After the destructive riots that wreaked havoc on the United States Capitol building on Wednesday, the next issue at hand is mitigating the risks of having demonstrators access government systems. The congressional support staff is dealing with logistics such as cleanup, repairs, and securing the offices and digital systems after hundreds of people had access to them. Rioters gaining physical access to a government location could result in serious cybersecurity ramifications, such as bugged offices, exfiltrated data, or potentially even installing malware on devices.
During the rush to evacuate the Capitol due to the imminent threat of violent and armed rioters, many computers were left unlocked and remained accessible. Some equipment was stolen, as Senator Jeff Merkley stated that intruders took one of his office’s laptops. Although most information dealt with inside the Capitol is not classified, troves of sensitive information can be found on devices, which were exposed and stolen during the attack. Congressional IT support is moving quickly to attempt to avoid any foreseen threats regarding the devices.
Read More: Post-Riot, the Capitol Hill IT Staff Faces a Security Mess
