Democrat Senator Office Computers Breached by Keylogging Device

Who: New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan

# of Accounts Breached: Undetermined – Six Staff Computers

What was affected:
– dozens of usernames and passwords belonging to Senate employees
– tens of thousands of emails and internal documents
– credit card information belonging to Senate employees
– social security numbers belonging to Senate employees
– personally identifying information belonging to hundreds of other persons (presumably constituents)
– private phone numbers and home addresses of senators

When it happened: Between July and October 2018

How it happened: The plot included the installation of tiny “keylogging” devices that picked up every keystroke. Between July and October 2018, former IT aide Jackson Cosko worked with an unnamed accomplice, a then-current Hassan employee, who repeatedly lent him a key that he used to enter the office at night and who allegedly tried to destroy evidence for him.

Outcome: Cosko pleaded guilty to five felonies including witness intimidation and obstruction of justice. The maximum sentence was 55 years in prison, but guidelines call for three to four years. He agreed not to seek a term shorter than two years as part of the plea agreement. He could also face a fine of up to $200,000 and possible restitution to Hassan’s office.
Prosecutors declined to say whether the accomplice will be prosecuted, ​Hassan’s office did not return a request for comment.