US Senator Ron Wyden sharply condemned the federal judiciary, accusing it of “negligence and incompetence” after a recent cyber intrusion—allegedly carried out by hackers linked to the Russian government—compromised confidential court filings.
The breach of the judiciary’s electronic case filing system first surfaced in a Politico report three weeks ago. According to follow-up reporting, the vulnerabilities exploited in the breach had been documented as far back as 2020. The New York Times—citing individuals familiar with the incident—later reported that Russia was “at least partly responsible” for the operation.
A “severe threat” to national security
The attack echoes an earlier 2020 breach involving two interconnected systems: CM/ECF (Case Management/Electronic Case Files) and PACER. According to Politico, the most recent compromise was detected around July 5, based on information from unnamed sources not authorized to speak publicly. The timing coincided with testimony from Judge Michael Scudder, chair of the federal courts’ Committee on Information Technology, who warned House Judiciary Committee members that the courts face relentless pressure from increasingly sophisticated cyber adversaries.
The CM/ECF platform allows litigants to file case documents electronically. While many filings are accessible to the public, others are sealed—typically to protect ongoing criminal investigations, classified intelligence, or sensitive commercial information. Wyden, representing Oregon, argued in a letter to Chief Justice John Roberts that the breaches expose confidential material that could endanger national security. He criticized the judiciary for failing to implement cybersecurity practices that are commonplace across other federal agencies and the private sector.
“The federal judiciary’s current approach to information technology is a severe threat to our national security,” Wyden wrote. “The courts have been entrusted with some of our nation’s most confidential and sensitive information, including national security documents that could reveal sources and methods to our adversaries, and sealed criminal charging and investigative documents that could enable suspects to flee or target witnesses.”