Author Archive

Marko Hakamaa

Marko Hakamaa served in various military police positions with the United States Army worldwide for 22 years before retiring in 2006 as a Master Sergeant. Afterwards, he has worked as a contractor background investigator, a government industrial and personnel security specialist, and as a national security and public trust background investigation adjudicator.

Background Investigations

We have all heard how the slow and cumbersome the background investigation process is for security clearance applicants. However, the process is designed to weed out undesirables who may have a less than stellar personal history. That is why the on-boarding steps for getting badged and being given access to

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Security Clearance Denial

There are many ways to track people these days; e.g., smartphones, air pods, GPS trackers, and IP address locations, to name a few. The ease of using these tracking devices does not mean it is legal or ethical to do so without the person’s knowledge. A recent Defense Office of

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Career Advice

The on-going political drama created by our elected officials resulting in thousands of Department of Homeland Security employees going without a paycheck for the second month in a row is deplorable. These hard-working and dedicated civil servants having to work without getting paid is causing a huge strain on their

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Security Clearance Denial

It really does amaze me how some people are completely unaware of acceptable personal conduct as an employee in a professional workplace. A recent Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Hearing and Appeals case highlighted what employees should NOT be doing while they are supposed to be working. Here are

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