Security firm Tiversa refutes allegations of hacking and extorting potential clients

Last month we reported that Tiversa, a security firm, was being accused of fraud by one of its former employees, Richard Wallace. In his testament, Wallace claims that the company was hacking potential clients to force them to buy its services. The firm has reached out to us to share its side of the story and shed more light on the matter.

The testimony, provided by Wallace in front of a Washington DC courtroom, also accuses Bob Boback, the CEO of Tiversa, of making his employees look for IP addresses of known identity thieves utilizing the company's ties to law enforcement agencies. The firm would then present these addresses to potential clients to scare them.

In a statement to BetaNews, Tiversa tells us the past history of Wallace, pointing out several criminal offenses committed by him. The firm claims that since January 2014, Wallace has been arrested "seven times for child abuse, spousal abuse and drunk driving", wrecking his credibility.

Citing a story from CNET -- which was mentioned by Wallace in his testimony -- I noted in the report about the incidence where Tiversa had made national news for planting a fake story in which it said that Iran stole the blueprints of the President’s helicopter. The firm tells us that the Navy had revealed that they knew about the incident and confirmed that Tiversa’s information on Marine One were accurate.

Below is the full statement from the company:

I am writing to set the record straight about your recent article "Cybersecurity Firm Accused…" which is based on the testimony of a former Tiversa employee whom we believe committed perjury. The article could not be more wrong in its allegations against Tiversa.

First, without contacting Tiversa to check the facts, the article relied on the testimony Richard Wallace, who was dismissed from his job for cause due to his erratic behavior, concerns over workplace safety and instability. He is not an individual who can be trusted. Since January, 2014, Mr. Wallace has been arrested seven times for child abuse, spousal abuse and drunk driving. In fact, he is currently being punished under house arrest with electronic monitoring.

Mr. Wallace made several wildly inaccurate claims that were reported by your publication. None of his claims are supported by any evidence -- in writing or as corroborated by any other current or former Tiversa employees. That’s because his claims are complete fabrications.

While you reported Mr. Wallace’s claim that somehow Tiversa acted inappropriately in trying to help LabMD remediate a serious breach of patient medical records, the fact that LabMD CEO Michael Daugherty admits that a LabMD employee installed file sharing software on a company computer went largely unreported.

Mr. Wallace also made false statements suggesting that Tiversa fabricated information about the President’s helicopter being exposed and found on an Iranian IP address. In fact, it has been publicly reported that the Navy conducted its own investigation and has said Tiversa’s information on Marine One was accurate.

You also reported Mr. Wallace’s inaccurate claims that Tiversa provided information about data breaches to the FTC as a means of retribution. The facts tell another story. Tiversa, through an entity called the Privacy Institute, provided information to the FTC as it was required to do by law. The FTC set the terms and Tiversa complied. Contrary to the insinuations in your article, the list Tiversa provided to the FTC did include Tiversa customers.

Tiversa works hard to protect our clients from the risks of cyber breaches and we do so properly. We’re proud of who we are and what we do. Your readers deserve all the facts.

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