Access to classified information is a condition for holding or keeping many federal jobs. However, unlike many other federal personnel actions, there are only limited rights to appeal security clearance decisions and the personnel actions that might go with having a clearance denied or revoked. The Merit Systems Protection Board has jurisdiction to review only whether proper procedures were followed and cannot examine the reasons for a security clearance decision.
Government vetting processes generally involve two distinct activities: investigation activities which include application and information collection; and adjudication activities which include information assessment and decision making. There are different levels of investigation depending on the level of risk, position sensitivity, or access requirements.
Investigations to support a Secret level security clearance include automated and manual checks of criminal history, terrorist activities, credit, and foreign activities and influence. When the checks identify issues of concern, additional checks, including interviews and other more manual efforts, are conducted as needed. TS/SCI investigations add non-automated checks, including interviews of the subject, employers, and social references, and collect information related to foreign influence and foreign preference.
Adjudication decisions are made by federal employees in the agency where the individual will be assigned. The...
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