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Homeland Security under Secretary Noem polygraphed employees and forcibly reassigned senior staff to identify leakers

Beginning in March 2025, the Department of Homeland Security under Secretary Kristi Noem subjected employees to polygraph examinations - some reported to last up to roughly six hours - to identify the sources of leaks, and forcibly reassigned senior career staff. Employees and journalists described the measures as a "campaign of fear" that deterred internal dissent and lawful disclosure.

Jurisdiction
Federal
Location
Washington, D.C.

Abuses documented

Actors

Beginning in March 2025, the Department of Homeland Security under Secretary Kristi Noem began subjecting employees to polygraph examinations - reported in some cases to last up to roughly six hours - in an effort to identify who was disclosing information to the press, and forcibly reassigned senior career officials. A Guardian investigation published July 11, 2026 documented the practices in detail, describing a sustained "campaign of fear" that deterred internal dissent and lawful disclosure across the department.

The polygraph-for-leakers program was first disclosed in March 2025 and expanded over the following year. Reporting described career staff being moved out of their posts and employees being questioned under polygraph about their contacts with journalists, with the stated purpose of finding the sources of leaks.

Updates

2026-07 - DHS Inspector General opened an inquiry into the reassignments [1, 3]

The Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General opened an inquiry into the forced reassignments of senior staff carried out under Secretary Noem.

Why we recorded this

Whistleblower protections and an independent civil service exist so that government employees can report wrongdoing and carry out their duties without fear of political reprisal. The Department of Homeland Security subjected its workforce to lengthy polygraph examinations aimed at identifying leakers and forcibly reassigned senior career staff, measures that reporting described as instilling a climate of fear. This archive records when an agency turns internal-security tools against its own employees to suppress disclosure and deter dissent.

Sources

  1. Six-hour polygraphs, forced reassignments: inside homeland security's campaign of fear — The Guardian investigative accessed July 11, 2026
  2. DHS has begun performing polygraph tests on employees to find leakers — NBC News primary accessed July 11, 2026
  3. DHS IG investigating reassignments of senior staff under Noem — Federal News Network investigative accessed July 11, 2026

See also