Author Archive
Policy
NSA has 2,000 fewer people now, meeting Trump-admin goal
The exact size of the agency’s workforce is not publicly known, but a fact sheet distributed by Maryland last year put it at 39,000.
Threats
Foreign spies see opportunity in fed workers' uncertainty, Army warns
The service's deputy chief for intelligence told more than a million soldiers, civilian employees, and family members to be on their guard.
Threats
At NSA, a leadership vacuum and staff cuts threaten operations and morale
"That’s what happens when your boss disappears, and then some of your lead unicorns also disappear,” one person said.
Policy
CyberCorps talent pipeline buckles under Trump hiring freezes
Federal logjams are keeping the scholarship program from delivering trained students to government cybersecurity positions.
Policy
Industry groups push to keep open-source measures in annual intelligence bill
But several elements of the intelligence community oppose the provisions in the House version of the Intelligence Authorization Act.
Policy
US cybersecurity is 'slipping' under Trump, says congressional commission
Cuts to agencies and the politicization of disinfo-tracking work have slowed or reversed progress toward goals set five years ago by the Cyberspace Solarium Commission 2.0.
Exclusive
Policy
Why were CISA staff reassigned to border security, immigration? Lawmakers want answers
Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., argues DHS violated the Antideficiency Act when it transferred staff to agencies focused on border security and deportation work.
Defense Systems
China: NSA has been hacking our national time systems for years
“NSA does not confirm nor deny allegations in the media regarding its operations,” an NSA official told Nextgov/FCW.
Policy
DHS tells hundreds of staffers: accept reassignment to border security, immigration—or face termination
The affected workers including some at CISA, FEMA, and the Coast Guard. Some have been given a week to respond.
Policy
Denied in July, DHS intelligence office resumes efforts to shed staff
After stakeholders scuttled dramatic cuts, the Office of Intelligence and Analysis is quietly offering buyouts instead.
Threats
Shutdown would curtail long-term intelligence work at DOD
Routine spying activities conducted by NSA, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, and others would continue, but some forward-looking intelligence planning would be halted, a department document shows.
Featured eBooks
Threats
Shutdown could erode cyber defenses by sidelining critical staff, experts warn
And it would happen just as a bedrock law on sharing cyber threat data expires.
Policy
Senators call for election-security briefing from intel chief
“We are concerned that you may have directed the Intelligence Community (IC) to cease its intelligence reporting on this vital topic,” the senators wrote to the DNI.
Policy
‘Whole-of-nation’ effort needed to deter nation-state hackers, new White House cyber director says
The U.S. “must send a message this behavior is unacceptable” and will come at a cost, Sean Cairncross said.
Threats
Salt Typhoon hackers targeted over 80 countries, FBI says
The Chinese campaign appears to have reached beyond the telecom industry to transportation and military infrastructure, officials said Wednesday.
Threats
Documents detail China's AI-powered propaganda push
A trove of documents from a Chinese firm reveal influence operations that run at unprecedented speed and precision, Vanderbilt University researchers say.
Threats
Small defense firms are tempting targets for nation-state hackers: NSA
Some 80% of contractors are relatively small, said the NSA’s head of defense-industry security, who has helped hundreds of them spot thousands of vulnerabilities in their systems.
Policy
Are CISA cuts making America safer? Current and former officials clash at hacker conference
CISA's spokesperson backed the narrowing of the cyber agency’s scope, while a former NSA leader said it lowers the country's defenses.
Threats
Malicious states are working to weaponize open-source software: report
Chinese, Russian, and North Korean-affiliated hackers are working to insert vulnerabilities into widely used software, Strider Technologies says.
Policy
NSA general counsel removed; Laura Loomer cites involvement
The firing of April Falcon Doss is the latest NSA departure fueled by the far-right activist, who previously took credit for the firing of the spy agency’s director.
