The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has placed several members of its election security team on administrative leave, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed with TechCrunch.
The Associated Press reported Tuesday that 17 CISA employees had postponed the screening and placed on leave, citing people familiar with the situation.
In a statement to TechCrunch, Tricia McLaughlin, deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), confirmed that CISA employees working on foreign influence and disinformation have been placed on administrative leave. did.
McLaughlin did not confirm how many employees were on leave, but did not dispute the 17 figures reported by the Associated Press.
“As Secretary Norm said during the confirmation hearing, CISA needs to refocus its mission and we are starting with election security,” McLaughlin told TechCrunch. “The agency is conducting assessments of how it carried out its election security mission, with a special focus on work related to false, fraud and deformity.
“Administrators are on administrative leave while conducting assessments, where personnel tackle mistakes, diss, and malicious formations, and foreign influence operations and disinformation.”
The affected employees worked with election officials to combat a variety of cybersecurity threats, including ransomware and the physical security of electoral workers. According to the Associated Press, 10 employees were local security election officials hired to enhance election security ahead of the 2024 election.
The reported move comes amidst uncertainty about the future of CISA, which was formed in 2018 during the first Trump administration. President Trump has not yet been appointed as an alternative to former CISA director Jen Easterly, who left the agency on January 20th.
When contacted for comment, CISA postponed to DHS.
Updated with comments from the Department of Homeland Security.
Source link
