The
challenge: to
protect United States sensitive information, technologies, and thereby competitiveness
in an age of globalization.
Our solution: to foster communication and build awareness
through partnerships with key public and private entities by educating
and enabling our partners to identify what is at counterintelligence risk
and how to protect it. We call it “knowing your domain”—identifying
the research, information, and technologies that are targeted by our adversaries
and establishing an ongoing dialogue and information exchange with partners
to change behaviors and reduce opportunities that benefit the opposition’s
efforts.
The United States is the world’s leader in innovation. Consider
the breakthrough research and development that’s taking place on
the nation’s campuses and in research facilities—often on behalf
of the government. Sensitive research, much of which occurs in the unclassified
realm, is the key to our nation’s global advantage, both economically
and militarily.
The Counterintelligence (CI) Domain Program is responsible for determining
and safeguarding those technologies which, if compromised, would result
in catastrophic losses to national security. Through our partnerships with
businesses, academia, and U.S. government agencies, the FBI and its counterintelligence
community partners are able to identify and effectively protect projects
of great importance to the U.S. government. This provides the first line
of defense inside facilities where research and development occurs and
where intelligence services are focused.
The following initiatives make up our CI Domain Program:
Business Alliance
Through the Business Alliance, we are building relationships with cleared
defense contractors to enhance their understanding of the threat posed
to their programs and personnel by foreign intelligence services and foreign
competitors. This dialogue results in an increase in the quality and quantity
of counterintelligence-related information shared with the FBI by these
contractors, resulting in the disruption of foreign intelligence activities
targeting their work.
Through the delivery of counterintelligence education and the sharing
of actionable intelligence, we enable business partners to identify counterintelligence
vulnerabilities within their organizations. Counterintelligence awareness
can result in modifications to their internal behaviors and processes that
decrease susceptibility to theft of intellectual property. The protection
of our Business Alliance partners’ intellectual property results
in tangible benefits to our national security.
Academic Alliance
The Academic Alliance is a national outreach effort charged with sharing
information and establishing a dialogue with academic institutions to increase
awareness of threat and national security issues in order to foster a spirit
of cooperation.
The Academic Alliance has two distinct outreach components:
1) The National Security Higher Education Advisory Board (NSHEAB) includes presidents/chancellors from our nation's top public and private research institutions. The board, which meets regularly, provides a forum for FBI leadership and academia to discuss national security issues of mutual concern. The NSHEAB also facilitates dialogue between government security officials and educational policy makers. The board provides the FBI with perspectives on the culture of higher education-including its traditions of openness, academic freedom, and international collaboration.
2) The College and University Security Effort (CAUSE). Through CAUSE,
FBI Special Agents in Charge meet with the heads of local colleges and
universities to discuss national security issues and share information
and ideas. Topics covered include briefings on national security threats
that these research institutions may be facing. We enable counterintelligence
protection by explaining how and why some foreign entities may be attempting
to steal research and intellectual property.
For more information on these two programs, see Academic
Alliance: Working Together to Protect the Nation.
Counterintelligence Working Groups
1) National Counterintelligence Working Group (NCIWG)
The National Counterintelligence Working Group was designed to establish
strategic interagency partnerships at the senior executive level among
the United States Intelligence Community (USIC), academia, industry, and
defense contractors. Working through the NCIWG, the USIC has conveyed a
consistent message with regard to its efforts to protect our national security.
2) Regional Counterintelligence Working Group (RCIWG)
Regional Counterintelligence Working Groups are composed of U.S. government
counterintelligence entities that meet and discuss counterintelligence
strategies, initiatives, operations, and best practices pertaining to the
counterintelligence mission. The RCIWG facilitates harmonized counterintelligence
efforts that leverage component expertise for maximum effectiveness and
efficiency.
RTP InfraGard Special Interest Group (RTP/SIG)
Bridging all Domain initiatives is the new Research and Technology Protection
Special Interest Group on the secure InfraGard website. The website contains
actionable and relevant information with defense contractors, industry,
and academia on how to protect intellectual property from espionage.
To access this website and find out what steps you can take to educate
your workforce and reduce your chances of becoming an intelligence target,
join InfraGard—an alliance between the FBI and the public dedicated
to preventing physical and electronic attacks against our nation’s
critical infrastructure. Learn more and apply by visiting the InfraGard
website.
