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Newer News: September 2019

July 2019 Intelligence News

• It's Sentient: Meet the classified artificial brain being developed by US intelligence programs by Sarah Scoles, The Verge, July 31. "Sentient is (or at least aims to be) an omnivorous analysis tool, capable of devouring data of all sorts, making sense of the past and present, anticipating the future, and pointing satellites toward what it determines will be the most interesting parts of that future."
• DNI Dan Coats Resignation Letter, July 28, 2019. "I am grateful to you for providing me the opportunity to lead the Intelligence Community. Serving our nation as the Director of National Intelligence and as a member of your national security team has been a distinct privilege."
• Former Government Contractor Harold Martin Sentenced to Nine Years in Federal Prison for Willful Retention of National Defense Information, Justice Dept news release, July 19. "Martin admitted that beginning in the late 1990s, he stole and retained U.S. government property from secure locations and computer systems that contained highly classified information of the United States, including Top Secret/SCI information."
• New Ruling in Mar-a-Lago Intruder Case Raises Question of Chinese Espionage by Dan Friedman, Mother Jones, July 11. "Were foreign spies targeting the facility to gain access to Trump, his family, or his associates? On Wednesday, a federal judge in Florida suggested there was indeed reason to worry."
• Who is a 'covert agent'? CIA bid to expand the category raises alarm for civil liberties groups by Jenna McLaughlin, Yahoo News, July 11. "Activists are concerned the provision, which is written extremely broadly, could allow CIA officers or contractors to escape legal scrutiny indefinitely as well as prevent journalists from writing about agency activities and personnel."
• Expansion of Secrecy Law for Intelligence Operatives Alarms Free Press Advocates by Charlie Savage, New York Times, July 10. "The C.I.A. is quietly pushing Congress to significantly expand the scope of a law that makes it a crime to disclose the identities of undercover intelligence agents, raising alarms among advocates of press freedoms."
• Intelligence Bill Would Enhance Whistleblower Protections by Charles S. Clark, Government Executive, July 8. "Among the many items on Congress's crowded July agenda is floor action on a three-year catch-up on the Intelligence Community authorization bill, a largely bipartisan package drafted in both chambers, with Senate provisions that would enhance protections for whistleblowers."
• NSA Inspector General Releases Semi-Annual Report, July 8. "The unclassified version of the SAR covers the period from October 1, 2018 through March 31, 2019, and reflects what NSA OIG could release publicly about its work for that reporting period. The OIG issued 13 reports and oversight memoranda during that period, making 198 recommendations to assist the Agency in addressing the findings and deficiencies identified."
• Active Oversight Projects of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, July 2019. "This document describes the Board's active oversight projects and other engagements. The shorthand descriptions below are intended to provide public transparency, consistent with the protection of classified information and other applicable law."