OPM adds cyber hiring
The U.S. Office of Personnel Management has expanded its Tech Force hiring programme to include cybersecurity roles, increasing federal recruitment options for cyber talent. The move comes after earlier federal workforce reductions and aims to broaden the government’s tech hiring funnel. The expansion formally opens additional federal cybersecurity positions to applicants via Tech Force. (federalnewsnetwork.com)
The Office of Personnel Management has added cybersecurity jobs to its Tech Force program, widening a federal hiring channel that launched in December 2025. (opm.gov) The new opening covers information cybersecurity specialists, a role OPM said will help protect critical systems, strengthen federal cyber capabilities and secure digital infrastructure used across government. (opm.gov) Tech Force had already been recruiting software engineers, data scientists and product managers for temporary assignments across agencies. Federal News Network reported the cyber addition formally expands that same pipeline to security talent. (federalnewsnetwork.com) The Office of Personnel Management launched United States Tech Force on December 15, 2025, saying agencies would use one-year and two-year tours to bring in technologists for mission-critical work. The launch announcement listed departments including State, Treasury, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, Health and Human Services, Transportation, Energy, Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security. (opm.gov) The cyber expansion arrives after months of federal workforce cuts that thinned technical ranks. Federal News Network said the new recruitment push follows the loss of thousands of federal tech experts under the Trump administration’s broader workforce reductions. (federalnewsnetwork.com) Scott Kupor, the Office of Personnel Management’s director, said in an April 13 statement that the federal government “depends on strong cybersecurity” to protect critical systems and maintain public trust. Nextgov reported the agency is pitching the roles as work on “real challenges” tied to government defenses. (opm.gov) (nextgov.com) The government already runs separate cyber hiring portals, including pages for job seekers and agency hiring managers. Tech Force does not replace those systems; it adds another front door aimed at bringing in experienced talent for fixed-term assignments. (opm.gov 1) (opm.gov 2) A March 2026 Office of Personnel Management memorandum sketched out that broader plan, saying the agency would build talent programs for technology, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, data science and project management. The cyber role is now one of the first visible pieces of that expansion. (opm.gov) For applicants, the immediate change is simple: cybersecurity specialists can now apply through the same Tech Force structure already used for other federal tech jobs. For agencies, it gives them one more way to fill security posts that protect networks, systems and public services. (opm.gov) (federalnewsnetwork.com)
