More questions raised about OPM’s response to hack of background, personnel records database [View all]

[Bill USA]

[font size="+1"]... your consummately safe government computer systems at work...LOL![/font]



https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2016/05/26/more-questions-raised-about-opms-response-to-breaches-of-background-personnel-records/

A year after the government disclosed that personal information about millions of current and former federal employees and others had been stolen from two Office of Personnel Management databases, auditors remain skeptical of OPM’s steps to shut the cyber barn door.

“We continue to believe that there is a very high risk that the project will fail to meet its stated objectives of delivering a more secure environment at a lower cost,” the office of the agency’s inspector general said in a report issued Thursday.

The report is the latest in a series from the office criticizing OPM management for not carrying out standard planning steps for such a project, including exploring all the options first and fully understanding the project’s scope, its cost and how it will be funded.

The first of those reports shortly followed OPM’s acknowledgement of breaches of separate databases of federal employee personnel records and of background investigation records.

The former breach involved records of some 4.2 million current and former federal employees, including personal identifying information, educational background, work histories and similar information. The latter involved some 21.5 million current and former federal, military and contract personnel and others who had background investigations performed on them since 2000 and in some cases before. Those checks are performed for reasons including security clearance applications, which require disclosure of highly personal information such as financial or legal troubles, or to gain permission to enter certain government buildings.
(more)