The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating whether the credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s improperly rated dozens of mortgage securities leading up to the nation’s financial crisis. According to the New York Times, the probe is focusing on occasions where Standard & Poor’s managers overruled lower-level analysts who wanted to assign lower ratings to mortgage bonds. The investigation was launched before Standard & Poor’s decision to downgrade the U.S. credit rating earlier this month. It is unclear if the Justice Department is also investigating the other two major ratings agencies, Moody’s and Fitch.