A White House staffer left a piece of paper with his encrypted email password at a bus stop in Washington, DC
Blunder comes in the midst of a staff shakeup tied to security issues
By Brennan Weiss
A White House staffer wrote down his passwords for an encrypted email service on White House stationery and left it at a bus stop in DC, The Intercept reported.
The piece of paper was found by a source who provided it to The Intercept, which verified its authenticity.
The email information on the stationery included log-in credentials for staffer Ryan McAvoy’s ProtonMail account. ProtonMail is an end-to-end encryption email service often used by journalists, people in politics, and others who regularly handle sensitive information.
It is unclear whether the blunder compromised any sensitive information.
The revelation comes as the White House is in the midst of a massive staff shakeup. Earlier this month, a number of West Wing staffers had their employment terminated or were reassigned because of pending issues with their security clearance forms.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is also reportedly planning to reshuffle individuals in the top ranks of his administration. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was fired last week and CIA director Mike Pompeo was tapped to take his spot. Trump selected deputy CIA director Gina Haspel to assume leadership of the agency following Pompeo’s departure. National security adviser H.R. McMaster, Veterans Affairs secretary David Shulkin, and Housing and Urban Development secretary Ben Carson are rumoured to be the next officials who will be shown the door.
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