The principle is simple. The products, information and techniques of some life sciences research could be misused for nefarious purposes, such as bioterrorism, and the scientific community should do everything it can to prevent such misuse without impeding research progress. What is unclear is what steps scientists should take when they have concerns about such […]
Washington Times reporter Bill Gertz was subpoenaed by a federal court last month to testify regarding his sources for a 2006 story relating to alleged Chinese espionage. While Mr. Gertz has been a prolific reporter of classified information for two decades and has even republished classified documents in his books, his current legal entanglement arises […]
“Leak investigations do not focus on the receiving journalist for a variety of reasons,” according to a 1982 government report (pdf) on unauthorized disclosures of classified information. One of those reasons is that “journalists are unlikely to divulge their sources in response to a subpoena for documents or testimony before a grand jury, and contempt […]
“In too many cases, claims of state secrets have succeeded in keeping important cases out of court entirely or preventing courts from considering evidence vital to the outcome of a case,” said Rep. John Conyers, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, at a January 29 hearing on “Reform of the State Secrets Privilege.” The record […]
In a report to the National Archives (pdf) released last week, the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) said it could not locate a recording of the final interrogation of Jose Padilla, the American citizen who was designated an enemy combatant and later convicted of conspiracy to commit murder. The missing Padilla interrogation video was first reported […]
Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA) and several colleagues last week introduced a bill that endorses and builds upon the recent White House policy statement on “controlled unclassified information” (CUI), which is information that though not classified is subject to restricted access. Although entitled “The Improving Public Access to Documents Act,” it is far from clear that […]
The White House last week issued a National Security Presidential Directive (NSPD-59) to provide a framework for government agencies to collect, maintain and share biometric data such as fingerprints and other physiological or behavioral characteristics of suspected terrorists. “The ability to positively identify those individuals who may do harm to Americans and the Nation is […]
On July 15, 2008, the Federal government will be sponsoring a public consultation to engage the scientific community and research organizations in a discussion of a framework for the oversight of dual use research proposed by the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB). The proposed framework, which has been formally submitted by the Board […]
The Department of Energy has responded favorably (pdf) to the recent recommendations of the Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) for improving the declassification of historical records. In a January 29, 2008 directive, President Bush had instructed agencies to provide comments on the December 2007 PIDB report on “Improving Declassification” (pdf). DOE responded in a newly […]
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence today finally released the final two reports of its investigation into pre-war intelligence on Iraq. “Before taking the country to war, this Administration owed it to the American people to give them a 100 percent accurate picture of the threat we faced,” said Senator Jay Rockefeller in a news […]
The Pentagon should “monitor enemy activities in sleep research” says a newly disclosed report (pdf) from the elite defense science advisory panel known as JASON. The JASONs were investigating the potential for U.S. adversaries “to exploit advances in Human Performance Modification, and thus create a threat to national security.” Their report examined “the present state […]
Steven Aftergood at Secrecy News, just released a report produced for the intelligence community on pox virus research around the world. The report was written by Dr Alfred D. Steinberg, working for MITRE Corporation and published last January. While not classified, the report was also not approved for public release. From the report “It is […]