NSA Breach

CRS scrutinizes the OPM breach

A new report serves as a useful backgrounder for anyone looking for a quick yet detailed review of the circumstances surrounding the breach.

  • By John Bicknell

NSA's Silicon Valley outreach a work in progress

The wounds left by disclosures of National Security Agency surveillance may not have healed, but the NSA will continue to plumb Silicon Valley for talent.

  • By Sean Lyngaas

Piecing together the insider threat puzzle

Software and automation are crucial to preventing leaks and sabotage, but they're not the only tools deployed by agencies that collect and guard secret information.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

American privacy values vs. European perceptions

As law enforcement and intelligence agencies struggle to balance security against civil liberties, it's important to distinguish caricature from reality.

  • By Paul Rosenzweig

Panel recommends NIST declare independence from NSA

"NIST may seek the advice of the NSA on cryptographic matters but it must be in a position to assess it and reject it when warranted,” says a report from the Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

Snowden boasts of prominent role in intel IT

Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden details his role in helping intelligence agency CIOs solve pressing technical problems.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

Alexander: Big data 'is what it's all about'

Former NSA head says guarding agencies' vast data stores is the critical challenge going forward.

  • By Troy K. Schneider

NSA document details foreign intel databases

The intelligence agency delves into some details about how it collects, stores and accesses data but leaves many key questions unanswered.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

What 'continuous monitoring' means in the clearance context

Several proposals would require access to consumer databases as well as records from local and state law enforcement and federal financial regulators.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

Obama, Intel Committee leaders propose data collection changes

The president’s plan would require a court order to collect information on individual accounts; the lawmakers’ bill would not.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

'To purge or not to purge'

Trying to determine when spy agencies are required to dispose of data is something of a mystery, even to them.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

The intelligence community's big-data problem

Analyzing fragmented information that doesn’t come neatly packaged is a challenge most other government users of big data can relate to.

  • By Frank Konkel

States aiming at NSA might hit contractors

Proposals under consideration in several legislatures would limit state interaction with firms assisting warrantless data collection.

  • By Mark Rockwell

Behind clearance reform, a struggle in data collection

Readers weigh in with real-life experience from both sides of the vetting process.

  • By Amber Corrin
Featured eBooks

Rockefeller blasts private-sector metadata storage plan

The retiring chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee said he was “concerned any change of our current framework will harm both national security and privacy.”

  • By Adam Mazmanian

Security clearance reform: more questions than answers

Many of the proposed solutions rely on the use of IT – automation, continuous evaluation and shared data banks between agencies.

  • By Amber Corrin

Agencies pay for public distrust in post-Snowden era

In the wake of the Snowden affair, Americans are growing more reluctant to hand over personal information to the government, which hurts legitimate data collection and could drive up costs.

  • By Mark Rockwell

Cryptography experts sign open letter against NSA surveillance

President has still not addressed compromised security standards, cryptographers warn.

  • By Frank Konkel

Review board to Obama: Shut down NSA program

The recommendations would represent a more decisive step than reform efforts outlined by the president earlier this week.

  • By Amber Corrin

Justice Department sues security clearance firm

Among the background checks performed by USIS were those on intelligence community contractor Edward Snowden and Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

Gates: NSA ‘primary weapon in this conflict’

The former Pentagon chief decried Obama administration leaks and privacy advocates who downplay the need for security.

  • By Amber Corrin