A newly unsealed whistleblower lawsuit accuses IBM and AT&T of concealing repeated breaches by foreign hackers. Former IBM vice president of threat intelligence William Barlow filed the complaint. He alleges the companies hid these intrusions from the U.S. government to secure and maintain federal contracts.
The lawsuit claims the hacks compromised a massive cloud computing infrastructure operated by AT&T for IBM. Numerous government agencies and the military utilize this specific system. Barlow alleges he faced pressure to cover up the breaches and that both companies provided false security assurances.
The suit was originally filed under seal in 2020. It became public after the U.S. Department of Justice declined to intervene. An IBM spokesperson noted the complaint's age and the DOJ's decision not to participate.