Lose Your Home, You Can Lose Your National Security Clearance Too

[The Straight Story]

Lose Your Home, You Can Lose Your National Security Clearance Too

Home foreclosures have become a serious problem for the Department of Defense, where financial instability can lead to an employee losing his or her security clearance. An analysis of Pentagon records by Sheldon Cohen, a national security law expert, found that more defense workers are losing their access to classified information because of debt troubles and losing their homes.

From 2000 to 2002, the Defense Department’s Office of Hearings and Appeals received only one reported case dealing with foreclosure. The next four years had an average of three such cases a year. Then, things got bad.

During 2007-2008, the number of foreclosure cases leaped to nine each year. In 2009 alone, there were 24 cases, and during the first five months of this year, there were nine, putting 2010 on pace to possibly set a new record.

Although the Office of Hearings can excuse a Defense employee who has lost a home, someone who has debt problems is often considered a security risk.

http://www.allgov.com/Controversies/ViewNews/Lose_Your_Home_You_Can_Lose_National_Security_Clearance_Too_100922

[DrDan]

1. makes sense to me

[SoCalDem]

2. People in desperate financial situation "may" be vulnerable to shady dealings

not always...but it's more likely

[KILL THE WISE ONE]

3. this is why you should not save your underwater house

you can minimize the credit impact by keeping all your other payments up and showing 401k balance.

do not borrow from 401 k or credit cards to keep up your mortgage

[VermeerLives]

4. People with financial difficulties can be exploited

They can be exploited by foreign intelligence services. Or they get desperate and will commit espionage for money. Rick Ames and Harold "Jim Nicholson" both had money problems due to divorce. Robert Hanssen told the FBI that his only motivation was money. However, all of them approached the KGB/SVR, not the other way around. May they all rot in hell.

[tammywammy]

5. They make it pretty well known that financial difficulties could mean loss of clearance

Or not even granted one in the first place.