Targeted by Trump, Chris Krebs Resigns Job to Fight Probe

A former U.S. federal cybersecurity official resigned his private-sector job to fight what he characterized as a retaliatory probe, designed to “punish dissent,” ordered by his former boss, U.S. President Donald Trump.

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Chris Krebs, who served as the first director of the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency from November 2018 until November 2020, left his position of chief intelligence and public policy officer at cybersecurity firm SentinelOne, effective immediately.

“Today I announced that I am stepping away from my position at SentinelOne,” Krebs told his co-workers Wednesday. “This is my decision, and mine alone.”

Krebs famously tweeted in November 2020 that the year’s presidential election was the most secure on record and that after an extensive review by security experts, all claims of fraud “either have been unsubstantiated or are technically incoherent.” Trump, who insists that the 2020 election was marred by fraud despite contradictory evidence, tweeted that he was firing Krebs.

Krebs said he will focus on “a legal and public-relations battle against Trump without worrying about the firm’s business or contracts,” reported The Wall Street Journal. Krebs joined SentinelOne after the Silicon Valley endpoint security provider in 2023 bought out for $13.9 million the nascent consulting business Krebs started with former Facebook Chief Security Officer Alex Stamos. Krebs previously worked in the George W. Bush administration and at Microsoft.

Trump signed a presidential memorandum on April 9 ordering “a review of Krebs’ activities as a government employee,” including during his tenure as CISA director, accusing him of being “a significant bad-faith actor who weaponized and abused his government authority” (see: Trump Retaliates Against Former Cybersecurity Chief).

Without offering any evidence, Trump’s order questioned Krebs’ “commitment to free speech,” and suggested he may have committed “federal censorship” and been involved in “the unauthorized dissemination of classified information.”

The order directed all federal agencies to revoke security clearances held by Krebs and pause those issued to his SentinelOne colleagues, “pending a review of whether such clearances are consistent with national interest” (see: What Getting in Trump’s Crosshairs Will Mean for SentinelOne).

The departing message Wednesday from Krebs to his co-workers reads in part: “For those who know me, you know I don’t shy away from tough fights. But I also know this is one I need to take on fully – outside of SentinelOne.” He signed off with a Dog Latin aphorism, “Illegitimi non carborundum,” generally translated as “Don’t let the bastards grind you down.”

SentinelOne CEO Tomer Weingarten, in a message to employees, praised Krebs’ work. “He carries our full respect with him as his journey continues,” he said.

Trump’s targeting of him by name follows a playbook the president has deployed against law firms, colleges, universities and private citizens, Krebs said.

“It’s about the government pulling its levers to punish dissent, to go after corporate interests and corporate relationships,” Krebs told The Wall Street Journal. “It’s the same thing we’ve seen with the law firms, they’ve gone after clearances, they’ve gone after contracts. It’s a novel and expansive strategy they are taking on and it should concern everyone.”

Krebs, who’s an attorney, said the president’s order against him essentially functioned as a bill of attainder. As defined by the U.S. Supreme Court, this refers to “legislation that imposes punishment on a specific person or group of people without a judicial trial,” and was an English parliamentary strategy employed in 1700s and earlier against government critics, against which American colonists expressly rebelled. Such sanctions are today explicitly prohibited by the U.S. Constitution.

Trump has continued to criticize Krebs’ character. After signing the memo, the president responded to questions from reporters, characterizing the cybersecurity expert as a “wise guy,” reported The Hill.

“He came out right after the election, which was a rigged election, a badly rigged election … this guy Krebs was saying, ‘Oh, the election was great, it was great,'” Trump said. “We did phenomenally in that election. “

Sarah Matthews, who served as a deputy press secretary during Trump’s first administration, dismissed her former boss’s unsubstantiated claims. “Before the election, I warned repeatedly that Trump would go after those he saw as political enemies,” she said in a post to social platform X. “Now he’s targeting a public servant who simply did his job and told the truth about the 2020 election being secure because it doesn’t fit with his lies.”

Some cybersecurity experts have rallied to Krebs’ defense, including expressing their public support via LinkedIn.

“Thanks for your service and contributions Chris. They are seen and recognized,” said Rob Joyce, the former director of cybersecurity at the National Security Agency.

“This is courage,” said cybersecurity expert Richard Stiennon of Krebs’ decision to resign his position and fight. “This is what we need more of.”

“Targeting a former government employee for doing their job and broadening it to their current employer half a decade later will have a chilling effect that makes us all less safe,” said Katie Moussouris, head of bug bounty firm Luta Security, which holds contracts with federal agencies.

Krebs is due to participate in two keynote discussions later this month at the annual RSAC Conference in San Francisco, under the theme “Many Voices, One Community.”