WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd June, 2021) A group of House committee chairs jointly sent a series of letters to the US Inspectors General, urging them to review the security risks posed by increased government remote working throughout the pandemic, Representative Jamie Raskin said in a press release on Wednesday.
"The widespread use of virtual private networks and other remote-access technologies to facilitate continuity of operations across the Federal government allowed federal agencies to continue to serve the nation throughout a deadly pandemic but also created additional cybersecurity vulnerabilities that could jeopardize the integrity of federal information technology networks," the chairs said.
The congressional leadership involved includes Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform Carolyn B. Maloney; Chairman of the Subcommittee on National Security Stephen F. Lynch; Chairman of the Subcommittee on Government Operations Gerald E. Connolly; Chairman of the Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy Raja Krishnamoorthi; Chairman of the Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Jamie Raskin; and Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Environment Ro Khanna.
Back in 2016, the National Institute of Standards and Technology warned that telework poses major security concerns including a lack of physical security controls, the use of unsecured networks, the connection of infected devices to internal networks, and the availability of internal resources to external hosts.
The letters come amid an uptick in cyberattacks against the US government and private companies, including the microsoft Exchange and SolarWinds hacks, as well as ransomware attacks on Colonial Pipeline and meat producer JBS Foods.
