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 transitioned into the civilian workforce as a contractor background investigator for the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) before entering civil service as a Security Specialist in 2009.

Security Clearance Denial

It is well known that debt is the number one reason for security clearance eligibility denials according to appeals statistics over the years. One would think new clearance applicants would do a little research and make sure their finances were in good shape, or at least not so obviously bad as to

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Security Clearance Denial

Accurate timekeeping relies heavily on the integrity of the person filing hours worked. If supervisors are not paying attention there is always a possibility of an employee taking advantage to claim hours worked when they actually did not. A recent Defense Office of Hearing and Appeals case highlighted the danger

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Polygraph

In one of the more unusual Defense Office of Hearing and Appeals cases, a clearance holder had his eligibility revoked after a polygraph interview revealed he had engaged in sexual services of prostitutes, both in the United States and overseas, on and off for over 12 years while holding a security clearance.

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Obtaining Security Clearance

Many young people experiment with illegal drugs such as marijuana and cocaine while in high school and college. Peer pressure and lack of maturity are two reasons for this. Foe security clearance applicants that counts in your favor as social environment and age at the time of use could help

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