US spy agency risks talent exodus amid morale slump, Trump fears

Demoralised workforce abandoning ship: The NSA has "seen a steady rise" in the attrition rate among its roughly 36,000 employees since 2009, and it now sits at a "little less than six percent," according to an NSA spokesman.

WASHINGTON: The National Security Agency risks a brain-drain of hackers and cyberspies due to a tumultuous reorganisation and worries about the acrimonious relationship between the intelligence community and President Donald Trump, according to current and former NSA officials and cybersecurity industry sources. 

Half-a-dozen cybersecurity executives told Reuters they had witnessed a marked increase in the number of US intelligence officers and government contractors seeking employment in the private sector since Trump took office on Jan 20.