Capitol Police Left Congressional IT Systems Vulnerable for 5 Months https://t.co/Eq99puS69S via @epochtimes

— Luke Rosiak (@lukerosiak) June 13, 2018

A delayed response by Capitol Police after thousands of suspicious logins had been discovered on congressional systems left the data of at least 59 U.S. Representatives vulnerable for five months. In September 2016, the House Office of Inspector General informed the House leadership and the Committee on House Administration (CHA) that five IT workers had made thousands of suspicious log ins to the Democratic Caucus server and three of its workstations. The IT workers, who worked for a combined 44 House Democrats, also made unauthorized logins into the systems of 15 Democratic representatives they did not work for. Four of the IT workers—Imran Awan, Abid Awan, Hina Alvi Awan, and Jamal Awan—belong to the same family, while the fifth IT worker, Rao Abbas, was someone to whom Abid Awan owed money. In a second briefing, on Sept. 30, 2016, the inspector general warned the House leadership of “continuing unauthorized access.” The next month, in October 2016, the investigation was moved by the House leadership from the inspector general to Capitol Police. It was not until Feb. 2, 2017, however, that the House sergeant at arms banned the five IT workers from the House network, leaving congressional IT systems vulnerable for five months.