Applicants must go through the application phase, which involves verification of US citizenship, fingerprinting and completion of the Personnel Security Questionnaire (SF-86). … The Defense Security Service conducts thorough background checks.
Can I get a security clearance on my own?
Can I obtain a security clearance on my own? No. You must be sponsored by a cleared contractor or a Government agency. To be sponsored you must be employed (or hired as a consultant) in a position that requires a clearance.
What makes you eligible for a security clearance?
A security clearance eligibility is a determination that a person is able and willing to safeguard classified national security information and/or occupy a national security sensitive position. The three national security clearance eligibility levels are: Confidential, Secret, and Top Secret.
What disqualifies you from getting a security clearance?
Conditions that could raise a security concern and may be disqualifying include: A history of not meeting financial obligations; … Financial problems that are linked to gambling, drug abuse, alcoholism, or other issues of security concern.
What security clearance do civilians have?
There are four main types of security clearances for national security positions. These are confidential, secret, top secret and sensitive compartmented information. This type of security clearance provides access to information that may cause damage to national security if disclosed without authorization.
How far back does a secret clearance go?
Security Clearance Adjudicative Process
The clearance process for Secret level access uses an investigation called the National Agency Check with Law and Credit that goes back five years, while the clearance process for Top Secret uses a Single Scope Background Investigation that goes back ten years.
How long does it take to get a security clearance 2020?
Current Top Secret clearance processing times are 159 days, and Secret clearance processing times are 132 days. These numbers only represent industry applicants – processing times are slightly faster for all DCSA cases, which included DoD civilians and service members.
How often are security clearances denied?
You may even wonder if you should continue with the process, particularly if you’re not getting a paycheck while you wait. But don’t lose heart – 20-30% of all interim security clearances are denied, but that is vastly different than the figure of final clearance denials, which hovers around 1%.
What happens if you fail a security clearance?
The most common documents you will be asked for include documents with evidence of identification (passport, identity card, or birth certificate), utility bills, curriculum vitae, or a deed poll. If you fail to produce any of these, the vetting officers may call off your application for security approval.
How hard is it to get security clearance?
Obtaining a security clearance is no easy task, and not everyone who applies will be granted access. … Stringent suitability requirements, particularly in the intelligence community, weed out many unqualified applicants before they ever reach security clearance processing.
Do security clearances check Internet history?
Security clearance background investigators do not check your browsing history, read your emails, surveil your every move, bug your telephones, or photograph you commuting to work. That’s just not feasible, or allowable.
Can you get a secret clearance with bad credit?
You may be able to obtain a security clearance with bad credit or with a bankruptcy, but it can slow down the adjudicative process. They’ll look more closely at the “whole person” compared to the guidelines, as well as how you’re working to make amends in your finances.
Do security clearances expire?
A government security clearance requires a periodic reinvestigation every 15 years for a “confidential” clearance, every 10 years for “secret,” and every 5 years for “top secret.” When a clearance is inactivated (because of switching jobs or leaving the military), it can be fairly easy to reinstate within the first 24 …