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

Many on this site have asked if the results of a polygraph taken with another agency can result in a security clearance revocation with your current employer. The answer is yes if the conduct or issues disclosed in the polygraph fall within the 13 adjudicative guidelines that apply to all

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Security Clearance Denial

Everybody knows the saying “the truth is easier to remember than keeping up with the lies you told.” This concept escaped a DoD contractor who lost her clearance and subsequent appeal. Amazingly, she was also a Navy Reserve Intelligence Officer who had held a clearance since 1986. Here is how

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Background Investigations

The Office of Personnel Management’s National Background Investigation Bureau (NBIB) conducts background investigations for low risk non-sensitive, public trust, and national security positions for both civil servants and contractors working on behalf of the government. Some of the items on the Tier 1 through Tier 3 investigations may require completion

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Security Clearance Process

In June the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) jointly issued a memorandum implementing interim measures to help reduce the investigation backlog for DoD. This memorandum instructs the Defense Security Service (DSS) to defer submission of Tier 3 (T3R) and Tier

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