The Obama Administration is moving to increase the security of classified information in response to the massive leaks of classified documents to Wikileaks in recent months. The White House Office of Management and Budget yesterday issued a detailed memorandum (pdf) elaborating on the requirement to conduct an initial assessment of agency information policies and to […]
There are security weaknesses at many of the research facilities operated by the Department of Defense, according to a DoD Inspector General survey issued last year. “All [military] Services identified compliance issues related to information assurance,” the IG report (pdf) found, based on a review of 37 out of 121 research, development, test and evaluations […]
The Air Force issued updated guidance (pdf) last week concerning its highly classified special access programs, including new language prohibiting unauthorized communications with Congress. Special access programs (SAPs) involve access and safeguarding restrictions that are more extensive than those that apply to other classified programs. SAPs are nominally established “to protect the Nation’s most sensitive […]
One aspect of the current crisis in classification policy is the growing discrepancy between what is secret and what is classified. All too often, official classification controls are imposed (or retained) on information that is public, thereby generating confusion and loss of confidence in the integrity of the classification system. The problem was underscored recently […]
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the pro-Israel lobby organization, has often received and distributed confidential government information, including classified materials, asserted former AIPAC official Steven J. Rosen in his pending lawsuit against the organization. “There is evidence that the receipt and distribution of confidential foreign policy information is a common practice for AlPAC,” […]
Noteworthy new products of the Congressional Research Service include the following reports (all pdf). “The EU-South Korea Free Trade Agreement and Its Implications for the United States,” December 17, 2010. “Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: The Fate of the Oil,” December 16, 2010. “Keeping America’s Pipelines Safe and Secure: Key Issues for Congress,” December 13, 2010. […]
By Hans M. Kristensen The Federation of American Scientists today applauded the Senate’s ratification of the New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) between the United States and Russia. The Senate voted 71 to 26 in favor of ratification of the treaty. The approval of the treaty is a victory for common sense and an impressive achievement […]
Faced with release of hundreds of thousands of classified records by Wikileaks in recent months, what should the government do? The best answer might be to release hundreds of millions of such records! By stripping away the accretions of decades of overclassification, a wholesale reduction in classified records would restore some integrity to the classification […]
Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf). “Classified Information Policy and Executive Order 13526,” December 10, 2010. “Screening and Securing Air Cargo: Background and Issues for Congress,” December 2, 2010. “Chemical Facility Security: Reauthorization, Policy Issues, and Options for […]
Last year, Senator Christopher Bond (R-MO) told reporters that there is “a far Left-wing fringe group that wants to disclose all our vulnerabilities. I don’t know what their motives are but I think they are very dangerous to our security.” More hating on Wikileaks? No, Senator Bond was actually talking about the Federation of American […]
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“Cyber security is now critical to our survival but as a field of research [it] does not have a firm scientific basis,” according to the Department of Defense. “Our current security approaches have had limited success and have become an arms race with our adversaries. In order to achieve security breakthroughs we need a more […]