DoJ: Uncle Sam bought forensics software from same Russian operation supplying FSB
Russian devs alleged to have built tools for US agencies as software from same op was sold to Moscow's security services
The Department of Justice (DoJ) in the United States has arrested and charged two Russians, Lee Reiber and Oleg Sergeyevich Davydov, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The DoJ alleges that these two individuals, along with five other Russian nationals, were behind a company called Oxygen Forensics, which sold digital forensics software to various US government agencies.
The prosecution claims that Oxygen Forensics falsely presented itself as an independent US company, when in reality it was owned and controlled by the Russian nationals through a Cyprus-based holding company. The same Russian development team also supplied software to the FSB, Russian Investigative Committee, and Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The DoJ claims that after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the scheme became more brazen, with Reiber installed as Oxygen's CEO, president, and chairman, while the Russian owners controlled the company's decisions from behind the scenes. The case has been further complicated by Oxygen Forensics' ongoing contract with the National Computer Forensics Institute (NCFI) of the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The DoJ is seeking Reiber's extradition and plans to seek his conviction, with both men potentially facing up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
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