Congress Enacts Insider Threat Detection Program
Congress ordered the Secretary of Defense to establish an information security program for detecting “unauthorized access to, use of, or transmission of classified or controlled unclassified information.” The provision was included by the FY2012 defense authorization act that was approved in conference this week (section 922).
The insider threat detection program, conceived as a response to WikiLeaks, is intended to “allow for centralized monitoring and detection of unauthorized activities.” Among other things, it is supposed to employ technology solutions “to prevent the unauthorized export of information from a network or to render such information unusable in the event of the unauthorized export of such information.”
The Congressional action was partially anticipated by President Obama’s executive order 13587 of October 7, 2011, which established new governance procedures for improving the security of classified information.
The new legislation adds some further detail and imposes deadlines for compliance.
Without a robust education system that prepares our youth for future careers in key sectors, our national security and competitiveness are at risk.
The Federation of American Scientists applauds the United States for declassifying the number of nuclear warheads in its military stockpile and the number of retired and dismantled warheads.
The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) takes its role as a beacon and voice of the scientific community very seriously. We strive for a world that is both more inclusive and informed by science, and are committed to the idea that the path to that world starts by modeling it within our organization.
To understand the range of governmental priorities for the bioeconomy, we spoke with key agencies represented on the National Bioeconomy Board to collect their perspectives.