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This BLOG is for LLNL present and past employees, friends of LLNL and anyone impacted by the privatization of the Lab to express their opinions and expose the waste, wrongdoing and any kind of injustice against employees and taxpayers by LLNS/DOE/NNSA. The opinions stated are personal opinions. Therefore, The BLOG author may or may not agree with them before making the decision to post them. Comments not conforming to BLOG rules are deleted. Blog author serves as a moderator. For new topics or suggestions, email jlscoob5@gmail.com

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Saturday, June 10, 2017

Leakers inside NSA, is the background check process working?

After the cases of Manning, Snowden, and now Winner one wonders about such people managed to get and hold a clearance. Is the background check now that sloppy or are they getting let through on purpose. Either way, it's worrisome.

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hard to dig out radical moles like them, how would you? You could check their social media posts, but often people use untraceable usernames or make their facebook posts private. The names you give them as references aren't going to slam you as a radical, otherwise you would not list them. And especially if you've had clearances already, you tend to get a green light. You might look like a Winner and pass all the gates, but in Reality you are a treasonous deep state radical trying to harm national security.

Anonymous said...

Did the leaked document reveal methods?

Did the leaked document reveal sources?

Anonymous said...

"Top Secret" shall be applied to information, the unauthorized disclosure of which reasonably could be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to the national security.

You get to retake the annual security refresher, 7:33 am.

Anonymous said...

Winner served in the US Air Force for six years and had a Top Secret clearance. She was stationed at Fort Meade, home of the NSA. Snowden served in the US Army, as did Manning.

The one striking common denominator is all three where in their mid-20s when they leaked classified information after getting their TSCs in their early 20s.

It may be that background investigations need to take a much more detailed look at those under 30. Granting a high level security clearance to "kids" in their early 20s while in the military and renewing them under the assumption that they see the world the same in their later post-service years, may be the error.

Anonymous said...

People evolve. Just because someone gets a clearance today does not guarantee they will not violate it tomorrow.

Anonymous said...

It is well known in the OPM investigative service that reinvestigations are much more lenient than initial investigations. They shouldn't be.

Anonymous said...

Well actually they should be, but maybe not so lenient that you get a free pass if you were a cleared military person. Someone who's had a clearance for years and has not caused any problems, is a lower risk than an unknown person who has never been cleared. And, if you have a clearance, your history prior to 5 years ago is already known, whereas the new person may have decades to be investigated. Maybe there should be an age limit, since all these problems have been caused by young and dumb individuals. Unless you're active military, you have to be 30 or older to get a Q-level clearance?

Anonymous said...

Unless you're active military, you have to be 30 or older to get a Q-level clearance?

June 10, 2017 at 6:50 PM

Winner was active military. Politically incorrect to say so, but I've known more military folk with "sketchy" backgrounds and attitudes than scientists or bureaucrats.

Anonymous said...

It's just a symptom of how large the intelligence community has become. As the IC expands and starts to dominate our government and society, like the old KGB in the Soviet Union, it's going to have these problems. It needs more surveillance of US citizens, more polygraphs, and probably a gulag type sentencing procedure if it is going to continue to expand at this rate.

Anonymous said...

Its the liberals. They lack the toughness to lose and carry on. If they don't get their way they rebel or kill. Laws only apply if you like them. It is childish and why strong men and women are not liberal.

Anonymous said...

The government needs to work on retention for cleared employees. Higher pay, better benefits, and a new culture. Slow down the turnover. Less turnover means a statistically lower chance of introducing new "problems". Why did they need a 20 something in that position? Perhaps they sent the senior people into early retirement to "save money".

Anonymous said...

June 14, 2017 at 9:13 PM said...

Its the liberals. They lack the toughness to lose and carry on. If they don't get their way they rebel or kill. Laws only apply if you like them.

In fact, in the late 1700s they actually rebelled against their King and tried to set up their own little country. Sad.

Anonymous said...

There were no liberals in the late 1700's, everyone was a gun-toting racist who valued individual freedoms and hated big government. Check your history books, or return your mail-order degree.

GreggS said...

June 18, 2017 at 12:17 PM

Your posting is out of line - no attacks or denigrating words about other posters.

Anonymous said...

How about "I believe you are misguided and wrong, and I don't share your opinion." Is that denigrating? (Hint: "to deny the importance or validity of" - M-W 2nd definition.)

Second question: Why do you care if it's not about you? Your "rule" is simply incompatible with an anonymous blog.

GreggS said...

The rewording is acceptable. The original quip about mail-order degree was what triggered my warning.

Why do I care? The posters here, including you are the guests of the blog. As such they deserve a measure of respect. Name-calling, rude speech, and other offensive behavior drives away visitors - eventually killing any forum where such activity is allowed to fester. Finally, I don't like bullying, putting another person down in order to make themselves feel good.

Despite the innuendo some have made, I don't kill postings based in my personal likes or dislikes of the topic. Blog activity logs can back me up on that. My job is to moderate, make sure that things run smoothly and with a measure of civil behavior. I don't care what your opinions are, just show some maturity.

Anonymous said...

I don't like bullying, putting another person down in order to make themselves feel good.

June 19, 2017 at 2:16 PM

Pity that you don't recognize that is exactly what you are doing.

Anonymous said...

I don't care what your opinions are...

June 19, 2017 at 2:16 PM

Yep, says it all.

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