After secret documents leak, Pentagon plans tighter controls to protect classified information
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon on Wednesday announced plans to tighten protection for classified information following the explosive leaks of hundreds of intelligence documents that were accessed through security gaps at a Massachusetts Air National Guard base.
Airman 1st Class Jack Teixeira, 21, is accused of leaking the highly classified military documents in a chatroom on Discord, a social media platform that started as a hangout for gamers.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in a memo released Wednesday, ordered all of the department’s secured rooms where classified information is stored and accessed to be brought into compliance with intelligence community standards for oversight and tracking. The changes call for increased levels of physical security, additional controls to ensure documents aren’t improperly removed, and the assignment of top-secret control officers to monitor users.
A senior defense official who briefed reporters on the new directives said the department is trying to increase accountability, using technology that can better track what workers are doing and what information they are accessing. But at the same time, the official said, defense leaders don’t want to impede the ability to share critical information across the government when necessary.
https://apnews.com/article/classified-document-leaks-russia-military-guard-bb5ebe646b0f8a657d4c83e1e519b687
