On February 2, Forward Defense and Rafik Hariri Center nonresident senior fellow Thomas Warrick was quoted in a Reuters report titled “Exclusive: Suspected Chinese hackers used SolarWinds bug to spy on US payroll agency.” The report outlines a suspected Chinese breach of the US Department of Agriculture’s National Financial Center, which handles the payroll and W-2 of many civilian Federal agencies. Warrick is quoted on the grave threat posed by such a breach to US national security.

Depending on what data were compromised, this could be an extremely serious breach of security … It could allow adversaries to know more about US officials, improving their ability to collect intelligence.

Thomas Warrick
Forward Defense

Forward Defense, housed within the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, generates ideas and connects stakeholders in the defense ecosystem to promote an enduring military advantage for the United States, its allies, and partners. Our work identifies the defense strategies, capabilities, and resources the United States needs to deter and, if necessary, prevail in future conflict.

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