Reporter

Derek B. Johnson

CyberScoop

Derek B. Johnson is a reporter at CyberScoop, where his beat includes cybersecurity, elections and the federal government. Prior to that, he has provided award-winning coverage of cybersecurity news across the public and private sectors for various publications since 2017. Derek has a bachelor’s degree in print journalism from Hofstra University in New York and a master’s degree in public policy from George Mason University in Virginia.

Articles by Author

The interior of the IBM Quantum System Two is seen at IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center on June 6, 2025 in Yorktown Heights, New York. A guide aims to help tech buyers navigate their switch to post-quantum encryption, but experts cautioned that most products and backend internet protocols have yet to be updated. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

CISA publishes a post-quantum shopping list for agencies. Security professionals aren’t sold

Cybersecurity

A threat actor is seeding the internet with AI browser extensions that can intercept a user’s authenticated session tokens and hijack accounts. (Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images)

Some ChatGPT browser extensions are stealing your data

AI

WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 21: Ha Nguyen McNeill, senior official performing the duties of the administrator of the Transportation Security Administration, testifies during the DHS oversight hearing in the Cannon House office building on January 21, 2026 in Washington, DC. The hearing covered a full oversight into the Department of Homeland Security, CISA, TSA and S&T. (Photo by Heather Diehl/Getty Images)

Watchdog group sues for TSA data sharing agreement with ICE

Government

(NIST)

NIST officials detail impact of staff cuts on encryption and other priorities

Cybersecurity

OpenAI and Anthropic said they turned over their models to government researchers, who found an array of previously undiscovered vulnerabilities and attack techniques. (Image via Getty)

HackerOne rolls out industry framework to support ‘good faith’ AI research

AI

DEK: In a scathing opinion, Judge David Carter called the federal government’s demands for unredacted voter data “unprecedented and illegal.” (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images)

Federal court dismisses Trump DOJ lawsuit seeking California voter data

Cybersecurity

(Photo by PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty Images)

Sources: DHS finalizing replacement for disbanded critical infrastructure security council

Government

WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 18: A U.S. flag and the flag of the U.S. Department of Energy fly outside its building on March 18, 2025 in Washington, DC. DEK: Under the Trump administration, the Department of Energy’s cybersecurity office is planning to shift focus from “traditional” research and development to “AI dominance.” (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

CESER chief touts AI projects as congressional Dems point to federal cuts

AI

The Grok app on an iPhone, against the backdrop of search results displayed on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) on a laptop, in London. The Prime Minister has said X need to “get their act together” amid concerns about the creation of sexualised images of adults and children by AI embedded on the social media site. Sir Keir Starmer said he backed Ofcom, which is looking into X and xAI – the firm founded by Elon Musk which created Grok – to take action against the site, and that he had asked for “all options to be on the table”. It comes as a former minister urged the Government and the Labour Party to stop using the site entirely. Users of X appear to have prompted its artificial intelligence Grok, which is integrated into the platform, to generate deepfake images of children “in minimal clothing”. Picture date: Thursday January 8, 2026. (Photo by Yui Mok/PA Images via Getty Images)

British regulator Ofcom opens investigation into X

AI