U.S. cyber defenders shaken by Trump's attack on their former boss

The people tasked with keeping the country safe from foreign government hackers and cybercriminal gangs say they feel like they’re under attack, not from their usual adversaries but from the administration they work under.

The people tasked with keeping the country safe from foreign government hackers and cybercriminal gangs say they feel like they’re under attack, not from their usual adversaries but from the administration they work under. 

President Donald Trump’s Wednesday order calling for a Justice Department investigation into Chris Krebs, the former director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), has sent fresh shock waves through that agency’s hallways, according to five employees who spoke with NBC News. Each spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. 

The order comes as the White House is downsizing the agency for at least the third time in three months. 

“It’s a really tough time for all of us right now,” said one employee. “Every day feels somehow more bizarre than the last. It is incredibly difficult to focus on our mission.” 

Krebs, whom Trump appointed as CISA’s inaugural director during his first term, quickly built the agency into the country’s front-line digital defender of critical systems. But he also emerged as a surprising counterpoint to the president, particularly around his efforts to advance false claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen. 

https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/us-cyber-defenders-shaken-trumps-attack-former-boss-rcna200597

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