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| Acting CISA director failed a polygraph. Career staff are now under investigation. | |
| 2025-12-22 | |
At least six career staffers at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency were suspended with pay this summer after organizing a polygraph test that the agency’s acting director, Madhu Gottumukkala, failed. The Department of Homeland Security opened an investigation into whether the staff provided “false information” about the need for the test — which was scheduled after Gottumukkala sought access to certain highly sensitive cyber intelligence shared with the agency. This article is based on interviews with eight current and four former U.S. cybersecurity officials, including multiple Trump administration appointees, who have either worked closely with Gottumukkala or have knowledge of the polygraph examination and the chain of events that followed. They were granted anonymity for fear of retribution. The incident this July and the subsequent fallout — which has not been reported before — have angered career staff, alarmed fellow Trump administration appointees and raised questions about Gottumukkala’s leadership of the nearly $3 billion cyber defense agency. “Instead of taking ownership and saying, ‘Hey, I screwed up,’ he gets other people blamed and potentially ruins their careers,” said a current official, who described Gottumukkala’s tenure at CISA so far as “a nightmare” for the agency. In an emailed statement, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said that Gottumukkala “did not fail a sanctioned polygraph test.” “An unsanctioned polygraph test was coordinated by staff, misleading incoming CISA leadership,” McLaughlin wrote. “The employees in question were placed on administrative leave, pending conclusion of an investigation. We expect and require the highest standards of performance from our employees and hold them directly accountable to uphold all policies and procedures. Gottumukkala has the complete and full support of the Secretary and is laser focused on returning the agency to its statutory mission.” When asked for clarification on what is considered an “unsanctioned” polygraph, McLaughlin said that “random bureaucrats can’t just order a polygraph. Polygraph orders have to come from leadership who have the authority to order them.” The repercussions over the polygraph come at an already turbulent period for the agency, which has experienced sweeping personnel and budget cuts under President Donald Trump. Nearly a third of its staff have left the agency since January, and some were recently given an ultimatum to either move into immigration-related roles at the Department of Homeland Security — which houses CISA — or leave the agency altogether. Compounding that instability, CISA has not had a permanent, Senate-confirmed leader since former Director Jen Easterly stepped down in January at the start of the Trump administration. Gottumukkala, a former senior IT official in South Dakota under Kristi Noem, was appointed by the governor-turned-secretary as deputy director in May. He is currently the most senior official at CISA and also holds the title of acting director. Trump’s pick to lead the agency, Sean Plankey, has not been confirmed, meaning Gottumukkala could remain as acting director for the foreseeable future — a prospect some cybersecurity officials are wary of. Related: Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency: 2025-08-03 DNI Tulsi Gabbard Confirms Explosive 2020 Election Fraud Revelations Coming ‐ Feds Knew About Voting Machine Vulnerabilities and Stayed Silent Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency: 2025-08-01 Army secretary rescinds West Point leadership offer to former Biden administration CISA director Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency: 2025-07-01 Their Nukes May Be Gone, But Iran Persists as a Major Cyber Threat | |
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