Iran-linked hackers have successfully gained access to the “personal emails” of the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Kash Patel.

The hackers shared photographs and documents of Mr Patel on the internet from the United States.

Photos of Mr Patel, claimed to have been taken from his email account, have been circulating on social media, with the hackers’ logo added as a watermark.

Known as Handala Hack, the group of hackers announced in a statement on Friday that, “This is just our beginning.”

It added in the statement that “so-called ‘impenetrable’ systems of the FBI were brought to their knees within hours by our team.

“This is the security that the US government boasts about?! This is the cyber giant that thinks threats and bribes can silence the voice of resistance?!”

According to a BBC report, the FBI said it was aware of malicious actors targeting Mr Patel’s email information.

“The information in question is historical in nature and involves no government information.”

The FBI is already offering up to $10 million (£7.5m) for information that helps in tracking the hackers.

In 2024, Mr Patel’s private communications were reportedly breached a few weeks prior to his appointment as head of the FBI.

However, it is not clear if that breach was different from the one claimed by the Handala group.

Last week, the US Justice Department reportedly seized several Handala domain names.

It, however, added that they were involved in hacking schemes linked to the Islamic Republic of Iran.