404 Media reports that Apple provided the FBI with the identity of a user after he sent a threatening email to the FBI director’s girlfriend. Here are the details.
Apple revealed Hide My Email user after threat
Apple’s terms of service make it very clear that, under certain circumstances, the company will hand over user information to law enforcement authorities.
Apple also publishes twice-yearly transparency reports detailing how often this occurred and how it responded, with data broken down by country. The company has done this since 2013, although it has yet to release the report for the second half of 2025.
That said, one such case that will certainly figure in Apple’s report for the first half of 2026 is the case of Alden Ruml, who, based on a court document, used iCloud+’s Hide My Email feature (which is primarily used to curb spam) to anonymously send a threat to Alexis Wilkins, who is the girlfriend of Kash Patel, who is currently the FBI director.
The affidavit shows that upon receiving the threatening email, Wilkins contacted law enforcement, which in turn sent Apple a request for records associated with the iCloud alias referenced in the email.
Apple complied, providing the user’s name and their real iCloud email address. As it turns out, that was just one out of 134 email aliases the user had generated. Law enforcement then interviewed him, and he admitted to sending the message, ultimately leading to a grand jury charging him with transmitting a threat in interstate commerce.
Now, the FBI is seeking access to data stored on his devices. In the affidavit, agents request warrants to search his phones, including permission to use biometric unlocking and turn off security features such as Stolen Device Protection.
To read 404 Media’s report on the case, follow this link.
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