Secrecy News: Classification in the Post-9/11 World
Secrecy News: Classification
in the Post-9/11 World
About
Secrecy News
SECRECY NEWS is an email publication of
the Federation of American Scientists (FAS)
Project on Government Secrecy. It provides
informal coverage of new developments in secrecy,
security and intelligence policies, as well
as links to new acquisitions on the Federation
of American Scientists web site. It
is published 2 to 3 times a week, or as events
warrant. Secrecy
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SECURITY CLASSIFICATION IN A POST 9/11 ENVIRONMENT
The effectiveness of the national security classification
system in protecting classified information depends on a
robust declassification process, said William Leonard,
director of the Information Security Oversight Office, in a
speech to the American Historical Association last month.
"We cannot depend upon [the classification] system to protect
today's sensitive secrets unless we regularly purge it of
yesterday's secrets that no longer require protection in the
interest of national security. Allowing such material to
remain classified, in addition to contributing to an
incomplete or distorted view of our history, also can have a
corrosive effect on the efficacy of the classification system
in general."
"To allow information that can no longer cause damage to
national security to remain in the classification system
places all classified information at needless increased
risk," Mr. Leonard said.
Mr. Leonard's ISOO is the federal agency responsible for
overseeing classification and declassification activity
throughout the executive branch.
