USAID decides not to collect former workers’ abandoned devices
1 min read
Summary
The Trump administration will no longer force former employees to return government-issued phones, laptops and tablets according to an email sent to workers.
Devices will be wiped of information and marked as disposed, with each employee then responsible for discarding the equipment.
Discarded devices pose a security risk due to the sensitive information they contain.
Some former employees had been waiting months to send in devices, after foreign aid was frozen and programmes shelved under the Trump administration.
Devices are often reallocated or donated, but due to their low value, federal regulations permit them to be disposed of without any responsibility to the US agency.
The decision to scrap the collection process was made to “reduce burden”, according to the email seen by The Verge.