Guidance from U.S. Intelligence Agencies

The National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC), in partnership with other federal agencies, has published a bulletin that provides guidance to the U.S. academic community regarding protecting fundamental research, intellectual property, critical technologies, and the U.S. research ecosystem.

Read the full bulletin

Bulletin overview

The bulletin describes that “foreign adversaries use a variety of methods—such as theft, plagiarism, talent recruitment, cyber intrusions, elicitation, and the manipulation of collaborative research programs—to acquire research and advance their own academic and nation-state goals.” It highlights risks relating to emerging technologies, talent poaching, foreign talent recruitment programs, foreign research collaborations, and targeting students for potential recruitment to conduct espionage.

The bulletin also describes potential indicators of these risks that researchers should become aware of to protect themselves. These include:

• Elicitation: A subtle, structured method of collecting specific information that can be conducted through personal contact, academic solicitation, and academic consultation.
• Insider Threats & Access: Individuals with authorized access to sensitive information or research (such as students, faculty, and administrators) can become an insider threat if they use their position to harm their institution.
• Cyber Intrusions & Social Media: Foreign adversaries can use cyber techniques, such as click-baiting or phishing, to attack computers, gain access to information, or install invasive software on a network. They may also collect intelligence utilizing publicly available information, including by exploiting social media.

The bulletin also describes steps that individuals and institutions can take to help mitigate these risks and describes how individuals can report suspicious activity.

Review the full bulletin