A report last year identified card readers that were incorrectly configured or broken, and the ability of individuals to access areas for which they don’t have clearance. Image: Andrew F. Kazmierski/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffThe inspector general’s office at the IRS has raised concerns about the security of agency facilities and employees, in a report that is as notable for how much it doesn’t reveal as for what it does reveal.
Large sections were redacted from the publicly available version—including many of the findings and recommendations and management’s response to them. But the sections not blacked out show for example that of 92 recommendations “to improve and/or repair existing security countermeasures, as well as address noncompliance issues” arising from an internal review of 34 facilities, a third “were still pending approval or funding” as of early last year.
Further, in visits to eight of those facilities, auditors “identified 11 additional security deficiencies that warrant the IRS’s attention” beyond those the internal review identified.
The 34 facilities were in the first phase of a broader review the agency ordered after a request by the NTEU union in mid-2022, citing “recent dangerous and false rhetoric” about the agency.
The report did not characterize the types of risks identified, but it described the standards used as similar to those from the Interagency Security Committee for reviews government-wide, covering topics such a physical protections and remote monitoring. An IG report issued last year said that flaws in physical security controls at IRS facilities included card readers that were incorrectly configured or broken, ability of individuals to access areas for which they don’t have clearance, and more.
The report added that the agency “provides and continues to revise enterprise-wide internal guidance and procedures to protect IRS employees who conduct face-to-face field visits and activities. This guidance includes actions they can take to mitigate the potential threat of violence when conducting official business away from an IRS facility. This includes how to prepare for meetings with taxpayers with safety and security being a priority; requesting an armed escort if determined necessary; and reporting threats and assaults,” it said.
Last year for example the agency generally ended the practice of having revenue officers make unannounced visits to taxpayers, out of concern for their safety.
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