Posted on 02/24/2017 9:08:41 AM PST by Kaslin
In the midst of allegations of Russian ties to the Trump administration and in the aftermath of the hacking of Clinton campaign and Democratic National Committee emails, there is a new email scandal involving Democratic House members that could amount to a covert effort by foreign actors to penetrate the House of Representatives' computer system.
According to the Daily Caller, three brothers who managed information technology (IT) for Democratic House members – Abid, Imran, and Jamal Awan – were suspended on February 2, 2017 for serious misconduct, including accessing the computer accounts of House members without their knowledge and stealing equipment from Congress. Two other House IT staff – Imran Awan's wife, Hina Alvi, and a fifth unnamed person – also reportedly are under investigation.
The five IT staffers reportedly were “shared” staff for the personal offices of a dozen or more House Democrats. Some or all of the IT staffers reportedly had significant financial problems, including a repossessed car, bankruptcy and second mortgages.
This story suggests congressional Democrats learned nothing from last year’s hacking of Democratic computers. It also raises serious questions about the security of the House computer system.
The House reportedly only required background investigations of House IT staff in 2016. These investigations were to be applied retroactively to existing House IT staff unless a member signed a waiver attesting to their "trustworthiness and judgment."
If the suspended IT staffers were investigated and cleared, these background investigations are obviously worthless.
It would be a much more serious matter if the IT staffers were given waivers from background investigations by House Democratic members. If this is the case, the American people deserve to know the names of Democratic members of Congress who exempted these miscreants from background investigations.
So far there have been no reports that the five IT House staff members had access to classified material. However, they did support the personal office computers of Reps. Joaquin Castro, Andre Carson, and Jackie Spier, all members of the House Intelligence Committee. Although personal office computers are not supposed to be used for Intelligence Committee business or classified material, accessing these computers is a high priority for foreign intelligence services because of the information they could glean about the committee’s work from unclassified emails. (Some press reports have claimed the five IT staff members also had access to classified information and the House Intelligence Committee’s classified computer system. These reports are untrue.)
Were these IT staffers part of a plot by foreign actors to penetrate the House of Representatives and its computers? There has been speculation by some conservative journalists and experts that they may have had ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. A former CIA officer told me she worries that the three Awad brothers, who reportedly are Pakistani immigrants, may have ties to the Pakistani intelligence service, ISI.
No evidence has been made public on whether the IT staffers had any ties to foreign actors. However, it is difficult to believe this case was only about stealing computer equipment if press reports are true that the IT staffers illegally accessed the computers of members of Congress and stole data. The FBI needs to fully investigate whether this was an effort to penetrate the House computer system by a foreign intelligence service or a foreign jihadist organization.
Update: New concerns that this may have been an attempt by a foreign Jihadist organization to penetrate the House computer system arose this week in reports by The Daily Caller and The Daily Signal that the Awan brothers owed money to Dr. Ali al-Attar, an Iraqi political figure who allegedly has connections to Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed terrorist group.
Democratic House members have some difficult questions to answer about this case aside from which Democratic members may have granted the IT staffers waivers from background investigations. Which members originally hired these individuals? Who referred them? And why didn’t House Democrats tighten their computer security practices after the hacking of DNC and Clinton campaign emails last year?
The House Republican leadership needs to explain why it didn’t require background investigations for IT staff until last year and why it allowed waivers for existing IT staff. Has the waiver rule been abolished? If the IT staffers passed their background investigations, what is being done to toughen them to screen out people like this? The Senate’s Republican leadership should look into whether it has similar cyber vulnerabilities and take appropriate steps to address them if necessary.
While no evidence has been made public that this was an effort by hostile foreign actors like the Muslim Brotherhood or Chinese intelligence to penetrate the computer system of the U.S. House of Representatives, it still represents a major scandal because foreign actors could have easily done this. It is time for the mainstream media to stop ignoring this important story.
Fred Fleitz is senior vice president for policy and programs with the Center for Security Policy. He held national security jobs for 25 years with the CIA, DIA, Department of State and the House Intelligence Committee staff.
DemonicRATS Thrive Where Darkness Abides
Nothing to see here....move along.
I believe Chaffetz will be holding hearings in Congress and that a criminal probe will be ordered from AG Sessions.
So it won’t stay quiet for long.
Will the msm cover the trial? These jerks had better be tried
“...three brothers who managed information technology (IT) for Democratic House members – Abid, Imran, and Jamal Awan...”
WHAT could go wrong.
#FakeNews is also IGNORING the news...
This story is going nowehere because the main actors are of a protected species. It would only strengthen President Trump’s argument for ending Muslim immigration so the MSM will avoid the story unless and until there is evidence that their team (Dems) were harmed in some way.
Does that surprise you? It doesn’t me.
Yeah.
It's odd that a Capitol Hill staffer gets that close to a bigshot Clinton.
Perhaps the Muslim Brothers gave the Clintons data off the Democrats' Congressional computers?
Perhaps the Clintons had need for the data coming off the DNC computers?
The eight Democrat members issued a letter to then DNC-Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz. The Democrat Congressmen demanded that their staffers be granted access to top secret classified information.
The signatories to the letter were Democrat Congressmen (a) Andre Carson, (b) Luis Guiterez, (c) Jim Himes, (d) Terri Sewell, (e) Jackie Speier, (f) Mike Quigley, (g) Eric Swalwell, and, (h) Patrick Murphy.
Some of the named Democrats had a history of attempting to undermine national security. Two Democrats have been linked to an emerging security breach.
The office of Andre Carson, the second Muslim in Congress, employed IT’er Imran Awan. As did the offices of Jackie Speier and Cong Debbie Wasserman Schultz (then DNC Chair).
The Democrats letter demanding intel access had been addressed to then-DNC Chair Cong Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
If Hillary is involved, MSM pulls the great cover-up.
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Pittsburgh FBI field office's Cyber-security Unit is trying to identify those behind breaches of the DNC's computer systems. The 2015 and early 2016 breaches exposed the internal communications of Democrat party officials as the convention got underway........
The Muslim brothers apparently compromised House Intelligence, and Foreign Affairs Committee members: Abi Awan, Imran Awan and Jamal Awan, are said to be Pakistani foreign nationals. They worked within the IT department for Democrats exclusively---members of the House Permanent Intelligence Committee, including Cong Debbie Wasserman Schultz----onetime DNC chair.
There is a fourth brother and his Muslim wife involved in sensitive political IT exclusively for Democrats....all share a residence.
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CONGRESS AND THE FBI NEED TO DETERMINE:
<><> Extent of Wassermann-Schultz and the DNC's assistance to the three members of the intelligence panel and five members of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs who were among the dozens of elected members employing the suspects on a shared basis.
<><>Were govt intel computers ever transported off-premises?
<><>Did the FBI and/or Secret Service accompany and supervise the transport of the server?
<><> Did the three brothers have an active email account?
<><> Was there continuity of intel computer activity or did the intel computers ever go off-line?
<><> Who received govt intel?
<><>Did the three brother get officially qualified by Wasserman Schultz and the DNC to handle national-security-level data?
<><> Did the three brothers ever “upgrade, manage, and secure” the DNC server.
<><> What - specifically - did they do?
<><> Did Wasserman Schultz and the DNC vet the three brothers security clearance to handle this type of intel?
<><> What were the DNC firewall protocols in place at the time?
<><>Who, by name, had access to intel computers, and the administrative authorization to do so?
<><>When was that authorization given?
<><>Did the three brothers ever remove all data from the intel computers?
<><> Was malware or antivirus also on the server?
<><> Was the inherent firewall, virus protection, or operating system “upgraded, managed, and secured” by the brothers?
<><> Did Wasserman Schultz at the DNC report any incidents, such as DOS attack, hacking, etc. How were they resolved?
<><> Did the three brothers maintain the DNC intel computer?
<><> Does Wasserman Schultz and the DNC know if the House Permanent Intelligence Committee computers in functioning condition at this time?
<><> Does Wasserman Schultz and the DNC have the work schedule of the brothers just prior to being outed for security breaches?
<><> Were normal and regular backup procedures executed on the server?
<><> Where are the back-ups kept?
<><> If no backups were taken, does the DNC have a disaster recovery location? Where is that?
<><> Did the DNC have a backup plan if the House Permanent Intelligence Committee plan intel equipment failed or was found to have been compromised?
<><> Does Wasserman Schultz and the DNC have a list of other foreign nationals (from countries President Obama identified as terrorist countries) Democrats employed on Capitol Hill?
<><> The DNC should list foreign nationals by name and country on Democrats' payrolls, who currently have access to US intel and are using govt computers.
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FBI TIP PAGE---https://tips.fbi.gov
CONTACT CONGRESS: Capitol Switchboard 1-866-220-0044
Contact President Trump's web site. www.greatagain.gov/
<><>which Democratic members granted the IT staffers waivers from background investigations?
<><>Which members originally hired these individuals?
<><> Who referred them?
<><> why didn’t House Democrats tighten their computer security practices after the DNC and Clinton campaign emails hacking?
<><> why didn’t it require background investigations for IT staffers?
<><>why Democrats allowed waivers for existing IT staff?
<><> Has the waiver rule been abolished?
<><>did these IT staffers pass their background investigations?
<><> what is currently being done to screen out people like this?
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TAXPAYERS DEMAND TO KNOW
<><> What is the extent of Debbie Wassermann-Schultz and the DNC's assistance to the three members of the intelligence panel and five members of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs who were among the dozens of elected House members employing the suspects on a shared basis.
Wasserman Schultz and the DNC need to list other foreign nationals (particularly from countries President Obama identified as terrorist countries) that Democrats employ on Capitol Hill?
<><> Taxpayers demand a list foreign nationals by name and country on Democrats' payrolls, who currently have access to US intel and are using govt computers.
See Andre’ Carson (D-IL) here bitching about Trump yesterday. He’s one who had these people working in HIS congressional office. Wouldn’t you think all the progressive would be a little bit more careful about their bitchin’ and public statements in light of their own negligence? I guess none of us can get over the lack of conscience on the part of these pukes....For sure, we’re all fed up with it...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0g9t4mNNUE
Wouldn’t you think that someone on Trump’s team would be hammering this info out over and over when they go on news stations for interviews and sit there and answer their stupid questions vs. taking control and screaming out this information over and over????
Just getting really tired of our Team answering their questions instead of spilling the news that isn’t getting covered.
Cue hammers descending.
Hostile? I thought Obama and the MB were cut buddies.
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