Mass federal layoffs will have “devastating impact on cybersecurity, former NSA cybersecurity director warns

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A Select Committee has heard concerns from a former NSA cybersecurity chief
Rob Joyce has warned layoffs will have a devastating affect on National Security
Over 100,000 federal workers have been made redundant or taken retirement

The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party has been told by the former National Security Agency (NSA) director of cybersecurity how culling workers from federal departments will have a “devastating impact” on national security and cybersecurity.

Over 100,000 federal workers have been laid off or have taken early retirement as part of the new administration’s plans to drastically downsize the federal government workforce. This includes more than 130 positions cut from the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA).

“I want to raise my grave concerns that the aggressive threats to cut U.S. government probationary employees will have a devastating impact on the cybersecurity and our national security,” Joyce said.

Slashed budgets

Probationary staff, or staff who have been with their government agency for under a year, were almost all eliminated in this round of layoffs, which Joyce argues will “destroy a pipeline of top talent responsible for hunting and eradicating [China backed] threats”.

A Federal judge in San Francisco has since deemed these layoffs illegal and has ordered agencies to rescind the directives - with some Republicans reportedly urging Musk in private to consult Congress on the cuts.

It should be mentioned that these cuts have largely come at the hands of Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Most recently, the tech billionaire orchestrated the shutdown of tech unit 18F, a department of software engineers and strategists which serviced the General Services Administration, developing login systems and public-facing IT services.

Musk is an unelected official, and his plans to slash federal spending have also attracted a wave of lawsuits following privacy complaints, as the department allegedly accessed "extraordinarily sensitive” federal worker details.

Via TechCrunch

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Ellen has been writing for almost four years, with a focus on post-COVID policy whilst studying for BA Politics and International Relations at the University of Cardiff, followed by an MA in Political Communication. Before joining TechRadar Pro as a Junior Writer, she worked for Future Publishing’s MVC content team, working with merchants and retailers to upload content.