Foreign influence/preference is one of the more frequent causes of clearance denial and revocation (but still behind financial issues and personal conduct). The government isn’t just interested in individuals who may be from a foreign country originally, or have family there, but individuals with financial or business ties, as well.
A recent comment at the ClearanceJobsBlog Discussions site asks:
SCENARIO: I have been in the federal government doing foreign affairs work for 7 years now, and hold a TS/SCI clearance. Early this year, I started a side technology consulting business that would involve developing software applications for domestic and international small businesses. I am planning to hire software developers from the U.S., but also in international markets as well, especially those who have the expertise in the kind of software I am planning to develop. It would also likely involve contractual agreements with the individual developer and possibly other small business companies in foreign countries (United Kingdom, India and Uruguay are the only three). The last piece of this is that I would likely need start-up capital to run my business, and have considered looking to an overseas venture capitalist (in India) to help get me started.
MY QUESTIONS: What would pose a security risk here? I do not believe that just having a small business on the side poses risks, but the possible foreign influence (via hiring developers and/or the venture capitalist start-up capital) might pose some concerns. If these are red flags, what could be some mitigating factors?
The question poses several possible issues of concern, the first having nothing to do with foreign preference – any security clearance holder who starts a side business should disclose that business through his manager and security officer. Assuming you’re not selling LuLaRoe, your company and the government will want to be abundantly sure your side business doesn’t involve trading on the knowledge or access afforded by your government position.
A recent salacious story about a CIA security officer who was moonlighting during the work day points out the issues with running a side hustle while holding a clearance. Hers was obviously an egregious case where almost all work time was spent on personal and private business. But keep in mind if you do find yourself with an opportunity to start your own business or join another venture, you’ll want to keep all of those side business dealings separate. For propriety (and the sake on the monitoring the government is doing), you shouldn’t even be checking personal email that may relate to your side business during the work day.
The foreign preference issues involved in a business may be largely mitigated if an individual isn’t holding money in foreign banks or investing in infrastructure overseas. But there are a number of ‘ifs’ involved in that situation, and handling any of them incorrectly could cost you both your job and your clearance.
The best piece of advice if you’re considering starting a side business (whether you plan to hire foreign nationals or not), is to run the entire proposal by your facility security officer. Make them aware of your plans, and get confirmation in writing that they’re aware of what you’re doing, and that it’s not a conflict of interest, or a national security one.
Better safe than sorry is the best policy in a scenario which could cost you your job, your clearance, and even land you in legal hot water if you don’t handle it correctly.
