Government press releases could be temporarily marked as “controlled unclassified information” to protect them from premature disclosure, according to an official Background paper (pdf) on the new White House information security policy. Controlled unclassified information, or CUI, refers to information that does not meet the standards for classification but that is considered too sensitive for […]
Instead of new forms of secrecy, new mechanisms for actively informing the public about threats to homeland security are needed, said Stephen E. Flynn (pdf) of the Council on Foreign Relations at a May 15 hearing of a House Homeland Security subcommittee. “The targets of choice for current and future terrorists will be civilians and […]
Two new judges were named to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court this week, Secrecy News has learned, one a Clinton appointee and one a Reagan appointee. Judge Mary A. McLaughlin of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and Judge James B. Zagel of the Northern District of Illinois were appointed to seven year terms on the […]
Today in a hearing of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce it was revealed by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) that the Department of Homeland Security’s plan to move foot and mouth disease research to the mainland United States is based on faulty assumptions. Foot and mouth disease is caused by the most infectious […]
The National Cyber Security Initiative, which is “the single largest… and most important initiative” in next year’s budget, is being conducted under “excessive classification,” the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) said in its new report on the 2009 intelligence authorization act. For the cyber security program to function as intended, “it will require […]
A new searchable index of hundreds of thousands of documents held by the Air Force Historical Research Agency has been created by private researchers and posted online. The index does not provide access to the underlying documents, which must be requested from AFHRA. Nevertheless, it has several interesting features. For one thing, it represents a […]
The National Archives and Records Administration today announced the establishment of a new Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) Office that is intended to lead the implementation and oversight of a new White House policy on CUI, which is unclassified information that is deemed to require protection from disclosure. The CUI Office, to be headed by Information […]
Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service, obtained by Secrecy News, include the following (all pdf). “U.S. Nuclear Cooperation With India: Issues for Congress,” updated May 20, 2008. “Nuclear Weapons: The Reliable Replacement Warhead Program,” updated May 19, 2008. “Suits Against Terrorist States By Victims of Terrorism,” updated May 1, 2008. “Syria: Background and […]
U.S. defense intelligence agencies should aim to “eliminate” the capabilities of opponents to operate effectively against the United States from outer space or cyber space, according to a new Pentagon strategy for defense intelligence (pdf). Defense intelligence shall “eliminate any advantage held by our adversaries to operate from and within the space and cyber domains,” […]
Intergovernmental contacts between North Korean and Syrian officials during the last two years were scrutinized by the DNI Open Source Center (pdf), but even in retrospect the available record presents no indication of joint work on a secret nuclear facility destroyed by Israel last September (large pdf). “A review of available North Korean and Syrian […]
Compared to all the excitement created by the US-Indian nuclear trade deal, the Russian equivalent, submitted last week, created barely a ripple [caution: big file to download]. While FAS strongly opposes the US-Indian nuclear trade agreement, the Russian case is much more complex. There are reasons to oppose the Russian deal and reasons to support […]
U.S. intelligence employees who are collecting open source intelligence online should do more to ensure that they are not identified as intelligence personnel, the House Armed Services Committee said in its new report on the 2009 Defense Authorization Act. Failure to conceal the identity of open source intelligence collectors could conceivably lead to spoofing, disinformation […]