In a release concerning the breach, OPM indicated that it is working with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to determine the full impact to federal personnel. OPM is also providing credit report access and monitoring to affected employees, as well as identity theft insurance to those affected.
This most recent attack, in addition to two others at the White House and the State Department, have renewed calls by lawmakers to boost national cyber defenses. House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Adam Schiff (D-CA) took to twitter, saying that it is “clear a substantial improvement in our cyber databases & defenses is perilously overdue.” Schiff noted that the House has passed cybersecurity legislation, and he urged his colleagues in the Senate to do the same.
Recently, the House passed two bills, H.R. 1560 and H.R. 1731, that would improve federal cybersecurity defense capabilities, as well as facilitate cyber threat information-sharing among the government and private sector. The Senate Intelligence Committee reported its version of such legislation in March, but it is unclear when the measure may be brought to the floor for debate.