MoD halfheartedly blocks Wikileaker 'dissidents' The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has made a not-very-serious attempt to block access by its staff to Wikileaks, apparently in response to uploads of not-very-significant material by "dissidents", possibly within the Ministry itself. The Guardian reports today on the matter, pointing out that large numbers of MoD documents have …
It's probably on purpose, done with the full blessings of whoever is in charge of information warfare. So when an enterprising journo thinks "Hey! I'll check wikileaks to see if there's something from the MoD", all the nice bits are hidden behind a mountain of dross. Information burka, so to speak. Steganography, nearly - it's there, but you can't get at it.
Big Brother, 'cause you're trying to watch him but can't take it all in...
I remember being clearly told leaking any documents that may have been any classification in the past would result in instant dismissal.
I saw alot of stuff being sent between MoD people and memory sticks being touted around that had been plugged all over the place. In fact a number of squaddies were suprised and dismayed to see we blocked use of those vital tools of the trade!
I have to disagree with the author suggesting that Restricted is a default classification in the MoD. In my experience it's not, except perhaps when dealing with the Navy. I used to work tri-service and I found only the Navy guilty of such practices. If I recall correctly the guidance recommends not to over classify documents unnecessarily.
Shurely the "restricted" stamp is there only to keep the Sun and friends interested? If they marked it "press release" instead (which would probably be closer to the intended use), no-one would even look at it...
If you had a kid (or a journo) at home, you'd know it's the best way to get their attention!
Don't say it too loud, it's a secret (see icon)
"A document marked Restricted can be shown to or discussed with one's family"
Er...no. Restricted still means that although it is on fairly free circulation within the Armed Services, you are not allowed to show it to just any member of the public. In fact if you have a laptop with Restriced material on it, it needs to be encrypted.
However I do agree that the defult position is "if in doubt, make it Restricted. In fact make everything Restricted and then you cannot be blaimed for 'declassifying' material".
This isn't the first time I've had to speak to you about misrepresenting the meaning of classifications (properly called protective markings). You are not permitted to show or discuss RESTRICTED material with unauthorised friends and family. Unauthorised disclosure, *by definition* is likely to cause damage to the interests of the nation.
You are probably confused because most of the information systems work at RESTRICTED HIGH, that is you treat everything as RESTRICTED (and no higher) until you make a decision to mark it lower. Vast amounts of material are marked UNCLASSIFIED. I'm not sure what good it does you to represent otherwise to your readers. Please stop it.
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