A former CIA software engineer has been charged over the biggest theft of classified information in CIA history.

Joshua Schulte says that the CIA and FBI made him a scapegoat for an embarrassing public release of a trove of CIA secrets by WikiLeaks in 2017.

The so-called ‘’Vault 7’ leak detailed how the CIA has hacked Apple and Android smartphones in overseas spying operations and efforts to turn internet-connected televisions into listening devices. 

Prior to his arrest, Mr Schulte had helped create the hacking tools as a coder at the agency's headquarters in Langley, Virginia.

Prosecutors allege that the 33-year-old Schulte orchestrated the leak because he believed the CIA had disrespected him by ignoring his complaints about the work environment. They said he tried “to burn to the ground” the very work he had helped the agency to create.

Mr Schulte is also accused of continuing his crimes by trying to leak additional classified materials from prison, carrying on an “information war” against the government.

Representing himself, Mr Schulte told jurors he was singled out even though “hundreds of people had access to (the information) … Hundreds of people could have stolen it”. 

“The government's case is riddled with reasonable doubt,” he added. 

“There's simply no motive here.”

US Attorney David Denton claimed there is plenty of proof that Mr Schulte pilfered a sensitive backup computer file.

“He's the one who broke into that system,” Mr Denton said. 

“He's the one who took that backup, the backup he sent to WikiLeaks.”

Once the jury got the case, US District Judge Jesse Furman complimented Mr Schulte on his closing argument.

“Mr. Schulte, that was impressively done,” the judge said with jurors out of the courtroom. “Depending on what happens here, you may have a future as a defense lawyer.”