An Ontario man who claims to have ties to hacktivist group Anonymous is facing charges in Canada and the United States in connection with a 2021 data theft from the Texas Republican Party.
Oshawa resident Aubrey Cottle, 37, who goes by the online alias “Kirtaner,” has been charged by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) as part of a cybercrime investigation and is also facing several charges in the United States.
The OPP has released limited information due to a publication ban, but the U.S. Attorney’s office in Texas said Cottle is suspected of unlawfully accessing a third-party hosting company’s computer system to alter and download a backup of the Texas Republican Party’s web server, which included personal identifying information. …