Williams Talks to Washington Post About Improper Sharing of Sensitive Government Documents

April 25, 2025

The Washington Post

Michael J. Williams

Public Administration & International Affairs Department

Center for European Studies

Federal

U.S. National Security

United States

The Washington Post

Michael J. Williams

An internal investigation revealed that General Services Administration employees inadvertently shared sensitive, non-classified documents—including White House floor plans and vendor banking details—with over 11,000 federal staff via Google Drive.

The oversharing began in early 2021 during the Biden administration and continued into the Trump administration, prompting cybersecurity concerns and highlighting broader systemic lapses in digital document handling across both administrations.

The breach indicates a general need to strengthen safety training measures for government workers who must live and work in a digital age, says Michael Williams, associate professor of public administration and international affairs.

The documents “are absolutely not something you want shared to 11,200 people,” Williams says. “The danger of this kind of mistake is a challenge across all administrations. It’s not just particularly bad for the Trump administration.”

Read more in the Washington Post article, “Sensitive documents, including White House floor plans, improperly shared with thousands.”