Whistleblower protections at the EPA aren’t fully protected because staff can view sensitive emails sent to the inspector general’s office, according to a Wednesday reportfrom the agency’s watchdog.
That gap in security creates “serious concern” for the Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General’s ability to ensure confidentiality for whistleblowers, the report concluded.
For three months in late 2021, a special agent with the EPA’s criminal investigation division had complete access to an email account that contained the privileged names of whistleblowers, potential whistleblowers, and agency employees named as the subject of complaints, according to the watchdog.
The OIG ...