A-76 STUDY SECURITY

Operational security should be reviewed early and monitored throughout the A-76 study process.  Current on-site contractors, if eligible, may choose to compete for the A-76 award.  Although we like to think of our support contractors as part of the Government team, when an A-76 competition is in process, relationships may change.  Perform reviews to determine if, without impacting their performance under existing contracts, their access to certain areas and computer networks can/should be controlled.

A significant amount of workload data can be gleaned by simply having access to an area (number of desks, personnel and vehicle sign in/out boards, etc.).  If on-site contractors have access to the Government's LAN, email, or other computer system support, consider keeping sensitive A-76 study information on stand-alone or otherwise secure systems.  Extra care must be taken to avoid disclosing non-public information through workplace conversations during an A-76 study. On-site support contractors and former government employees in the workplace may be potential competitors in the study, and disclosing sensitive information to them could compromise the MEO.

Access to source selection sensitive information, as well as any information pertaining to either the Government or private sector proposals, must be on a need-to-know basis and strictly controlled.  Those individuals given access to non-public information should sign non-disclosure statements.  Before support contractors assisting the Government in the A-76 study can be given access to the proprietary information of other contractors, permission to disclose the proprietary information outside the Government must first be obtained.

Special attention should also be given to avoiding inadvertent disclosures of information through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.  Information that might normally be releasable, such as a numbers of employees, organizational charts, etc., could become sensitive during an A-76 study because of its potentially harmful effect on the MEO.

Finally, ensure that all personnel display badges at all times, properly mark and protect documents, and are advised of the need for increased security awareness.