security clearance

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Navy Yard Gunman Lied During Security Check

Navy didn't know 2004 arrest involved a gun

(Newser) - The Los Angeles Times sheds more light on how Navy Yard gunman Aaron Alexis was able to get secret-level security clearance from the Navy, despite the fact that he had been arrested in 2004 for an incident involving a gun. Alexis did not mention the incident on the security questionnaire...

Navy Gunman, Snowden Checked Out by Same Firm

USIS has been under federal scrutiny

(Newser) - Both Edward Snowden and Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis faced background checks in recent years—and both checks were conducted by the same company. USIS ran a background check on Alexis in 2007 for the Office of Personnel Management, the year he joined the Navy; the company said it wasn'...

How Aaron Alexis Slipped By
 How Aaron Alexis Slipped By 
Sep 18, 2013 7:54 AM CDT

How Aaron Alexis Slipped By

Company that hired him says it's 'sad' he passed background check

(Newser) - How did a guy who heard voices, felt microwaves , and had multiple gun arrests get security clearance? That's a question lawmakers, and Aaron Alexis' former employer, are asking today. "We would not have hired him" if we'd known, the CEO of The Experts tells the Washington Post...

Report: Firm That Does US Background Checks Cut Corners

Company allegedly skipped second step, says Washington Post

(Newser) - We already knew Edward Snowden was hired by NSA contractor Booz Allen even though his resumé had issues —but the mess surrounding how Snowden got top-secret clearance grows. The Washington Post reports that USIS, another contractor that screened Snowden for the clearance, allegedly told the government its background checks...

5M Americans Can Access Classified Info

'Top secret' info available to 1.4M

(Newser) - If all the Americans cleared to access classified information lived in the same US city, it would be second only to New York City in population, USA Today finds in the wake of the NSA's leaked surveillance program . More than 4.9 million people have some kind of government...

Price of Keeping US Secrets: $11B

...Or at least, that's the price that's not classified

(Newser) - It's not cheap keeping the vast number of secrets the US government does. These days, Uncle Sam spends a whopping $11 billion guarding classified info, twice what it spent a decade ago, the New York Times reports—and that's just the secrets it will tell us about. The...

Steve Jobs Told Pentagon About LSD, Pot Use

Acid, pot nurtured his creativity, says Apple founder

(Newser) - Steve Jobs discovered one definite way to " think different ." The mega-mind behind Apple took LSD some 15 times, and it was a "life-changing experience," Jobs revealed on a 1988 security clearance application he filled out for the Department of Defense. "It was a positive life...

More Than 4.2M People Have Security Clearance

That's almost double previous estimates

(Newser) - A whopping 4.2 million people have access to classified government information, according to a new government report. That’s a far cry from the 2.4 million estimate the Government Accountability Office came up with just two years ago, and, the Washington Post points out, it’s just over...

Expect a Lot More Intel Leaks
 Expect a Lot More Intel Leaks 
Analysis
Aug 2, 2010 2:54 PM CDT

Expect a Lot More Intel Leaks

We may be in for an age of whistleblowers

(Newser) - Did you enjoy the WikiLeaks storm ? Well, there could soon be a lot more like it. There are more opportunities for leaks than ever before, observes the Christian Science Monitor , because the government is generating more classified data than ever and is granting security clearances to huge numbers of...

Prez's Pimped-Out BlackBerry Nearly Ready

The NSA begins final tests on encryption software this month

(Newser) - President Obama’s super-secure, high-powered new BlackBerry could soon get the thumbs-up from the National Security Agency, which is about to begin final tests on its encryption software. The president could be texting, emailing, calling and Facebooking other high-security personnel—like Michelle O.—within months, the Washington Times reports,...

Bush, Obama Will Sit Down Monday

Transition moving quickly between president, successor

(Newser) - President George W. Bush will meet with Barack Obama early next week to discuss plans for transition, the Washington Post reports. Obama received his first intelligence briefing this morning, and key staffers have been given expedited security clearances. “We face economic challenges that will not pause to let a...

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