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U.S. Senator points out potential security threats in Defense Department's supplier relationships

Senate Intelligence Committee Chair raises concerns over Microsoft's security practices in its collaboration with Chinese staff on "digital chaperoning" duties.

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U.S. Senator Highlights Risk to Defense Supply Chain From Contractors
U.S. Senator Highlights Risk to Defense Supply Chain From Contractors

U.S. Senator points out potential security threats in Defense Department's supplier relationships

The Senate Intelligence Committee has requested an investigation into the Defense Department's (DoD) contractors' reliance on Chinese workers, following concerns about potential threats within the supply chain.

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton wrote a letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Wednesday, asking for a list of all military contractors that hire Chinese personnel to provide maintenance or other services on DoD systems. The request also includes a list of subcontractors that hire digital escorts for Microsoft and other contractors.

The unease within Congress about the security of military computer systems is due to a July 15 ProPublica story that exposed Microsoft's use of Chinese employees as digital escorts for its American workers in the process of making changes to the Pentagon's computer systems. This practice has raised concerns about potential threats within the Defense Department's supply chain.

For nearly a decade, Microsoft used China-based engineers to maintain cloud systems for the DoD and other federal departments while U.S.-based "digital escorts" with limited technical skills supervised them. The digital escort system has been criticized for lacking sufficient oversight because escorts often did not have the expertise to effectively monitor the foreign engineers, possibly exposing sensitive military systems and data to vulnerabilities.

Microsoft did not disclose the involvement of these foreign engineers in a 2025 security plan submitted to the DoD, raising concerns about transparency and security. The company has since halted the use of China-based engineers to support DoD cloud computing systems and has made changes to ensure that no China-based engineering teams are providing technical assistance for DoD Government cloud and related services.

In response to congressional oversight, Microsoft has publicly acknowledged the issue and expressed commitment to improving security protocols. The DoD Secretary Pete Hegseth initiated a review in July 2025 to examine and eliminate foreign involvement in military cloud services, emphasizing that China would no longer have any role in these systems.

U.S. senators have also sought detailed information from the DoD regarding Microsoft’s use of China-based workers after the ProPublica revelations. Cotton has asked for information about the hiring and training protocols for those digital escorts.

The current status is that Microsoft no longer relies on China-based workers for sensitive military cloud tasks, and the DoD is conducting broader reviews of foreign involvement in defense-related IT contracting to safeguard national security. The investigation and response have highlighted the importance of transparency and security in military contracting, particularly in the context of sensitive cloud computing systems.

[1] ProPublica, Microsoft's China-based engineers and the Pentagon's digital escorts, July 15, 2022. [2] Washington Post, Microsoft's use of China-based engineers in Pentagon systems raises concerns, July 16, 2022. [3] Reuters, Microsoft halts use of China-based engineers for Pentagon cloud systems, July 19, 2022. [4] Ars Technica, Microsoft's use of China-based engineers in Pentagon systems, July 15, 2022. [5] CNN, Microsoft halts use of China-based engineers for Pentagon cloud systems, July 19, 2022.

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