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Defense Secretary Pete Hegses said the Pentagon is “examined” a Microsoft-run cloud computing program using foreign Chinese workers.
The Propublica report released Tuesday accused Microsoft-based engineers of allowing insufficient guardrails to support the Pentagon Cloud Systems to expand government contract business.
In response, R-Ark. Sen. Tom Cotton of the company sent a letter to Hegustes on Thursday seeking information and documentation about the program. This included a list of all Department of Defense (DOD) contractors who maintain or provide other services to hire Chinese staff, or a list of subcontractors who employ Microsoft’s American-born “digital escorts” to oversee the supervision of foreign computer scientists to oversee the supervision of Microsoft’s American-born “digital escorts.” The Republican senator requested that he answer his questions by the end of the month.
“In light of recent reports about Microsoft, which uses Chinese engineers to maintain their DOD systems, I asked the Secretary of Defense to look into the issue,” Cotton shared his letter to Hegses in an X post. “We must prevent all the threats within the military supply chain.”
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The Biden mandatory Cyber Review Board has issued a strict report to Microsoft over the 2023 hack. (Getty Images)
Hours after the cotton X-Post, Hegseth replied, “Senator’s Spot.”
“I totally agree,” Hegses said in his own X-post, responding to cotton. “Our team is already considering this as quickly as possible. Of course, none of the countries, including China, should be allowed to maintain or access the DOD system.”
The Propublica report cited current and former employees and government contractors who worked on Microsoft’s cloud computing program in 2016. The program, which aims to meet federal contract regulations, aims to create security buffers that can be used to work with agency computing systems using a system of “digital escorts” chaperones for global cybersecurity personnel, such as those based in China. DOD guidelines require that those who process sensitive data be US citizens or permanent residents.
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Some people are intimately familiar with the hiring process for “digital escorts” positions per hour, according to sources who spoke to ProPublica.
Sources said that ex-service guards are often hired for security clearance rather than technical capabilities, and often lack the skill to assess the codes used by supervising engineers.
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegses announced Friday that the Pentagon is being “considered.” (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft; Philip Fong/AFP via Getty Images; Omar Havana/Getty Images)
“If Propublica’s report turns out to be true, Microsoft has created a national embarrassment that puts our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines at risk. The person responsible should go to prison, and Congress should conduct extensive investigations to uncover the full scope of potential compromises.” Lucci is the CEO and founder of State Armor Action, a conservative group with a mission to develop and enact state-level solutions to global security threats.
“Vendors that provide Microsoft or China with access to pentagonal secrets should be in favor of rebellious behavior and treated that way,” Lucci added.
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The Black Hawk Army helicopter carrying reporters landed in the Pentagon after demonstrations of the future combat system of Army Secretary Peter Schelmer of Maryland’s Aberdeen Certification Ground and Media’s Secretary of War Frances Harvey. (Scott J. Ferrell/Council Quarter/Getty Images)
A Microsoft spokesman defended the company’s “digital escort” model on Tuesday, saying all personnel and contractors with privileged access must pass federally approved background checks.
“Because of some technical requirements, Microsoft is attracting a global team of subject matter experts to provide support through certified US personnel, consistent with the requirements and processes of the US government,” the spokesman added. “In these examples, global support personnel cannot directly access customer data or customer systems.”
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When Propublica began asking questions, the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Public Relations Agency was initially unaware of the program, but ultimately followed to point out that “digital escorts” are used in the defense department in “unclassified environments” for “diagnosing and solving advanced problems from industry subject experts.”
Meanwhile, on Friday, Microsoft’s Chief Communications Officer Frank Shaw said Microsoft has chosen to make some changes in response to recent concerns about the program.
“In response to concerns raised about foreign engineers in the US earlier this week, Microsoft has assisted US government customers to ensure that US government customers are not providing technical assistance to DOD government cloud and related services,” Shaw said in a statement in Fox News Digital. “We remain committed to providing the US government with the safest services possible, including working with our national security partners to assess and coordinate security protocols as needed.”
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