Defense
Trump’s Pentagon-personnel nominee wants to curb DOGE data access
But Anthony Tata, a retired Army general, couldn’t outrun past inflammatory and social media posts during his confirmation hearing.
Tech
Top intelligence lawmaker fears China may exploit DOGE’s changes to government
Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., also called out the Trump administration on the recent firing of NSA Director Timothy Haugh, a move he viewed as “puzzling.”
Tech
User with Russian IP address tried to log into NLRB systems following DOGE access, whistleblower says
The blocked login attempts, detailed in an extensive whistleblower complaint filed to the Senate Intelligence Committee and others, may indicate foreign adversaries have begun leveraging DOGE inroads into sensitive federal systems.
Management
How cyber vulnerabilities and workforce cuts threaten the crisis lifeline program
A bipartisan, bicameral measure is hoping to prevent cyber incidents from limiting access to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline after a 2022 attack on a system operator disrupted calls to the hotline.
Workforce
Top homeland security lawmaker calls for cautious cuts to CISA
“We have to be very careful about who and what we cut, because [the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency] does have a mission to overwatch our critical infrastructure and make sure the bad guys aren’t getting in,” said Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn.
Workforce
CISA to make comprehensive staff cuts in coming days, people familiar say
The nation’s premier cybersecurity agency, which sits in the Department of Homeland Security, has been in the Trump administration’s crosshairs for some time.
Management
Trump order put states at the forefront of cyber and natural disaster response
The executive order signed this week is part of a wider push to put the onus on states and localities to prepare for disasters, rather than the federal government.
Workforce
CISA works to contact probationary employees for reinstatement after court order
Trump officials have vowed to downsize the nation’s leading cybersecurity agency. Ex-officials have said the moves would be harmful to national security.
Tech
OPM skirted agency norms in assessing the privacy of its new email system
Anonymous federal employees filed a lawsuit alleging that the new email system could be placing their sensitive personal information at risk.
Exclusive
Transition
‘Robbery in progress': Small group protests at OPM over Musk allies’ access to federal employee personal data
Several associates of Elon Musk have been put in leadership positions at the Office of Personnel Management as well as the General Services Administration.
Tech
OPM awards $149M cyber, network operations support contract
The Office of Personnel Management wants to more heavily lean on cloud-based technologies and a zero trust approach.
Tech
US has ‘a lot of work to do’ on cyber defenses, departing cyber czar says
Outgoing National Cyber Director Harry Coker thinks his office needs more influence over the federal cyber budget but not necessarily more authority on offensive cyber operations.
Tech
Lawmakers request briefing from Treasury secretary on Chinese hack
The compromised third-party offering was a commercial remote services tool not listed in the marketplace for FedRAMP, the government’s cloud security compliance framework.
Pay & Benefits
Feds claims just 7% of available funds from OPM breach settlement, remainder returns to Treasury
Only a few thousand current federal workers, former employees and applicants cashed in from 2015 hack.
Tech
Chinese-sponsored hackers accessed Treasury documents in ‘major incident’
The incident comes in the final days of the Biden presidency and as officials work to root out China-tied hackers from U.S. telecommunications systems.
Tech
Could states’ cyber get trickier under a Trump administration?
Some Republicans have proposed eliminating CISA altogether, which could complicate information sharing efforts. More pressing, though, is the ending of federal cyber grants.
Oversight
Senators call for watchdog to investigate TSA’s use of facial recognition
In a letter to the Department of Homeland Security’s Inspector General, 12 senators warned that the deployment of facial biometrics at every U.S. airport could create “one of the largest federal surveillance databases overnight without authorization from Congress.”
Tech
Hackers nabbed emails between congressional staff and the Library of Congress
Affected staff were notified Friday afternoon, according to an internal email. Capitol Hill communications with the Congressional Research Service frequently involve confidential legislative drafts or policies still in the brainstorming stage.
Management
CISA Director Jen Easterly to depart on Inauguration Day
Easterly and Deputy Director Nitin Natarajan are set to leave as an administration change casts doubt on the agency’s future.
Tech