Breach, Compliance Management, Data Security, Privacy

White House establishes new office to secure OPM background checks

The Obama administration will establish The National Background Investigations Bureau (NBIB) to secure the millions of background check forms that were exposed in the 2015 Office of Personnel Management (OPM) breach.

The new government-wide office will also be responsible for handling background investigations for the federal government and will be housed within the OPM, according to a Jan 22 White House blog post.

The NBIB will differ from the previous structure because the U.S. Department of Defense will be responsible for the office's design, development, security and operation of the background investigation IT systems, the post said.

The administration will include $95 million for additional resources in the 2017 budget to update the IT systems to better protect against threats.

The announcement was made at the end of a 90-Day Suitability and Security review commenced last year in light of recent cyberthreats. 

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