Security Clearances

Overview of Who Needs Security Clearance?

Only individuals who need access to classified or sensitive information for professional purposes are eligible for security clearance. In most cases, this means those in positions within the federal government. Some government-affiliated contractors in fields such as defense, homeland security, intelligence, housing, and energy are also granted security clearance in order to perform certain tasks.

While there are a wide variety of positions that may warrant security clearance, professionals working in the following fields are most likely to need access to classified materials.

• Information Technology

• Intelligence Analysis

• Linguistics

• Engineering

• Law Enforcement

• Telecommunications

• Medicine

• Education

• Finance

What Makes Security Clearances Valuable?

There are many factors that make obtaining security clearance valuable. While placing a monetary value on the designation is impossible, most individuals with clearance do make higher salaries. There are a few reasons for this, including increased marketability. Military personnel with clearances who move to the private sector, in particular, are able to find employment more easily. This is because many civilian employers prefer or require candidates to already have security clearance. The company or organization can save time and money on the background check, as well as have assurances that the professional will meet minimum clearance qualifications if they already have their security clearance in place.

Additionally, most federal agencies will accept another agency’s prior approval for security clearance, meaning it is quite easy for professionals to shift from one government position to another. This is generally possible as long as background investigations were completed within the past five to ten years and there has been a break in service of no more than two years. Similarly, some private contracting companies can afford to pay more to individuals who already have security clearance because they save money by avoiding the clearance application process.

Who Issues Security Clearances?

There are several government agencies capable of designating security clearance through the Office of Personnel Security and Suitability. This office, overseen by the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, manages the State Department’s personnel security clearance program. It is responsible for reviewing and analyzing employment candidate investigations. There are more than 25,000 personnel security clearances conducted each year.

While the Office of Personnel Security and Suitability is responsible for issuing clearances, the Bureau of Human Resources actually determines which Department of State positions need security clearance. The Bureau is in charge of all recruitment, assignment evaluation, promotion, discipline, career development, and retirement policies and programs for the foreign and civil service employees. Personnel security background investigation results help the Bureau to determine candidate and current employee suitability for clearances.

It is important to realize that individuals are not permitted to obtain security clearance on his or her own. Only a sponsoring agency is capable of initiating the security clearance process, meaning you cannot gain a security clearance in order to have a better chance when applying to government jobs, you must already be sponsored by an employer in order to gain clearance.

Security Clearance Levels

There are multiple levels of security clearance, each designed to provide professionals with the specific type of confidential information necessary to complete job responsibilities. Individuals may have access to materials up to and including their specified clearance level, but cannot view information in levels above their specified clearance level.

Interim

Interim security clearance is granted to an individual responsible for completing a very specific job. Unlike other clearance levels, this clearance is temporary and expires as soon as the job is completed or final clearance is granted. This clearance can be attained more quickly, with an application period of approximately 30 days, but generally only grants low-level access to confidential information and materials.

Confidential

Confidential security clearance provides individuals with access to confidential information and materials that would cause damage to national security if disclosed without authorization.

Secret

Secret security clearance provides individuals with access to confidential information and materials that would cause serious damage to national security if disclosed without authorization.

Top Secret

Top Secret security clearance provides individuals with access to confidential information and materials that would cause exceptionally grave damage to national security if disclosed without authorization.

Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI)

Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) is a category of classified materials that consists of information involving intelligence sources and methods. This type of information is particularly vulnerable and usually only available to individuals with Top Secret security clearance. However, eligibility standards and requirements are much higher for information within this category.

Special Access Programs (SAPs)

Special Access Programs (SAPs) is another category of classified materials that consists of information involving highly sensitive policies, projects, and programs. This type of information is particularly vulnerable and usually only available to individuals with Top Secret security clearance. Eligibility standards and requirements are also much higher for information within this category.

Collateral

Collateral security clearance describes clearance that does not have any special access authorizations to information within the SCI or SAPs categories. This means that Confidential, Secret, and Top Secret designations are all considered collateral clearances unless SCI and/or SAPs clearance is granted.

Security Clearance Status

There are three security clearance statuses: active, current, and expired. It is important to understand what each of these mean, especially when transferring from one position to another.

Active

An individual with active security clearance is eligible for access to classified information, assuming their current position requires it. This type of security clearance is easy to transfer between employers.

Current

An individual with current security clearance has been identified as eligible for access to classified information, but must first be officially reinstated. It is possible to remain on current status for up to two years before eligibility is revoked. This type of security clearance is easy to transfer between employers.

Expired

An individual with expired security clearance is no longer considered eligible for access to classified information. Clearances expire after two years of disuse and cannot be reinstated. Those with expired security clearance must submit a new application and go through the background investigation process again before active security clearance is reinstated.

Those who wish to inquire about their security clearance status can email SecurityClearance@state.gov. Personnel security specialists are also available by phone at the Customer Service Center from 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., EST.

What is the Security Clearance Caveat?

Government professionals and contractors may also have security clearance with a caveat. A caveat may be attached to confidential, secret, and top secret clearances. In addition to regular security clearance, a caveat provides an individual with special access to a specific type of information. Examples of caveats include the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and communications security (COMSEC), both of which also require professionals to receive a special briefing prior to access.

How to Get a Security Clearance

Security clearance for any professional must be requested by a government official or government-affiliated contracting company. Individuals and private companies unassociated with the government cannot request or receive clearance. For qualified candidates, there are three primary steps involved in obtaining the security clearance necessary for their jobs.

Provide All Necessary Information

The first step in the process is collecting, completing, and submitting the necessary application materials. While each level of clearance has varying standards, professionals seeking clearance must provide proof of citizenship, fingerprints, and a completed Personnel Security Questionnaire. While there are a few security questionnaires available, the most common one used is the Questionnaire for National Security Positions - Standard Form 86. It consists of a comprehensive set of questions designed to gather general information about the candidate’s life and beliefs. Applicants are expected to answer questions with absolute honesty, as even unintentional omissions can result in security clearance denial in the future.

The following topics are known as the 13 Adjudicative Guidelines for Determining Eligibility for Access to Classified Information:

• Allegiance to the United States

• Impact of Foreign Influence

• Foreign Preference

• Sexual Behavior

• Personal Conduct

• Financial Considerations

• Alcohol Consumption

• Drug Involvement

• Emotional, Mental, and Personality Disorders

• Criminal Behavior and Criminal Record

• Security Violations

• Outside Activities

• Misuse or Abuse of Governmental Systems

It is also important to note that federal agents may use information available publicly on social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram during initial assessments.

Background Investigation

The next phase is a background investigation, which is frequently conducted by the National Background Investigations Bureau (NBIB) within the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The depth and scope of the background investigation will depend on the level of security clearance being requested. Applications will go through the National Agency Checks and Inquiries with Credit and Local Agency Check (NACLC), which run credit checks, federal and local criminal records checks, and verification of references. A face-to-face interview is also usually necessary.

Higher level security clearance requests may require a Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI). In these situations, case managers will check with law enforcement agencies in every location the candidate has lived and conduct more interviews. Family members, friends, neighbors, and former spouses may all be questioned and their citizenship verified. In some cases, polygraph testing may be required.

The following government records will also be pulled to ensure the accuracy of the information provided in the Questionnaire for National Security Positions - Standard Form 86:

• Tax Returns

• Employment Records

• Driver and Vehicle Licensing Records

• Other Public Records

If discrepancies between personal statements and official records are revealed during the investigation, they will be pursued further.

Adjudication

The final phase of the security clearance application process is adjudication. During this phase, officials determine whether or not an applicant will be granted security clearance based on the Adjudicative Guidelines for Determining Eligibility for Access to Classified Information mentioned above. This decision is based upon the information revealed during the background investigation, which must prove that the individual is an acceptable security risk to the nation.

The adhering to standards are created for all people that ask for accessibility to classified information. They connect to individuals being thought about for preliminary or continued eligibility, as well as likewise are made use of by federal government departments and also firms in all last clearance decisions. Try to find safety as well as protection clearance work.

The person's engagement was simply with the authorized or altruistic elements of such a company. Participation in the above jobs took place for just a brief quantity of time as well as was attributable to inquisitiveness or scholastic rate of interest; The individual has had no current participation or association with such jobs.

Get in touch with in addition to record with worldwide people are casual as well as additionally infrequent; The person has in fact immediately complied with existing firm needs concerning the coverage of calls, needs, or dangers from individuals or business from an international country; Foreign financial rate of interests are very little and also not adequate to affect the person's safety tasks.

The following will normally trigger an undesirable clearance task or monitoring discontinuation of more handling for clearance eligibility: Refusal to undergo or accept required defense processing, consisting of professional and additionally psychological screening to finish needed security kinds, releases, or supply total, honest in addition to real remedy to legal queries regarding a workers security and safety and security or integrity decision.

Acquiring security clearances is a necessity in today's security industry. After all, if people can't be trusted to protect our nation's most sensitive information, then what use are we?

Having had a handful of very high-level security clearances at state and federal agencies all over the nation, including at the FBI, CIA, IRS, and Department of Homeland Security (DHS), I'm convinced it wasn't the amount of money the airport worker had an unpaid traffic citation for. I'm also convinced it wasn't the fact that he didn't reveal that he had an unpaid citation on his application that may have lapseed to his employer. It was the fact that his employer was unaware of any past violations when hiring him, and yet made the decision to hire him anyway.

For me, the bottom line is that security clearance requires integrity. If your employer doesn't trust you enough to provide the required security clearance for them, they have every right to fire you for insubordination. When you acquire security clearances, be honest about what you know, but don't tell any more than you need to.

Another common question often posed about security clearance is whether you can lie about who you are or where you came from. In general, you can't lie about who you are, although there are situations where lying about where you came from is permissible.

You may not be able to tell a prospective employer that you were born in Kenya, but you may be able to claim to be an immigrant from Mexico or South America on your resume. What you can do though, is to claim to be a United States citizen when you really aren't, unless you've been in the country for less than five years.

In addition to the issue of being truthful about your origins and citizenship, security clearance also requires that you disclose personal information about yourself, such as when and how you got a security clearance. This includes but isn't limited to criminal records, criminal convictions, court records, or warrant requests.

It is also important to realize that although many federal agencies require security clearances, the same-day security clearances that some employers ask for are not required by every agency. For example, when applying for a job with the Department of Energy you need a clearance that verifies your eligibility for employment on a contract basis and not for an on-the-job position.

When I acquired my first security clearance in 1988, I did so because I had obtained my first job at the Department of State and I wanted to work for the State Department in Washington. The requirement to acquire the necessary clearance did not even mention that I had criminal records in the field of international relations. I found out later that many state departments were now requiring security clearance to hire people for jobs in their departments, as the threat of terrorism in the United States is rising.

Even though you may feel that you are not at risk for a security clearance, you should understand the risks. If someone is able to get an access pass to the highest levels of your office, you are not in control of whether they will abuse their access pass.

There are some other things that you need to know about security clearance. For example, when I was hired by the Department of Defense, I had to give up my passport in order to obtain security clearance for me and my spouse, although he has a U.S. passport.

In order to get security clearance to work for the Department of Defense, you have to provide proof of U.S. citizenship when you apply for a job. I had no problem after I acquired the necessary clearance, but if I were a dual citizen of one of these countries, it would have been a different story.

In conclusion, obtaining security clearance is a legal requirement for most agencies that require it, but there are other ways of gaining access to the information that they want to know about you. If you can demonstrate that your knowledge of certain subjects and experiences are relevant to the job you want, you can probably get access to the information you need without security clearances.

Length of Process

Obtaining security clearance does not happen overnight. While each case varies, the average application processing time is around 90 to 120 days. Approval for higher clearance levels may, however, take longer due to more extensive background investigation procedures.

It is also important to realize that delays are possible. Some of the most common causes for this include the submission of incomplete security clearance packages, poorly collected fingerprints, and investigations involving the examination of extensive overseas activity. Additionally, application processing time can be negatively impacted by other external events, such as increased demand of resources, backlogs, delays due to breaches, and temporary shutdown of technology systems or government agencies.

One alternative to this timeframe can be accessed by requesting interim security clearance. This clearance is temporary and expires as soon as a specific task is completed or when final clearance is approved. This clearance can be attained more quickly than the others, with an application period of approximately 30 days. In most cases, however, it only grants low-level access to confidential information and materials.

Maintaining Your Security Clearance

A security clearance does not last forever. As a result of ever-changing personalities, circumstances, and priorities, periodic investigations are necessary for individuals who already have clearance to access classified information and materials. All clearances must be renewed every five years to ensure continued trustworthiness. The thoroughness of the reinvestigation, however, is determined by the level of access granted. Those with Confidential clearance require an updated National Agency Checks and Inquiries with Credit and Local Agency Check (NCLAC), while individuals with Top Secret or Sensitive Compartmented Information clearance will need a complete Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI). In both cases, the checks will go back only five years.

When a security clearance is not renewed, it becomes either current or expired. As previously mentioned, a current clearance is inactive but can be renewed, whereas an expired clearance is inactive and cannot be renewed. Once a clearance expires, a new application must be submitted. As this process is both expensive and time-consuming, maintaining an active or current security clearance status is recommended.