Mordet på Olof Palme - 28 februari 1986

They're constantly reminded of the oath already. CIA employees are already acutely aware of what happens when you disclose classified material. From the first day a new agency trainee, analyst, or administrative staff member enters CIA Headquarters and "takes the oath" to uphold and protect the U.S. Constitution, they are told in no uncertain terms the very ugly, life-destroying consequences of betraying privileged information. As a former analyst, I remember the gruff, mustachioed fellow from the Office of Security who, on the first day of my employment, made this point crystal clear.


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This emphasis is underscored in multiple training classes. For example, every new analyst must attend the Career Analyst Program (CAP), where grizzled intelligence vets teach "the basic thinking, writing, and briefing skills needed for a successful career." One point that gets hammered home is what happens to people who provide information to those who shouldn't have it -- especially foreign governments. These classes highlight, among other cases, the Aldrich Ames and Robert Hanssen affairs, and take care to emphasize that these former top officials are currently serving life sentences in prison.

It's the Agency Culture. CIA employees are reminded in ways both large and small about the consequences of mishandling or misusing classified documents. Your colleagues remind you. Your managers remind you. The internal websites remind you. When someone is caught providing secrets, even the director reminds you.

Furthermore, because of their chosen careers, CIA employees are made justifiably paranoid about "security violations" -- for instance, if you absent-mindedly took a classified document from your office, placed it in your briefcase or purse, exited the building, and then remembered you had it while walking to your car, the Office of Security could slap you with a security violation. (Pro tip: Don't take a suitcase or large purse to work.)

There are many other ways to trip up. If you didn't correctly seal a secret document while en route to a meeting, it would be a violation. Or casually mention a friend's real name publicly who might or might not be undercover. Any of these violations could cause you to lose your security clearance and your job.

Certainly, if a person is considering providing classified documents to the press or a foreign government, he or she is probably far, far down the path to breaking the law. Edward Snowden had been considering leaking top-secret documents for years prior to actually doing it. It is doubtful that any seventh floor-directed educational effort would have steered him away from a lonely trip down the road to treachery.

CIA has a decent track record of keeping secrets.

John Kiriakou is now serving 30 months in a federal prison after providing the name of undercover officer.