US acting cybersecurity chief leaked sensitive documents to ChatGPT

United States (U.S.) Cyber Defence Agency’s Acting Head Madhu Gottumukkala leaked sensitive agency documents to popular AI chatbot, ChatGPT.

A Politico investigation revealed that Gottumukkala got special permission from Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s (CISA) Office of the Chief Information Officer to use the chatbot despite it being blocked for all DHS officials.

He then uploaded the sensitive documents to the public version of ChatGPT in 2025 triggering alarms over a potential sensitive data leak.

According to four Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials familiar with the matter, the interim head’s actions triggered several automated security warnings aimed to prevent the theft or unintentional leakage of government documents.

The documents uploaded were not marked “classified”, however, they were marked “For Official Use Only”.

Following the incident, DHS launched an internal review to assess the situation and possible harm to security. It remains unclear what the review concluded.

CISA has since built its own AI-powered chatbot, DHSchat, to prevent further mishaps and document leakage from federal networks.

Who is Madhu Gottumukkala?

Madhu Gottumukkala is an Indian-origin American official serving as the acting director and deputy director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).

Gottumukkala has over 24 years of experience in information technology and a strong academic background with degrees in engineering, computer science, business management, and information systems.