WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department said on Friday it had made administrative settlements with three former U.S. intelligence agents who spied online for the United Arab Emirates and admitted last year to violating U.S. hacking laws. Under the settlements, Mark Baer, ​​Ryan Adams and Daniel Jeriche will be barred from participating directly or indirectly in any activities subject to the International Trade in Arms Regulations for a period of three years, the department said in a statement. The three agents belonged to a secret unit called Project Raven, first reported by Reuters, that helped the UAE spy on human rights activists, journalists and governments. According to US federal court filings published in September, the three men admitted hacking into US computer networks and exporting sophisticated hacking tools without the required permission from the US government. The State Department said in a statement that its administrative settlements with the three men "address the charge of providing unauthorized defense services, including systems, equipment, and software designed specifically for intelligence purposes." The International Trade in Arms Regulations are a set of US arms export restrictions that allow Washington to prevent the re-export of sensitive US components embedded in foreign arms. Neither the three men nor their lawyers could be reached for comment.