With fewer eyeballs monitoring the government’s networks for malicious activities and an increasing number of federal systems sitting idle during the shutdown,” the Federal Times notes that “security experts fear it could create a perfect storm for insiders and hackers looking to do agencies harm.”

“One of the most unsettling issues for security experts…is that attackers can glean intelligence during a shutdown. There is a cadre of people in security designated as so critical that during a shutdown they have to work and have access to tools and environments to preserve mission functions… Hackers will learn that the remaining employees are worth targeting because they are deemed critical to agencies’ operations.”

Crossposted from Wonk Wire.