The Central Intelligence Agency announced yesterday that it had declassified six World War I-era documents describing the use of “invisible ink” to convey secret messages. The CIA presented the new disclosure as an indication that the declassification process was functioning properly, not that it was dysfunctional. “These documents remained classified for nearly a century until […]
The Department of State is not fulfilling its obligation to produce a “thorough, reliable, and accurate” account of U.S. foreign policy and there is no foreseeable likelihood that it will do so, an official historical advisory committee told the Secretary of State this month. The Department’s “Foreign Relations of the United States” (FRUS) series is […]
Some new or newly updated reports from the Congressional Research Service include the following (all pdf). “Privacy Protections for Personal Information Online,” April 6, 2011. “Department of Defense Contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan: Background and Analysis,” March 29, 2011. “Iran Sanctions,” April 4, 2011. “Asylum and ‘Credible Fear’ Issues in U.S. Immigration Policy,” April 6, […]
The American public does not have an accurate sense of the threat posed by attacks in cyberspace because most of the relevant threat information is classified, according to Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), who introduced legislation last week to raise public awareness of cyber security hazards. “The damage caused by malicious activity in cyberspace is enormous […]
The National Security Agency published a brochure this month on “Best Practices for Keeping Your Home Network Secure” (pdf). Among other online security measures, the NSA suggested providing false answers to password recovery challenge questions. “The cyber threat is no longer limited to your office network and work persona,” the NSA said. “Adversaries realize that […]
An Obama Administration initiative to curb overclassification of national security information that was announced in December 2009 has produced no known results to date. The Fundamental Classification Guidance Review, which was mandated by President Obama’s executive order 13526 (section 1.9), requires each classifying agency to review all of its existing classification instructions prior to June […]
A statutory limit on total federal debt has been in place since 1917. In the past decade, Congress has voted to raise the debt limit ten times and it will now have to do so once again. The history of the debt limit and its current implications were discussed in a recently updated report from […]
The Obama Administration today released the text of Presidential Policy Directive (PPD) 8 (pdf) on “National Preparedness.” The Directive, signed by President Obama on March 30, generally calls for development of systematic response plans for natural and manmade disasters, and seeks to enlist broad engagement in the process. “This directive is aimed at strengthening the […]
A federal court heard pre-trial arguments last week in the case of former National Security Agency official Thomas A. Drake, who is charged with unlawful retention of NSA documents. He allegedly relayed some of those documents to a Baltimore Sun reporter, who subsequently wrote stories about NSA waste and mismanagement. At last week’s hearing (pdf), […]
Members of the public enjoy unrestricted access to all reports of the Congressional Research Service, according to the Librarian of Congress, Dr. James H. Billington. “Though CRS has no direct public mission, at present the public has unfettered access to the full inventory of CRS Reports for the Congress at no cost through the office […]
Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf). “Military Justice: Courts-Martial, An Overview,” March 31, 2011. “The State Secrets Privilege: Preventing the Disclosure of Sensitive National Security Information During Civil Litigation,” March 28, 2011. “Rare Earth Elements in National Defense: […]
The Senate Intelligence Committee is proposing to punish leaks of classified information by authorizing intelligence agencies to seize the pension benefits of current or former employees who are believed to have committed an unauthorized disclosure of classified information. The pending proposal would “provide an additional administrative option for the Intelligence Community to deter leakers who […]