MORE SOLARWINDS CONCERNS

A group of House and Senate lawmakers from Florida are looking for answers around the effect of last year’s SolarWinds breach on U.S. Attorneys’ Offices (USAOs) and on the way the Justice Department approaches cybersecurity.

The bipartisan group, led by Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland on Tuesday questioning him over reports earlier this year that the SolarWinds breach had impacted email servers of 27 USAOs around the country.

“The DOJ confirmed the breach affected 80 percent of Microsoft email accounts used by USAO employees in New York, but did not provide additional information on the extent of the hack or its effect on Florida USAOs or offices in other identified states,” the lawmakers wrote. “This announcement is alarming as USAO email servers contain highly sensitive information.”

The Northern District of Florida was among the U.S. Attorney’s Offices that had email accounts compromised as part of the breach. The over a dozen lawmakers who signed the letter all represent Florida, where they noted that the offices are “responsible for the prosecution of some of the most significant federal crimes, including crimes related to drugs and trafficking.”