In the wake of the January 19, 2025, U.S. presidential transition—from one leadership style to another—the challenges of securing federal systems from automated threats remain more pressing than ever. Once dismissed as simple tools for spam or low-level cybercrime, bots have become the weapon system of choice for adversaries targeting the U.S. government. Whether it’s manipulating benefits systems, overwhelming public portals, or infiltrating sensitive federal networks, bots are driving fraud, disruption, and data exfiltration at unprecedented speed and scale.

This isn’t just about lost dollars. It’s about national security, public trust, and the integrity of government operations. Bots now operate at machine speed, exploiting the very technologies designed to streamline and secure government services. From impersonating legitimate users to bypassing authentication systems and hijacking trusted sessions, these automated threats are eroding the foundations of digital transformation across the federal government.

Under the previous presidential administration, Executive Order 14144, “Strengthening and Promoting Innovation in the Nation’s Cybersecurity,” set the stage for adopting zero-trust architecture (ZTA) as the gold standard for protecting critical systems. The order emphasized the urgent need to modernize identity systems and prevent fraud tied to stolen and synthetic identities. Yet, while the future of this executive order remains uncertain, one thing is clear: the zero-trust bot gap represents a critical blind spot in our collective defenses—one we can no longer afford to ignore.

What is the zero-trust bot gap?

The zero-trust bot gap refers to the security vulnerabilities that arise when bots—sophisticated, AI-driven adversaries—exploit the very principles that zero trust is built on. Zero-trust frameworks are designed to verify users, secure devices, and monitor activity continuously. However, these frameworks struggle to detect and mitigate bot-driven automation that mimics human behavior, bypasses authentication systems, and operates at machine speed.

Here’s how bots exploit this gap:

• Identity exploitation. Bots bypass traditional user identity verification through credential stuffing, session hijacking, and exploiting stolen credentials. Once inside, they operate undetected in authenticated environments.
• Trusted device exploitation. Bots leverage authorized but compromised devices to move laterally across networks and execute malicious activities.
• Traffic manipulation. Bots blend into legitimate network traffic, establishing command-and-control channels or exfiltrating sensitive data.
• Scale and automation. Bots operate far faster than human attackers, overwhelming systems, launching large-scale fraud campaigns, and escalating their operations in seconds.

Why this matters

The zero-trust bot gap isn’t just a theoretical problem—it’s actively being exploited by attackers today, and federal agencies are particularly vulnerable.

The growing threat of BYOD and compromised devices

One key factor exacerbating this problem is the increase in bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies across government agencies post-COVID. With more employees accessing federal systems from personal devices, attackers now have a much wider net to cast when infecting devices.

Once a compromised device successfully authenticates to a government system, a bot-controlled command-and-control (C2) server is signaled, capturing critical session information like credentials, authorization tokens, and network details. From there, the attacker can escalate access, navigate trusted networks undetected, and exploit classified data.

Advanced malware even prioritizes high-value targets—flagging .gov and .mil addresses for bot operators, ensuring federal agencies remain at the top of the list for exploitation. This makes zero-trust defenses ineffective if bot mitigation isn’t built into every layer of the security framework.

How to close the zero-trust bot gap

To fully realize the potential of zero trust, organizations must adapt their frameworks to detect and neutralize bot-driven threats. Here’s what’s needed:

1. Continuous behavioral monitoring. Move beyond static multifactor authentication (MFA) and implement real-time behavioral analysis to detect bot-like activity during authenticated sessions. HUMAN Security’s Application Protection offers AI-powered behavioral analytics that continuously monitor session activity, identifying subtle anomalies that indicate automation, even after successful authentication.
2. AI-driven detection. Leverage machine learning models to differentiate human activity from automated patterns, flagging suspicious behaviors before damage occurs. HUMAN Security’s machine learning models are trained in real time, on trillions of interactions each week, allowing our Application Protection suite of products distinguish real users from bots with accuracy.
3. Dynamic microsegmentation. Apply adaptive microsegmentation policies that respond in real time to bot detection signals, blocking lateral movement before it can escalate. HUMAN’s platform enhances zero-trust network segmentation by continuously identifying automated threats and signaling when session-based access controls should be restricted, revalidated, or revoked—stopping bots before they move laterally.
4. Machine-speed response. Deploy real-time automated response mechanisms to neutralize bot-driven threats before they escalate into full-blown security breaches.  The HUMAN platform provides low-code/no-code automation that integrates seamlessly with security orchestration, automation, and response (SOAR) platforms, enabling real-time enforcement actions—such as revoking session tokens, blocking malicious requests, or triggering automated incident response workflows—stopping bot-driven attacks in milliseconds.

A resource for public sector leaders

To fully explore the implications of the zero-trust bot gap—and how to defend against it—HUMAN Security has developed a thought-leadership piece: Closing the zero-trust bot gap. This paper dives deep into the following:

• How bots exploit identity, device, and network security gaps in zero trust implementations.
• Actionable strategies for integrating AI-driven bot mitigation into federal cybersecurity frameworks.
• Real-world examples of bot-driven threats and the latest defense mechanisms being deployed.

The path forward

Bots aren’t slowing down—they’re getting smarter, faster, and more deceptive. The zero- trust bot gap is a real and immediate threat to federal agencies, but it’s not an unsolvable problem. The government must act now to integrate bot-aware defenses into zero-trust frameworks to protect national security, taxpayer dollars, and public trust.  To learn more, read our white paper Closing the zero-trust bot gap.