ExxonMobil Lobbying Firm Reportedly Investigated Over Cyberattack Targeting Climate Accountability Advocates

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (December 4, 2024)-A longtime ExxonMobil lobbying firm, DCI Group, is reportedly being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for its potential involvement in the "Dark Basin" spear phishing operation that targeted thousands of people around the world, including staff at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). UCS, along with other public interest groups that were subject to the attacks, has been working for years to expose the decadeslong campaign by ExxonMobil and other fossil fuel companies to spread disinformation about the climate crisis and delay climate action.

While ExxonMobil has not been publicly implicated in the illegal hacking operation, the corporation repeatedly used the hacked material in defending itself against climate accountability lawsuits filed by cities and states across the United States. DCI also reportedly shared information stolen through the hacking operation with ExxonMobil before leaking it to the media. ExxonMobil reportedly ended its contract with DCI in 2020, after the hacking investigation became public.

Below is a statement by Kathy Mulvey, director of the climate accountability campaign at UCS.

"UCS has worked for years to hold fossil fuel companies accountable for their decades of climate disinformation. The malicious 'Dark Basin' cybercrime underscores what's at stake for powerful fossil fuel interests-and for anyone who speaks out about their malfeasance and the massive harm it has caused.

"Efforts by prosecutors and investigative journalists to uncover who initiated and paid for the 'Dark Basin' hacking scheme are important to advance justice and send a message to bad actors that there are consequences for attempting to chill science-based advocacy.

"We urge law enforcement to follow the money to the source of this crime, which hindered climate advocacy to the benefit of ExxonMobil. Bringing more evidence and findings into the public domain will serve the public interest, particularly as cases seeking to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for climate deception and damages make their way through courts in the United States and around the world.

"In the meantime, UCS will continue working with partners to stop the fossil fuel industry and its enablers from spreading disinformation, greenwashing, and lobbying to delay or block climate action. The best available science is clear-a fair, fast phaseout of fossil fuels is necessary to build a healthier, safer and more just world. Scare tactics, delay maneuvers, and other abuses of power by Big Oil won't change this immutable fact."

Additional details about the "Dark Basin" attack can be found in a report published by The Citizen Lab, a cybersecurity watchdog group at the University of Toronto.