Lawsuit alleges new Trump administration email system for federal employees raises privacy concerns

CNN
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A lawsuit brought by two federal employees alleges that the Trump administration has set up an email distribution system for the entire federal workforce that raises security concerns for workers’ private data.

The lawsuit accuses the US Office of Personnel Management – which handles many personnel operations for the federal government – of failing to do an assessment required by federal law to understand and mitigate any privacy risks in how the alleged new email system is collecting data of federal employees.

The new legal challenge comes as the Trump administration has launched a multi-front effort to overhaul how the federal workforce operates, including initiatives to weaken federal workforce protections and to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs, among other actions.

According to the new lawsuit, federal employees in recent days received emails from the email address HR@opm.gov that purported to be running tests for a new “distribution and response list.”

“The goal of these tests is to confirm that an email can be sent and replied to by all government employees,” one of the emails said, according to the lawsuit, while asking the employees to respond to the emails to confirm receipt.

CNN has reached out to OPM for comment on the lawsuit.

The complaint goes on to cite concerns allegedly raised by an anonymous OPM employee that were posted on the online forum Reddit Monday about how the email distribution system was set up.

CNN previously reported the Trump administration is working on an effort to be able to mass email federal employees. A White House official told CNN last week that President Donald Trump may use the new system to communicate directly with government workers, however, its broader use is still being discussed.

A federal employee who received the test email told CNN last week that employees have not been given any additional Information about the intent behind this new system. A couple of employees told CNN they chose not to respond “yes” as the email instructs to confirm receipt as an act of resistance, one of them said. “Small acts such as one person not responding to that email seem minuscule; however, they add up when it is done collectively,” a career federal employee said.

The federal employees bringing the lawsuit filed the case under pseudonyms. They are seeking to file the case as a class action lawsuit.

They’re being represented by Kel McClanahan, the executive director of National Security Counselors, a law firm that represents federal employees and that also brought a legal challenge last week to the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency.

In a statement to CNN, McClanahan noted that OPM has already been hacked in recent years, including a hack that targeted a security clearance system that would have “presumably” been “very well protected.”

“Plugging in a new email service for the sole purpose of sending messages directly to every federal employee is an invitation to be hacked, and every employee out there needs to know how much of their data is at risk,” McClanahan said, adding that the system should be shut down “until OPM treats this data with the security it warrants.”

CNN’s Alayna Treene and Rene Marsh contributed to this report.