House Panel Digs Into Security Leaks
September 29, 2006 by Laura | Trackback URI
A House panel digs into the security leaks that have led to classified information being published in major newspapers, including the New York Times. The leaks have led to exposure of security programs which have been proven effective, particularly the Swift program which tracked terrorist financing.
A total of 14 witnesses, flanked by their lawyers, came before a phalanx of House subcommittee members.
Taking turns, subcommittee members quoted from thick binders of internal documents and reports, and interrogated the panelists on what they knew and whether they still stood by their actions.
The attorney general and the FBI are conducting criminal investigations.
Okay, I’m making this up. The story is really about Hewlett Packard potentially breaking the law to find out who in their employ was leaking to the media.
But wouldn’t it be nice to see the government care enough about leaks to seriously investigate? And prosecute the leakers? I’m not suggesting that the government break any laws in their investigations as HP may have, just that they get aggressive and catch the leakers. And put them in jail. During the 80s, we spent the big bucks to learn the most minute details, right down to what kind of toilet paper they used in the Kremlin. Now we have a legitimate subject for investigation right in the same building where the investigators work, but they can’t seem to find the culprits. At the very least, aggressive, ongoing investigations would make it more difficult for future leaks. It could potentially scare someone into complying with the security clearance to which they agreed. I don’t think it’s too much to ask.
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