At the time Dr. Lee downloaded the files onto his computer, they were classified but not designated secret or confidential, as the indictment against him alleges.
Ron,
I find this pretty hard to believe myself. A document is not considered "classified" unless it provided a caveat of of Confidential, Secret, Top Secret, or Top Secret(SCI), or Special Compartmentalized Information provided with a special caveat of its own, like TS/Umbra (which is an old classification so I won't get myself into trouble). TS/SCI info requires the person not only to have a TS clearance, but an SBI (special background investigation) designator, and that person only has access to the compartmentalize SCI program that may be specifically dealing with at any particular time.
And finally, having a clearance does not grant the holder of that clearance the right to read any classified information at or below his/her's rating. It goes beyond just the access that is granted with the clearance. It also requires the "need to know".
So again, to claim that documents were "classified", but not secret..etc, is a contradiction. The only documents that are classified fall under all of the above caveats/classifications.
The only thing lower than confidential is an FOUO rating (for official use only), which is not the same as classified.
Obviously this reporter did not know what he was talking about. If the downladed information is on a classified system, any information drawn from that system is automatically considered classified as well, no matter what is downloaded to the disk. The disk must bear its own classification level and label, and that may require the site security officer to make a determination of the material sensitivity.
Again, you cannot download ANYTHING from a classified information system and avoid possessing classified information. Even if that information is just your dog's birthday. The information itself may not be sensitive, but the medium upon which it is recorded IS. This is because information that IS CLASSIFIED may be on that disk inadvertantly (previous use, improper degaussing, or through some secret encryption method that hides the files).
Sorry for the long-winded explanation, but I thought that this might be the place to clarify why what Wen Ho Lee did was so wrong. He KNEW that NO ONE is authorized to download files from a classified IT system and fail to immediately classify and protect the disks to which that information was downloaded.
For his impertinence, he is at worst a spy with criminal intent, or at best some who deliberately flaunted the rules and is a security risk.
Btw, I think the same thing about Deutch, the CIA director who put highly classified documents on his home PC.
Regards,
Ron |
