Notorious Hacker “IntelBroker” (Kai West) Arrested & Charged in US: $25M Damages, Traced by Crypto
A British citizen has been formally charged in the United States for orchestrating large-scale cyberattacks and trafficking in stolen confidential data, resulting in an estimated $25 million in damages. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the individual in question is 25-year-old Kai West, a resident of the United Kingdom, better known online by his alias, IntelBroker.
Investigators allege that West engaged for several years in cyber intrusions targeting government agencies, corporations, and critical infrastructure around the world. The stolen data was routinely sold on the hacking forum BreachForums, where IntelBroker was regarded as a key figure. Among the compromised materials were medical records, internal documents from telecommunications and cybersecurity firms, and user data from various online platforms.
IntelBroker has been linked to several major data breaches in recent years, including attacks on Europol, General Electric, Weee!, AMD, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Nokia, and DC Health Link—the medical insurance platform of the District of Columbia. He has also been associated with the leak of personal information belonging to members of the U.S. Congress.
According to the indictment, in January 2023, an undercover FBI agent purchased a stolen API key from IntelBroker. The transaction was conducted via a cryptocurrency address that investigators traced to a Ramp account registered under Kai West’s driver’s license. Further digital footprints led to a Coinbase account linked to the same email and the alias “Kyle Northern”—one of West’s known alter egos. This email account contained billing records, university correspondence, and a photograph of his driver’s license, conclusively confirming his identity.
U.S. authorities have brought four charges against West: conspiracy to commit computer intrusions, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and unauthorized access to protected computer systems. Three of these charges carry maximum penalties of up to 25 years in prison.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, IntelBroker’s activities have inflicted over $25 million in damages, affecting dozens of organizations and individuals across the globe. U.S. officials have requested West’s extradition, following his arrest by French law enforcement in February 2025.
In parallel, French media reported a series of coordinated arrests this week, as police detained four suspected operators of BreachForums. IntelBroker himself had previously served as an administrator of the forum but stepped down from the role in January of this year.
Among IntelBroker’s most infamous breaches was the attack on DC Health Link, which triggered congressional hearings after the personal data of House members and staff was exposed. Another high-profile case linked to him was the breach of General Electric, during which sensitive DARPA military project data—including SQL databases, technical documents, and strategic reports—was exfiltrated.
