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By: FEDweek StaffThe prolonged partial government shutdown may have compromised the security of agency websites and IT in general, a leading senator on cybersecurity issues has said, asking DHS for an assessment of the possible damage.
“One of the many areas where this unnecessary shutdown had dramatic consequences on our nation’s ability to defend against cyber-based threats. These threats come from a range of malicious actors, are constantly evolving, and are unrelenting,” said Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee.
He said that during the shutdown, the DHS Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency “was forced to suspend crucial efforts to protect our cybersecurity and infrastructure. Also hindered was the FBI’s ability to conduct cyber investigations. Some agents reported lacking the funds to pay their confidential human sources, therefore losing critical information and irreplaceable sources.”
He cited reports that during the shutdown the security certificates expired on more than 100 federal websites as well as a DHS warning to agencies last week about “a series of incidents involving Domain Name System infrastructure tampering, which had impacted multiple executive branch domains, allowing attackers to intercept and redirect web and mail traffic.”
Warner also pointed out that the first breaches of OPM databases that ultimately resulted in the theft of personal information on more than 20 million federal employees and others occurred just after the previous prolonged shutdown in late 2013.
He asked DHS for information on any increase in attempted attacks during the shutdown, the number of cyber workers furloughed, how it will take for suspended cybersecurity related contracts to be renewed, and more.
