The Pentagon is investigating a possible leak of highly classified information by a US Air Force engineer who allegedly took home government radio technologies and had unauthorized access to the communications network of a major air force command, according to reports.
The engineer, a 48-year-old employee at the Arnold air force base in Tennessee, is suspected of compromising classified information across 17 defense department installations, affecting the Air Education and Training Command (AETC), which trains pilots, aircrew and other personnel.
He is also accused of having possible access to FBI and state agencies’ communications, as well as confidential documents pertaining to national security and national defense materials. The charges carry a maximum of 10 years behind bars.
The engineer was reported by a base contractor and his co-workers for insider threat indicators, inappropriate behavior, sexual harassment and financial problems. He allegedly sold radios and radio equipment, worked odd hours, lied frequently and possessed air force equipment without authorization.
The Pentagon’s investigation comes amid a tip from the contractor that the engineer had taken home various government radio technologies worth nearly $90,000. When law enforcement agents searched his home, they found that he had “unauthorized administrator access” to the AETC radio network, which is one of the nine major commands of the air force.
They also found an open computer screen that showed the engineer running a Motorola radio programming software that contained the entire Arnold air force base communications system. He had a USB drive that contained “administrative passwords and electronic system keys” for the AETC radio network, as well as flash drives that contained local law enforcement and Motorola radio programming files that were marked as government property.
Some of the files he accessed revealed details of U.S. spying on Russia’s war machine in Ukraine and secret assessments of Ukraine’s combat power, as well as intelligence about America’s allies, including South Korea and Israel.
The Pentagon has ordered a review of how classified information is handled and secured in the wake of the leak. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said that the service needs to better enforce the rules that govern access to classified information based on whether someone with the correct security clearance also has a need to know the information.
“It’s a long standing tenet that you don’t get to look at something classified unless there’s a legitimate reason for you to look at it. Just because you happen to have a certain level of clearance doesn’t mean you get access to all the material at that level,” Kendall said. “So we’re taking a hard look at some practices around that.”
The Air Force has also halted the intelligence mission of the 102nd Intelligence Wing, where the engineer was assigned, and directed every unit to conduct security-focused stand-downs in the next 30 days to “reassess our security posture and procedures, validate the need to know for each person’s access, and emphasize to all Airmen and Guardians the responsibility we are entrusted with to safeguard this information and to enforce and improve our security requirements,” according to a memo from Kendall and other military leaders.
Relevant articles:
– Pentagon hit by ‘critical compromise’ of US air force communications – report, The Guardian, 29 Jul 2023
– Air Force halts intelligence mission of classified leak suspect’s unit, NBC News, 19 Apr 2023
– Air Force Looks to Better Control Access to Classified Data After Intelligence Leak, U.S. News, 22 May 2023
– A US Air Force engineer stole classified data on 17 military facilities, the Pentagon launched an investigation, Babel, 30 Jul 2023