WILLIAM CASEY SIGNA SOCIETY - 7 OCTOBER 1982

• Document Type: FOIA
• Keywords: SPEECHES
• Keywords: CASEY
• Keywords: SPEECHES
• Keywords: CASEY
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005288321
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: June 22, 2015
• Document Release Date: January 30, 2009
• Case Number: F-2007-01107
• Publication Date: October 7, 1982

SIGNA SOCIETY - 7 October 1982
-- Happy to welcome you back
Gratify for your continuing interest in this Agency
Bill Katapish tells me that SIGNA has been a great support to us and
I strongly support your organization. There is a great deal that retired
employees can do for us -- carry the flag -- support us in public opinion --
keep an eye out for promising recruits. The problems you faced here as
security officers are still with us. We worry about leaks, indiscretions,
discipline. Under Bill Katapish a strong effort is made to deal with all
these problems. Leaks have reached epidemic proportions. 250 were reported
in 1980.
-- This hurts our national security posture, the nation's intelligence
capabilities and thus the credibility of this Agency and, for that matter, of
the government itself.
It affects our ability to recruit assets overseas
It is damaging to morale and discipline
- Dries up intelligence sources .
Too much time and.energy is spent in the assessment of. the damage
caused by leaks. We can't afford this expensive time and energy which would
beo so much better spent in getting the basic job of intelligence done.
-- Despite considerable emphasis by the Administration on containment,
confusion still persists in equating the whistleblower with the leaker.
The former serves justice; the latter, the leaker, serves only himself and
his personal interests. As you know, existing espionage laws do not lend
themselves to legal sanctions. Any application of existing statutes is
oftentimes perceived as overkill. In addition, prosecution can involve
disclosure of further classified information. APPROVED FOR RELEASE[]
(DATE: 08-Dec-2008
 -- Almost with total disregard to the damage it could cause to the
Intelligence Community, the press continues to publicize the leaked
information, hanging onto the philosophy that it is the public's right
to know and to do otherwise would be a violation of the First Amendment.
-- So-called authorized leaks contribute to cynicism and to the
perception that good leaks or bad leaks are different only in the context
that they help the Administration. Unfortunately, those in positions who
should know better for whatever the reasons, politically or otherwise, still
seem to feel the need to continue this practice of authorized leaks.
-- CIA's part in trying to prevent further leaks involves study into a
wide variety of means. We are looking into new legislation focused explicitly
on criminal penalties for unauthorized disclosure of classified information
as well as the establishment of Government-wide policy and regulations that
would permit application of administrative sanctions against leakers both up
to and including termination if warranted. We have made significant
headway in the legislation area this past year with the passage of the
Identities Bill -- high time I'm sure you agree.
-- Security education or the lack thereof seems to be at the root of the
problem. We are looking into security indoctrination of all employees
including appointed officials. We need to emphasize the absolute necessity
of safeguarding classified information to which they are privileged to
have access. We are in the process of gaining interagency cooperation
and joint action on such leaks, and we are pursuing leak investigations
with greater vigor and determination. We are not ruling out the u-P ^f
 the polygraph. I'm a believer in the polygraph. We are stepping up our
repolygraphing program as a discipline on security awareness.
--As you know from working here, CIA's own secrecy agreement contains
prepublication review requirements. In recent years we have more formally
organized the prepublication review process appointing senior officials within
this Agency across all Directorates to thoroughly scrutinize manuscripts
submitted by former and current CIA employees to ensure that leaks do not
arise in this area.
-- As you know, when I took over as Director, one of my first policy,
changes concerned CIA's profile with the news media. Notwithstanding the
possible need for it in the earlier years when this Agency was under constant
attack, I felt the time had come for us to get back to the business at hand --
collecting and analyzing intelligence so that we can provide the best possible
assessments to this nation's policymakers. We still have contact with the
media and on occasion, provide briefings for them on intelligence issues.
However, the wide-scale, high profile posture has greatly changed. We only
do so now when it is in our interest to do so, not as a public service.
-- Earlier I mentioned the differences between the whistleblowers and
the true leakers. The concerns of the whistleblowersmust be directed to
the appropriate Inspectors General or oversight boards. Efforts need to
be made to ensure that their utmost concerns with legality and waste are
addressed. Providing an avenue for these individuals will help to deprive
the leaker of the umbrella of responsibility that should be.reserved for
 -- I realize much of what I have said here may seem as though I am
preaching to you. By being a member of SIGNA, it is already inherently a
part of your past to have been involved in these problems and to know the
dangers we are faced with if leaks persist. I have done so, however, to
stress to you the importance I see in security for this Agency and the
Intelligence Community as a whole. I can assure you that so long as I am
Director, we are going to allocate whatever resources we need to at least
bring it to a manageable level. As I have said, better security education
is our best hope and I feel more confident that so many of us like yourselves
who understand the problem are now out there in our major corporations and
other facets of the U.S. Government spreading the word.