Fed officials mishandled sensitive information: Watchdog report

Published July 16, 2026 3:08 PM EDT Updated July 16, 2026 8:48 PM EDT 5 Min Read

Key insight: The Federal Reserve Board’s policies on handling sensitive information failed to prevent critical data and reports from being shared with Chinese intelligence officers.
Expert quote: “The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System’s insider risk management activities do not proactively or effectively identify and manage risks to the agency’s information and assets.” —Office of the Inspector General for the Federal Reserve Board
Forward look: The Fed has committed to making several changes to centralize and beef up its sensitive-information practices.

The Federal Reserve has failed to stop its employees from sharing sensitive information with foreign adversaries at least several times during the past decade, according to a just-released watchdog report.

Kyle Campbell

Staff writer

Kyle Campbell covers the Federal Reserve and housing policy for American Banker. Previously, he wrote about institutional investment in real estate for PERE. He has also held staff positions at Real … Read full bio

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Risk management

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