FBI Director Kash Patel’s merchandise site taken offline after malware breach
The shutdown coincides with a separate data exposure involving Trump Mobile, highlighting ongoing cybersecurity vulnerabilities among MAGA-associated ventures.
The merchandise website for Based Apparel, owned by FBI Director Kash Patel, was taken offline on Friday following reports that the site had been hijacked by hackers. The incident, first reported by Straight Arrow News, involves an attempt to distribute malicious software to visitors. As of the time of publication, the site remains inaccessible.
An X user identified as 'Debbie' first flagged the security breach on Thursday, noting the presence of an infostealer on the brand’s website. This type of malicious software is designed to infect victims and steal credentials and passwords. A security researcher subsequently analysed the malware found on the site to confirm the nature of the threat.
Attempts to contact Based Apparel for comment were unsuccessful. TechCrunch emailed a Gmail address previously associated with Patel but received no response. It remains unclear whether the hackers successfully distributed malware to visitors before the site was taken offline, or the specific identity of those responsible for the hijacking.
The breach coincides with a separate cybersecurity incident involving Trump Mobile, which confirmed on Friday that customer personal information had been left exposed online. The data exposure included names, email addresses, mailing addresses, cell numbers, and order identifiers. This confirmation came days after a researcher alerted two YouTubers who had purchased the phone that their personal data was exposed on the internet.
The dual incidents underscore a broader pattern of security challenges for MAGA-associated business ventures. The Trump Mobile data exposure highlights the risks associated with unsecured data storage, while the Based Apparel hack demonstrates the vulnerabilities of e-commerce platforms to active intrusion attempts.
