Press Releases

Today, Rep. Gerald E. Connolly, Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Rep. Shontel Brown, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation, and Rep. Yassamin Ansari led all Committee Democrats in sending a letter to Deputy Inspectors General Sciurba, Vint, Erickson, Shoemaker, and Rocque and Inspector General Martin, expressing urgent concerns regarding recent reports that unauthorized individuals associated with Elon Musk or the “DOGE” effort have gained access to protected government networks and sensitive data at the Department of the Treasury, the General Services Administration (GSA), the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

This letter advances Oversight Democrats’ work to protect Americans’ safety, security, and personal data by ensuring the Trump Administration and “DOGE” are adhering to critical cybersecurity and privacy laws.

“We are writing to express urgent concerns regarding recent reports that unauthorized individuals have gained access to protected government networks and sensitive, potentially classified data, including at the Department of the Treasury, the General Services Administration (GSA), the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID),” wrote the Members.  “These reports raise serious questions about the security protocols in place to safeguard sensitive government information and the potential for unauthorized access and misuse by private citizens without requisite clearance or any legitimate reason to access this information.  Given the scope of these concerns, we strongly encourage you to coordinate across the inspector general community to address these potential threats to national security.”

Oversight Democrats underscored the importance of the Offices of Inspectors General, following President Trump’s attempted unlawful late-night purge of independent inspectors general which was quickly condemned by Ranking Member Connolly and all House Ranking Members.

“Offices of Inspectors General are more important than ever.  Congress and the American people rely on you to remain dogged and steadfast in your pursuit of truth without regard to political affiliation.  As such, we urge you to fulfill your duties as non-partisan watchdogs, appropriately issue management alerts as relevant, and assess the potential security breaches across the federal government due to Mr. Musk and his teams’ actions,” the Members concluded.

To assess whether agencies followed appropriate protocol for conducting privacy impact assessments, Committee Democrats urged responsiveness to detailed requests for information included in their letter.

Click here to read the full letter.