Classified And You / Discussion

This is the discussion related to the wiki page Classified And You.

Jorum 18 Aug 2010 11:42

Interesting read, thanks.

Some of the stories and background fluff implies that indeed personnel can have different clearance levels for different SCPs.

I remember one (involving Dr Clef or Dr Bright maybe?) where O-5 offer him as an incentive "level 4 clearance on all SCPs" - which obviously implies that level 4 clearance can be (or is normally) limited to only certain SCPs.
In my opinion this makes perfect sense for Foundation as a way to limit risk and the potential for catastrophic security failures.
Very few people are going to need to know everything about every SCP. That's kind of what Oversights job is in the first place.

MrUnimport 20 Aug 2010 03:46

Unless you feel like compromising security for the sake of a bribe.

Tuomey Tombstone 18 Aug 2010 13:31

Thanks, this is actually going to help me quite a bit.

Deacon_Blues_117 02 Dec 2010 02:34

There actually are subcategories higher than Top Secret - for instance, when I was in the AF in the '80s, my clearance was TS-ESI (Exceptionally Sensitive Information). This meant I was trusted enough to get SIOP Category 9 - I was cleared to know everything about the nuclear-war plans except for scenarios that might lead to launch.

Guys working on photo intel from satellites were generally TS-SCI (Separately Compartmented Information). As I didn't have an SCI clearance, I have no idea what data they worked with, how it was compartmented, or more than a vague idea what it even was.

I understand there was one higher level of clearance in use at the base, but that would have been for the CINCSAC (Commander-in-Chief of Strategic Air Command) and his advisors. I never asked what it was, because I had no need to know. (That's part of what Mann was saying about need-to-know status. If you don't need to know about it, don't ask, because nobody's going to tell you anyway, but it might lead to a very uncomfortable interview.)

I envision their clearance level being to the nuclear plan what 05 clearance is to the Foundation - *everything.*

DrEverettMann 02 Dec 2010 05:54

Right. I'm SCI as well (and it's sensitive compartmented information, now). SCI, however, is not a clearance in and of itself. The classification is still Top Secret. It's actually a method of handling that information, like a SAP.

Basically, both of these are filters. They're part of how we mark someone as having need-to-know for important information.

And not so with the clearance you're talking about. That would have been a SAP. Basically, it would have dealt specifically with the information General Chain (or whoever it was when you were in) needed to do his job. It still wouldn't necessarily have given him access to all classified information, or even classified information in the Air Force. Now, he was probably read into a number of different SAPs that would have given him access to any information pertaining to the MAJCOM (such as the SAP dealing with scenarios). But he probably couldn't have found out exactly what Air Force Space Command was up to, unless there was a reason it impacted SAC's mission.

That's pretty much it. Information is Unclassified, Confidential, Secret, or Top Secret. But there are various other filters besides the classifications making sure that only the right people have access to the information.

Bland 15 May 2011 02:29

Sorry about the late reply - SCI was Sensitive Compartmented Information then too.

Also, there are things called "code word clearance" which refer to things inside of each of the sections.

Existence of WarBlimps - Confidential.
Existence of Trenchbucket Detectors - Secret.
Existence of Trenchbucket Detectors on Warblimps - Top Secret (combining things often raises the security level).
Operation of Trenchbucket Detectors on Warblimps - Top Secret - Compartmentalized Information (I think that was the term - been a while.)
How Trenchbucket Detectors on Warblimps work- Top Secret - Compartmentalized Information - Specific Codeword.

It's all layered and separated as much as possible. And they interview the hell out of you to get them, then swear you to secret for decades.

Some of mine are still not up…

Karrin Blue 14 May 2011 21:11

Wait…enemy marmots? As in these guys?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marmot

DrEverettMann 14 May 2011 21:29

Diabolical, aren't they?

Marr965 29 May 2011 22:05

Upvoted, because we need more stuff like this.

We NEED documents about how to write documents.

I'm currently wearing my serious face.

thedeadlymoose 31 May 2011 22:14

I found this article fascinating even in context of my personal writing. Upvoted.