U.S. lawmakers urge sanctions against Indian hack-for-hire firms

A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers has urged the Department of Commerce to place three Indian hack-for-hire firms on the “Entity List” to restrict their access to critical technology. The lawmakers, including Senators Ron Wyden and Sheldon Whitehouse and Representative Pat Harrigan, sent a letter to Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick requesting sanctions against BellTroX, CyberRoot, and Sunkissed Organic Farms (formerly known as Appin).

The lawmakers accuse these companies of conducting cyberattacks and espionage against Americans, business owners, and legal representatives for over a decade. According to the letter, these mercenary hacking operations have been used to “manipulate ongoing litigation” and conduct “aggressive censorship campaigns” to suppress public awareness of their activities.

By adding these firms to the Entity List, the U.S. government would effectively bar domestic businesses from transacting with them. This measure aims to disrupt the companies' supply chains by limiting their access to essential resources such as software licenses, hosting services, and cloud infrastructure.