Background checks

The Military Is Building an Employee Database to Predict Traitors

The Defense Department is building a massive information-sharing system detailing national security personnel and individuals cleared for accessing U.S. secrets, to flag who among them might be potential turncoats or other “insider threats.”

The “DoD Component Insider Threat Records System” is part of the U.S.government’s response to the 2010 leaks of classified diplomatic cables by former Pfc. Chelsea Manning. A 2011 so-called WikiLeaks executive order called for an “insider threat detection” program.

A review of the 2013 Washington Navy Yard shootings found that the department still lacked “a centralized hub” to obtain a holistic view into potential threats, Defense spokeswoman Linda Rojas told Nextgovin an email.

Now, the Pentagon is establishing a team of “cross-functional experts” trained in cybersecurity, privacy, law enforcement, intelligence and psychology—aided by the new workflow technology—to help fill that gap, she said.

But some civil liberties advocates say this Defensewide insider threat analytics system could create a culture of mutual suspicion that silences whistleblowers.

Background checks

Federal Background Checks Will Soon Involve Your Life on Facebook

Director of Intelligence James Clapper signed a policy Thursday allowing background check investigators to scan public social media postings as part of their assessment. The policy was signed in advance of a House Oversight and Government Reform committee hearing Friday morning.

In the past, clearance investigations have involved interviews with the candidate’s friends and family.

“Today, with more than a billion individuals on Facebook, what a person says and does on social media can often give a better insight on who they really are,” Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., and chair of the subcommittee on government operations, said during the hearing.

Background checks

Mobbed Up: Arms Dealer In American Anti-ISIS Effort Linked To Organized Crime

When the Obama administration, beginning last year, tried to arm moderate Syrian rebels to fight ISIS, the Pentagon did business with arms dealers who have deeply troubling backgrounds, according to sources and government records. BuzzFeed News has learned that:

▸ The main subcontractor in Bulgaria, where many of the arms were supposed to be acquired for the U.S., had a documented link to a notorious alleged organized crime figure, nicknamed “the Baron.”

▸ The president of a key American subcontractor, Regulus Global, faced federal criminal bribery charges, which were dismissed after his trial ended in a hung jury.

▸ The CEO of Regulus Global was found by state securities regulators to have committed “fraud or deceit” against an investor.