November 30 sentencing.
“We acknowledge the Government of Israel for their cooperation in this investigation, and underscore that the information does not allege that the government of Israel or anyone acting on its behalf committed any offense under US laws in this case,” prosecutors said in a statement. “We would also like to acknowledge and thank Akamai Technologies Inc. for its assistance throughout all stages of the investigation and prosecution.”
