L3Harris Trenchant Former Executive Pleads Guilty to Selling Zero-Day Exploits to Russian Buyer
Published
- Insider threat: Peter Williams, an Australian national and former general manager for a U.S. defense contractor, pleaded guilty to two counts of theft of trade secrets.
- Sensitive data sold: Over a 3-year period, Williams stole and sold at least 8 sensitive cyber-exploit components to a Russian cyber-tools broker.
- Significant consequences: The theft represents a loss of over $35 million to the company and carries a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for each count.
Peter Williams, a former general manager for an American defense contractor, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to charges of stealing and selling valuable trade secrets. This significant national security breach involved at least eight sensitive cyber-exploit components.
British business records identify Williams as the former general manager of L3Harris Trenchant, an aerospace and defense technology company, from October 2024 until his resignation in August 2025.
Nature of the Stolen Defense Contractor Trade Secrets
U.S. prosecutors filed charges on October 14 that accused Williams of stealing at least eight trade secrets belonging to two unnamed companies between April 2022 and August, 2025, in exchange for $1.3 million, seeking the forfeiture of assets such as a house in Washington, D.C., and various luxury items such as watches and jewelry.
Williams, an Australian national, admitted to systematically exfiltrating proprietary, national security-focused software from his employer’s network over a three-year period, from approximately 2022 to 2025.
According to the Department of Justice, the stolen material consisted of sophisticated cyber-exploit tools intended for exclusive sale to the U.S. government and select allied nations. Peter Williams, 39, illicitly sold these assets to a Russian cyber broker that openly advertises its services to various clients, including the Russian government.
This action provided non-allied foreign actors with advanced cyber capabilities. Williams transferred the components through encrypted channels in exchange for the promise of millions of dollars in cryptocurrency, which he then used for personal high-value purchases.
The economic loss to the D.C.-based company is estimated to be over $35 million.
TechCrunch recently reported that an ex-Trenchant employee, who “until recently built surveillance technologies for the company,” said they were fired by Williams on allegedly false suspicions of stealing Chrome zero-days.
Legal Ramifications and National Security Implications
The Peter Williams guilty plea highlights the severe consequences of insider threats within the defense industrial base. Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg emphasized that the conduct was a deliberate betrayal that imperiled national security for personal gain.
The Trenchant division at L3Harris develops spyware, exploits, and zero-days, and sells to the governments of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the U.S., and the U.K., which are part of the Five Eyes alliance.
The case underscores law enforcement's ongoing efforts to pursue individuals who sell U.S. technology to international brokers that support foreign adversaries. Williams now faces a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each of the two counts.
A former CIA analyst pleaded guilty in January 2025 to publicly disclosing top-secret data on social media.
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