CBO director testifies that hackers have been expelled from email systems

Summary

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) director, Phillip Swagel, told the House Budget Committee that hackers have been removed from a subset of CBO email systems after a sophisticated cyberattack detected two weeks earlier. Swagel said the agency “has not observed further evidence of unauthorised access to CBO email” and that CBO operations and its legislative support work are continuing without interruption.

The investigation is ongoing with federal partners and private-sector security specialists assisting, though Swagel did not name the firms. He declined to provide further details in public, saying more information will be shared behind closed doors. House leadership and other agencies including the House, Senate and U.S. Capitol Police have been involved in the recovery effort. The Washington Post reported the attackers may have accessed messages and chats between Congressional offices.

Key Points

CBO detected a sophisticated cyberattack that gave a threat actor access to a subset of CBO email.
Agency officials report hackers have been expelled and no further unauthorised access to email has been observed.
CBO says core operations and support for Congress continue without interruption.
An extensive investigation is underway with federal partners and unnamed private security firms assisting.
Congressional offices were reportedly cautious communicating with CBO in the week after the breach due to potential exposure of messages and chats.

Why should I read this?

Short version: this affects how Congress gets its budget advice and suggests a foreign-capable actor hit systems that touch lawmakers. If you care about government tech, information security or how legislative business keeps running under attack, this is relevant — and you’ll want the follow-up from the closed-door briefings.

Author style

Punchy: This isn’t just another IT outage. The CBO is central to congressional decision-making — any breach that touches Congressional communications is serious. Read the detail if you care about national-level cyber resilience and oversight.

Context and Relevance

The incident highlights persistent threats to federal agencies and the risk to communications between agencies and lawmakers. It follows a pattern of sophisticated intrusions affecting US institutions, emphasising the need for strengthened defences, timely disclosure, and cross-agency coordination. For readers tracking cybersecurity trends, federal risk posture, or legislative continuity, the CBO’s response and forthcoming closed-door updates are important signals.

Source

Source: https://therecord.media/congressional-budget-office-director-testifies-hackers-expelled