It isn't about having a blackberry. It is about wanting to take one into a SCIF. A SCIF is a special facility for accessing classified data where everyone is searched and electronic devices are not allowed. For what should be obvious reasons. Not so obvious to her or you guys I guess but anyone who has ever held a Secret or above clearance would understand. It would be like trying to go into surgical room with your favorite gloves that you never wash. It is pure idiocy.Zarathud wrote:Condi Rice had a Blackberry, but the NSA didn't want to deal with Hillary Clinton demanding one too? I'm sorry, Rip, this looks like Hillary cutting her way through all the bullshit you complain about the government bureaucracy. Trump had better not stand between Hillary and her Blackberry!
Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility Explained
A Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF; pronounced "skiff") in United States military, security and intelligence parlance, is an enclosed area within a building that is used to process Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) types of classified information.
SCI is usually only briefed, discussed, and stored in an accredited SCIF.
Access
Access to SCIFs is normally limited to those with clearance.[1] Non-cleared personnel in SCIF must be under constant oversight to prevent unauthorized access to classified material;[2] as part of this process, non-cleared personnel are typically required to surrender recording and other electronic devices.[3] All of the activity and conversation inside is presumed restricted from public disclosure.
Construction
Some entire buildings are SCIFs where all but the front foyer is secure. A SCIF can also be located in an air, ground or maritime vehicle, or can be established on a temporary basis at a specific site. The physical construction, access control, and alarming of the facility has been defined by various directives, including Director of Central Intelligence Directives (DCIDs) 1/21 and 6/9, and most recently (2011) by Intelligence Community Directive (ICD) 705, signed by the Director of National Intelligence. ICD 705 is a three page document that implements Intelligence Community Standard (ICS) 705.1. Computers operating within such a facility must conform to rules established by ICD 503. Computers and telecommunication equipment within must conform to TEMPEST emanations specification as directed by a Certified TEMPEST Technical Authority (CTTA).
In popular culture
In Naval Criminal Investigative Service episode "Pyramid" it is revealed the NCIS Director Vance can place his office into SCIF mode. He does it so he can discuss the details of a classified operation (aka a black op) with the Secretary of the Navy (SecNav).
The Drop Dead Diva episode "Desperate Housewife" shows a SCIF being used by the United States government to convey information to a judge while preventing the defendants in a trial from hearing the information.
In the episode "The Bit Bucket" of The Good Wife, a SCIF is used by the NSA to convey information to a judge while preventing the defendants in a trial from hearing the information. Later in the episode the defendants' lawyers use the SCIF to argue without the NSA's lawyer present.
In the Criminal Minds episodes Lauren and Valhalla, a SCIF in Quantico is used to hold a briefing between the Behavioral Analysis Unit and a private counterintelligence group.
In Homeland episode "There's Something Else Going On", a SCIF is seen at the Islamabad United States Embassy.
In the episode "The Abyss," Coast Guard Special Agent Abigail Borin is seen accessing SCIF to oversee an undersea recovery.
In Burn Notice episode "Signals and Codes" Michael Weston has to break into a SCIF room in order to download the decryption key for various emails sent by a treasonous employee of a corporate government contractor.
In Person of Interest (TV series) season 1 episode 22, titled "No Good Deed", is based on an operative who works at a SCIF.
In the movie Behind Enemy Lines the SCIF is used to track a downed Reconnaissance Officer and F/A-18 Navigator - Lt. Chris Burnett, who was shot down with his Pilot In Command "Stackhouse".
Stackhouse was subsequently killed by Serbian Forces after veering off mission and discovering a mass grave of local civilians killed by a Local Serbian Military Commander Miraslov Lokar. SCIF was used to hotwire a satellite to track via Infra-Red "Thermal Imaging" and then again after Lt. Burnett Reactivated the Ejection Seat Locating Transmitter.
On the bright side when they start allowing cell phones in SCIFs we won't need Snowdens, any two bit hacker could grab what he got without needing any clearance.
