14 DAY TRIAL // A confidential report from the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct of the United States House of Representatives was leaked on peer-to-peer file sharing networks. The document contained details about the investigations of thirty house members and some of their aides.
The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, also known as the Ethics Committee, conducts investigations into possible violations of the ethical code. The work of this committee is often surrounded in a veil of secrecy, as the nature of these investigations and their status are kept confidential.
A 22-page document called "Committee on Standards Weekly Summary Report" came into the possession of the Washington Post last week. According to the publication, the report reveals the status of investigations into the conduct of 19 lawmakers.
It is also mentioned that the actions of 14 other house members are under review by the Office of Congressional Ethics. The names of New York Representative Charles Rangel and California Representatives Maxine Waters and Laura Richardson, are disclosed in the document.
At first, the incident sparked speculation that the Committee's computer systems might have been compromised. However, an official statement released to the media last Thursday points to an accidental leak caused by a Committee employee, who has since been fired.
"Our initial review suggests that this unlawful access to confidential information involved the use of peer-to-peer file sharing software on the personal computer of a junior staffer, who is no longer employed by the Committee. […] No matter how robust our cybersecurity systems are, they remain subject to individual error," the statement (PDF) reads.
P2P intelligence company Tiversa has determined that the file is being shared from multiple locations in the world, including London, Toronto, Washington, New York, Texas and Los Angeles. "Since this story broke we have been investigating and confirmed that the file is available on P2P networks," Scott Harrer, Tiversa's brand director, commented for Network World.
This security breach is only the latest on what begins to look like a long list of similar incidents. In July, we reported that a document exposing a Secret Service safe house, to serve the presidential family in case of emergency, was found on a p2p network. Other files leaked in this way include presidential motorcade routes, details of U.S. nuclear facilities and blueprints of Marine One, the president's helicopter.