The Department of Homeland Security has been awarded an F grade for the state of its cyber-security by the US House of Representatives Committee on Government Reform.

This is the third year on the trot that the organisation has received an F rating, but another 24 US departments also received failing grades in the committee's annual Federal Information Security Management Act survey for US federal departments and agencies.

The Departments of Defence, Energy, State and the Veterans Administration all received F grades.

Seven agencies, including the National Science Foundation, the Department of Labour, the Social Security Administration, and the Environmental Protection Agency, received grades in the A range.

The areas tested included having a proper inventory of electronic systems, controls over who can view certain documents, and training staff to be more aware of potential threats and in how to deal with them if attacks occur.