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Newer News: May 2016

April 2016 Intelligence News

• DNI certifies that estimated number of queries of US person information cannot be provided, letter to Congress, April 30. "Based on the information provided to me by the relevant elements, I reasonably anticipate that such an estimate will be able to be determined fully and accurately by the end of calendar year 2018."
• The CIA Illegally Let the Wrong People Do Intelligence Work, Declassified Report Finds by Jason Leopold, VICE News, April 27. "The CIA violated federal laws and its own internal regulations by hiring independent contractors for a wide variety of intelligence-related work that was supposed to be performed by government employees, according to a CIA Office of Inspector General (OIG) audit report obtained by VICE News."
• Maybe the Opposite is True by Steven Aftergood, Sh'ma Now, April 15. "Security is not simply a matter of locks or guards; it has a cognitive dimension. Our ability to face the unknown will depend greatly on how we think."
• Security Policy, Progress and Reform Q and A by Chandler Harris, ClearanceJobs, April 15. "With the ongoing drive to reform security clearance processes and reduce the number of personnel with security clearances, we reached out to Steven Aftergood to learn what he thought about the current security clearance environment."
• Obama Administration Weighs Nixing 'Confidential' Classification by Ken Dilanian, NBC News, April 13. "The nation's top intelligence official is considering letting spy agencies drop the lowest level of classification, 'confidential,' in an effort to shrink the gusher of secret documents flowing out of their offices."
• Intelligence Agencies Consider Striking 'Confidential' Label by Kathleen Hennessey, Associated Press, April 13. "Intelligence agencies are considering eliminating the government's lowest category of classified information -- a step a top official has said could simplify the system used to guard intelligence and could prevent unnecessary secrecy."
• Obama administration mulls nixing lowest tier for classified info by Josh Gerstein, Politico, April 13. "The Obama administration is mulling a proposal to eliminate the lowest of the three major tiers for classified information: the 'Confidential' designation."
• Obama's Latest View on Secrecy Overlooks Past Prosecution of Leaks by David E. Sanger and Mark Landler, New York Times, April 11. "When President Obama defended Hillary Clinton's email practices in a television interview over the weekend by saying, 'there's classified, and then there's classified,' he was only repeating what critics of government secrecy have long contended."
• Spy Chief Instructs Intel Community to Serve as Government's Declassification Role Model by Eric Katz, Government Executive, April 6. "The federal government's top spy chief wants the intelligence community to pave the way for reducing the amount of classified information across agencies, according to a recent memorandum from the director of national intelligence."
• Pentagon security clearances drop 20 percent in 3 years by Sean Lyngaas, Federal Computer Week, April 6. "The number of Defense Department employees and contractors with security clearances has dropped by 20 percent over the last three years, according to data published by the Office of Management and Budget."
• Number of Department of Defense Clearances Drops 20 Percent in Three Years by Lindy Kyzer, ClearanceJobs.com, April 6. "The number of Department of Defense security clearances dropped by 20 percent between 2013 and 2016 - a reduction of more than 900,000."
• The CIA Helped Produce an Episode of 'Top Chef' by Jason Leopold, VICE News, April 6. The audit said "OPA and other CIA employees did not always comply with Agency regulations intended to prevent the release of classified information during their interactions with entertainment industry representatives."
• Clinton Email Probe Recalls Past Scrutiny Over Classified Information by Carrie Johnson, NPR All Things Considered, April 4. "Federal investigators continue to look into the handling of classified information around Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server while secretary of state. It's not the first time government officials have been scrutinized over the handling of classified information."
• CIA Withdraws Plan to Destroy Emails by Julian Hattem, The Hill, April 4. "The CIA has formally withdrawn a controversial proposal to destroy the emails of all but 22 top-level officials after an employee leaves office."