A cybersecurity company faked hacks and extorted clients to buy its services, according to an ex-employee

In a federal court this week, Richard Wallace, a former investigator at cybersecurity company Tiversa, said the company routinely engaged in fraud — and mafia-style shakedowns. To scare potential clients, Tiversa would typically make up fake data breaches, Wallace said. Then it pressured firms to pay up. “Hire us or face the music,” Wallace said on Tuesday.