been problems with a security clearance background check conducted on
the 29-year-old federal contractor who disclosed previously secret
National Security Agency programs for collecting phone records and
Internet data — just as news media disclosed more information about
those programs.
Appearing at a Senate hearing, Patrick McFarland, the U.S. Office of
Personnel Management's inspector general, said USIS, the company that
conducted the background investigation of former NSA systems analyst
Edward Snowden, is now under investigation itself.
McFarland declined to say what triggered the inquiry of USIS or
whether the probe is related to Snowden. But when asked by Sen. Jon
Tester, D-Mont., if there were any concerns about the USIS background
check on Snowden, McFarland answered: "Yes, we do believe that there
may be some problems."
Meanwhile, new details emerged about the scope of two recently
disclosed NSA programs — one that gathers U.S. phone records and
another that is designed to track the use of U.S.-based Internet
servers by foreigners with possible links to terrorism.
Two new documents published Thursday by The Guardian newspaper — one
labeled "top secret" and the other "secret" — said NSA can keep copies
of intercepted communications from or about U.S. citizens indefinitely
if the material contains significant intelligence or evidence of
crimes.
McFarland declined after the Senate hearing to describe to reporters
the type of investigation his office is conducting. Sen. Claire
McCaskill, D-Mo., said she was told the inquiry is a criminal
investigation related "to USIS' systemic failure to adequately conduct
investigations under its contract."
"We are limited in what we can say about this investigation because it
is an ongoing criminal matter," said McCaskill, chairwoman of the
Senate subcommittee on financial and contracting oversight. "But it is
a reminder that background investigations can have real consequences
for our national security."
McCaskill's panel conducted the hearing jointly with Tester's
subcommittee on efficiency and effectiveness of federal programs.
USIS, based in Falls Church, Va., said in a statement that it has
never been informed that it is under criminal investigation. USIS
received a subpoena from the inspector general's office in January
2012 for records, the statement said. "USIS complied with that
subpoena and has cooperated fully with the government's civil
investigative efforts," according to the company.
USIS declined to comment on whether it conducted a background
investigation of Snowden. The company said it performs thousands of
background investigations each year for OPM and other government
agencies. "These investigations are confidential and USIS does not
comment on them," the USIS statement said.
The background check USIS performed on Snowden was done in 2011 and
was part of periodic reinvestigations that are required for employees
who hold security clearances, according to McFarland and Michelle
Schmitz, the assistant inspector general for investigations at OPM.
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