The extent of the cyberdamage caused by China-based hackers who hit the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is not yet known. But following the recently publicized information about the 2010 attack, the message to in-house counsel is clear: Protect yourselves.

A D.C. federal judge has issued a final judgment of nearly $1.2 billion in compensatory and punitive damages against the government of Iran for its role in the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut, writing that the defendants “must be punished to the fullest extent legally possible.”

The U.S. Justice Department said on Monday that it recorded more than $3 billion in settlements and judgments in fraud cases against the government in 2011, pushing the total amount covered since January 2009 to $8.7 billion. The bulk of the $3 billion flowed from the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act.

The SEC on Friday charged six former top executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — including their ex-CEOs — with securities fraud, alleging that they knowingly approved misleading statements about the government-sponsored entities’ holdings of risky mortgages. Both Fannie and Freddie entered into non-prosecution agreements with the SEC and agreed to cooperate with the litigation against the former executives. See related story: SEC Suits Against Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Execs May Turn on Subprime Loan Definition (Subscription access)

Saying the government “effectively snookered” the defense, a D.C. federal judge on Thursday criticized prosecutors for litigation tactics in a foreign bribery case that kept defense lawyers in the dark about key notes that belong to a government witness.