Are you a federal worker? Are you looking to blow the whistle on government corruption or misconduct? Are you unsure where to start, what to expect, or how to protect yourself?
If so, welcome! You’ve come to the right place. You have questions, and we have answers—though please understand, none of the below is intended as or should replace actual legal advice.
What steps should I take to prepare to whistleblow?
First and foremost: find a qualified lawyer. “Before you do anything, make sure you have a trusted legal advisor who’s experienced in this field,” says Mark Zaid, a DC-based whistleblower lawyer and co-founder of Whistleblower Aid. Alongside Zaid, other top whistleblower lawyers in the DC area include Tom Devine of Government Accountability Project, Jason Zuckerman of Zuckerman Law, and David Colapinto of Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto. Washingtonian’s most recent Top Lawyers list also includes a whistleblower category.
There are many resources online to help whistleblowers find lawyers. Project on Government Oversight maintains a list of law firms that work with whistleblowers. For whistleblowers speaking out about financial fraud, The Anti-Fraud Coalition also maintains a lawyer directory.
Many whistleblower attorneys work under a contingency agreement, which means you don’t have to pay up front—though check with each attorney. An attorney can tell you whether or not they believe your case would be successful, and they can also recommend other attorneys. You also interview with multiple law firms to see if they have experience (and success!) with a case like yours.
Anything else?
Of course! Once you’ve lawyered up, here are other things to keep in mind:
- Make sure you don’t have any dirty laundry or skeletons in your closet. According to Project on Government Oversight, should you choose to go public with whistleblowing, your agency could weaponize any detrimental information—such as drinking, drug use, or affairs—to attack your character. Related: make a complete copy of your personnel file so that your agency can’t slip in any new dirt on you after you whistleblow.
- Keep detailed records. Once you decide to whistleblow, keep a detailed log or a daily diary with relevant dates and developments.
- Do NOT use your agency’s resources to whistleblow. Don’t use your work computer, work phone, work internet network, work printer, work copier, work anything. Most likely, these can be very easily traced back to you. Also, do not use work time to whistleblow; if you do, your agency can claim that you committed time fraud and misappropriated agency resources. Only whistleblow off the clock.
- Be very, very, VERY careful with how you copy, use, and store government documents. This is something you should discuss with your attorney. You could face criminal prosecution for unlawfully copying or removing government documents. Be aware that there are many ways documents can be traced back to you, including metadata on digital files (here’s a handy explainer from the Freedom of the Press Foundation) and physical printers leaving “tracking dots,” digital watermarks on printed pages that identify the specific devices used to print them.
- Practice smart digital security and encryption. Familiarize yourself with security tools such as PGP email encryption, the Signal app, Tor browser, Tails OS, and SecureDrop. Freedom of the Press Foundation has guides on how to strengthen your digital security, and covers topics including what you need to know about media metadata and how to use Proton Mail.
- Have a plan. When you decide to whistleblow, you should anticipate the pushback you might face and what your corresponding counter-moves will be. Additionally, try to come up with some contingency plans for what your life will look like after you whistleblow. How will you ensure your safety and financial and mental well-being?
Where and how can I safely whistleblow?
Traditionally, whistleblowers first attempt to address any problems internally. This means speaking to an agency supervisor, management, or other officials—and then, if that fails, speaking to the agency’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) or to the Office of Special Counsel (OSC).
Reporting internally can help mitigate some of the risks associated with whistleblowing. For example, the Inspectors General offices and OSC are authorized to receive classified information, so if you disclose with them you’ll still be legally protected. As soon as you take classified info out to the public, though, it’s a crime, and you risk felony prosecution.
However, the above standard pathways can seem anything but standard these days. Last month, the Trump administration fired multiple inspectors general at several government agencies, raising concerns that he is angling to reduce government oversight and fill those roles with loyalists.
Are these pathways still trustworthy? “There’s a degree of hesitancy and concern that has to be expressed at this point,” Zaid says. “It’s been the leadership at the top who has been replaced or attempted to be, but not necessarily those beneath them at the career levels. So I think it’s too early to judge how things will play out within the system. But I absolutely have concern about the integrity of the computer systems,” he says, referencing the Department of Government Efficiency’s crew of young engineers with access to internal systems.
If you prefer to whistleblow externally, you can turn to Congress, nonprofit organizations, or the press. Remember: you should definitely have an experienced attorney with you by this point!
The House’s Office of the Whistleblower Ombuds has a page on its website for best practices for working with Congress. Pointers include not instantly providing documents to Congress when you first reach out. Given the current partisan political climate, Zaid also advises potential whistleblowers to “be careful [when working with Congress] so that their whistleblower claims do not become politicized or that they are not used as a political pawn.”
Senate Democrats have also recently established an online whistleblower portal. However, exercise caution when using this portal. “The concern that has to be raised is there’s no instructions on how to become the whistleblower. It’s just advocating that they become one,” says Zaid. “So, there’s a lot of caveats that need to be put in place for the whistleblower, like don’t use your government computer to email the Senate Democrats.”
There are also many reputable nonprofit organizations that work with whistleblowers. Whistleblower Aid is a non-profit that provides legal representation and helps whistleblowers develop media strategies to raise awareness of their issues. Government Accountability Project also provides legal representation for whistleblowers. Project on Government Oversight (POGO) is a nonprofit government watchdog group that can investigate tips submitted by whistleblowers; however, it does not provide legal representation. Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) focuses specifically on issues related to the environment, public lands, natural resources, and public health, and provides legal representation for environmental whistleblowers.
To reach out to the press, most publications have a page with information on how to securely contact them. As a note, advocacy partner nonprofits can often help whistleblowers figure out their media strategy and how to best approach journalists and present their story. Here are the contact pages for the New York Times, the Washington Post, Mother Jones, and ProPublica. You can also contact Washingtonian by emailing washingtoniantips@proton.me
Whether you choose to follow an internal or external reporting route, you should make sure that you can clearly describe what the issue is and have any necessary supporting documents (even if you don’t share them right away.) For more detailed guides on how to whistleblow, check out POGO’s Caught Between Conscience and Career guide and Government Accountability Project’s Truth-Telling in Government guide.
What should I expect after I blow the whistle?
You should expect the worst. In short? “To be fired,” says Zaid. You will very likely face retaliation—either in the form of firing or other employment actions—and you should be prepared.
Under the Whistleblower Protection Act, if you’re a career federal civil-service employee facing retaliation for whistleblowing, you can file a retaliation complaint. Depending on the nature of your retaliation and the outcome you seek, you can file with either the OSC, the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), or your agency’s office of Inspector General. The process can be slow, and there are caveats to each route: for example, OSC can negotiate corrective actions with your agency, but only MSPB can enforce them. Again, the best thing you can do for yourself is to get an experienced lawyer on your side.
Instead of filing a formal retaliation complaint, you can also use OSC’s Alternative Dispute Resolution program, which informally mediates between the whistleblower and their agency. If you’re in a union, you can also consider participating in arbitration with the agency, but be aware of the complications that arise. For example, if your union takes on your case it won’t be yours anymore, which could backfire against you if the union is threatened, bullied, or offered some sort of concession and ultimately drops your case; it also means you wouldn’t be able to take it to the OSC or MSPB anymore.
Given the Trump administration’s in-progress revamp of the federal bureaucracy, are the above methods of filing retaliation complaints still useful? According to Zaid, it’s probably too early to tell, but pressure has definitely been placed on these pathways. “I think the systems are now starting to become overloaded,” he adds. “They were backlogged even before the second Trump administration. I mean, I’ve got complaints that go for years inside the Inspector General’s offices at multiple agencies, as well as the Special Counsel’s office.”
You should also prepare for mental and physical tolls, as well as the possibility that it might be very, very difficult for you to find new employment. There are organizations aimed at helping whistleblowers navigate life after whistleblowing. Whistleblowers of America is a nonprofit that provides peer-to-peer support and helps mediate between whistleblowers and their employers. The Signals Network is another nonprofit that can help whistleblowers find employment, fellowships, and business opportunities post-whistleblowing.
