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Espionage concerns rise as Donald Trump, Elon Musk lay off thousands of federal agents: Most are patriots but…’
Fired employees could give away helpful security secrets that would allow someone to penetrate government databases or physical offices.
President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk have been cutting down on costs associated to the US government by laying off thousands of federal government employees, however, their endeavour has left the country vulnerable to the threat of espionage.
Several thousand people with insider knowledge, sensitive information and government connections, now desperately need a job, which could come from the country's adversaries.
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While poaching informants from government agencies or former government employees is common, after Musk's DOGE has axed entire departments full of employees, an unprecedented opportunity has opened up for different countries, businesses or entities which may want access to American intelligence.
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Former White House chief information officer Theresa Payton, who worked under President George W Bush, spoke to Associated Press in her capacity as a cybersecurity expert and said, “This information is highly valuable, and it shouldn’t be surprising that Russia and China and other organizations — criminal syndicates for instance — would be aggressively recruiting government employees."
How can ex-government employees endanger national security?
Not only intelligence officers, but federal employees across departments have access to information that could be harmful in the wrong hands. Former employees could give away information which could help external forces penetrate government databases or physical offices as well.
Former counterintelligence officer John Schindler told AP, "This happens even in good times; someone in the intelligence community who for personal financial or other reasons walks into an embassy to sell America out but DOGE is taking it to a whole new level.”
“Someone is going to go rogue. It’s just a question of how bad it will be,” he added.
Theresa Payton also said that most former employees are “conscientious patriots who would never sell out their country,” however even a single person could deal severe damage.
This has been made easier through online methods, where consultants from fake companies can find and target former government employees to work for them.
While federal employees who are trusted with national secrets typically undergo background checks, training, exit interviews and more to prevent leaks, those who don't necessarily fall under the intelligence category can be easily targeted and used.
Frank Montoya Jr, a retired senior FBI official and former US government counterintelligence executive, said, “When it comes to the theft of intellectual property, when it comes to the theft of sensitive technology, when it comes to access to power grids or to financial systems, an IRS guy or a Social Service guy who’s really upset about what DOGE is doing, they actually are the bigger risk."
He added, “We have seen over the last generation, the last 20–25 years, the Chinese and the Russians increasingly have been targeting non-national defense and non-classified information, because it helps them modernize their military, it helps them modernize their infrastructure."
