Kathleen Hicks, deputy secretary of defense, has reminded senior defense officials of their responsibility to safeguard classified and sensitive information and materials following reports of unauthorized disclosure of secret military intelligence.
The 2023 Wash100 awardee said in a memo addressed to senior Pentagon leadership, combatant commanders and agency directors that failure to protect classified data appropriately is a reportable security incident.
“Unauthorized disclosure of classified information, whether intentional or unintentional, does not alter the classified nature of the information,” Hicks wrote.
The official called on troops to avoid accessing or downloading documents with classified markings from unclassified websites and refrain from discussing classified information with unauthorized persons.
“Personnel with access to classified information are trusted stewards of that information and the responsibility to safeguard classified information is a lifetime requirement for each individual granted a security clearance,” the memo reads.
The Department of Defense reported that an airman in the Massachusetts Air National Guard was arrested “in connection with an investigation into alleged unauthorized removal, retention and transmission of classified national defense information.”
Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, press secretary at the Department of Defense, said DOD is working with the intelligence community and interagency partners “to better understand the scope, scale and impact of these leaks.”
