Security Clearance Careers Podcast
Share
Popular Myths About Military Life: Fact or Fiction?
Your neighbor: “Do you suffer from PTSD?”
“If I did, I probably wouldn’t tell you. Why would you even ask that?”
This might be a common exchange between civilians and military service members. These myths about military life – and after the transition – are perpetuated by civilian assumptions. For this episode of ClearedCast, Steven Matthew Leonard and I do a deep dive into military myths.
No matter which branch you’ve served in, no matter your military occupational specialty (MOS), and no matter how long you’ve served, American citizens might be prone to thinking every veteran has served our armed forces in the same capacity a character like a Rambo killing machine. Not every brigadier general is like Jack Ripper from Dr. Strangelove or Lt Dan from Forest Gump – and not all military service members are broken.
We even get into some creepy ghost stories about Fort Leavenworth.
More Episodes
How Having the Freedom to Fail Makes the US Cyber Threat Ready
18:10Tune in to How Having the Freedom to Fail Makes the US Cyber Threat ReadyWhat does the future of the cyber threat landscape look like in the next year? Or decade? We don’t know for sure how consequential it is, but we know the implications are heave with adversarial threats like China and Russia.To comment, ClearanceJobs welcomes ex-employee of the National Security Agency (NSA), William “Hutch” Hutchison, to the Security Clearance Careers Podcast (AKA ClearedCast). Hutch is the CEO and co-Founder of SimSpace. At US Cyber Command he was appointed through presidential order to create a team focused on defending US national infrastructure against state cyberthreats, training the 6000 Cyber Command operatives. Today he continues to serve as the Test Director for cyber operational assessments at the Department of Defense.Will Cutting the Cleared Workforce Really Reduce Leaks?
22:33Critics are saying there are too many people with access to classified information - but is that really the case? And when it comes to leaks, is creating fewer individuals who are close to classified information - but not vetted to see it - really the solution? ClearanceJobs sat down with Charles Phalen, former acting director of the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA), and current principal of CS Phalen & Associates. They discuss why personnel vetting is scrutinized following every major leak, why cutting the number of security clearances seems like a plausible solution (but isn’t), and eApp and possible changes to the security clearance application process.Highest Paying Jobs Requiring Security Clearance
14:58ClearanceJobs offers security clearance holders the annual Security Clearance Compensation report where we survey 50,000+ clearance holders in a variety of jobs, locations, agencies, and fields, to inform you on what the market is offering for your next salary negotiation. Interested in learning what the top paying jobs are on ClearanceJobs.com are today? Tune in to learn what companies are offering salaries of $200,000+ a year.Security Clearance Ageism and Post Leak Clearance Blowback
13:47Security clearances are in the news - and not in a good way. Whether you know national security or don't know what eligibility to access classified information is, the Jake Teixeira leak created a new wave of questions and issues around the security clearance process. Some critics questioned why a 21-year-old had a security clearance. Others are wondering if it's time to start monitoring social media for security clearance holders. Lindy Kyzer with ClearanceJobs and Sean Bigley, security clearance legal correspondent discuss the latest leak case and all of the blowback.Pro-Russian Donbass Devushka Social Media and Classified Documents
09:42Heather Mongilio is a reporter with United States Naval Institute (USNI) news. She has covered local courts, crime, health, military affairs, and the Naval Academy, and recently published an article on the Department of Justice (DOJ) investigating a former Navy non-commissioned officer for her role in social media accounts that posted a series of leaked Pentagon documents. Sarah Bils is a former aviation electronics technician 2nd Class who was last stationed at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, WA, and is allegedly behind a pro-Russian series of social media accounts under the banner of “Donbass Devushka,” The Wallstreet Journal first reported. USNI News continued to cover the story and the individuals behind the Donbass Devushka network. Donbass Devushka is comprised of 15 people, and Bils noted that another administrator on the account posted at least four of the classified documents that were recently leaked by Massachusetts Air Guardsman Jack Teixeira.Former USDA COR Discusses Contracting Challenges as an IT Business Owner
20:14Kortney Calano joins the Security Clearance Careers Podcast to discuss her journey through the Defense Industrial Base. She is a US Army veteran, turned contractor, turned govvie. Currently, she is a small business owner that is a provider of IT Consulting services to government clients, and prior to that she was the Acting Director and Branch Chief for the Program Management Division of USDA. Today we discuss how she was able to move up the ranks in the federal space, her contribution in implementing Zero Trust Security and Architecture, her experience as a Contracting Officer Representative (COR), and how CMMC is affecting small businesses within the defense industrial base.NCMS Seminar Gives Security Professionals A Chance to Grow Skills
15:58Lynn Burns, president of NCMS and Sarah Turner, member of the board of directors, NCMS, discuss the upcoming NCMS 2023 Annual Seminar on this episode of Security Clearance Insecurity. NCMS is a professional security organization that has existed for more than 50 years, helping to train, certify, and advance the security profession. Burns and Turner discussed what can be expected at this year's training seminar, along with why mentorship is important to the security field today.Former CIA Officer Uses Intelligence Experience to Stop Human Trafficking
31:44He notes that we spend billions through the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to combat the sale of sometimes legal substances. We have the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to again, stop the sale of legal items. The 13th amendment deems 100% of human trafficking illegal. Where is the organization to fight this?Nic McKinley, is the founder of nonprofit DeliverFund, an organization he started to combat human trafficking. He used his experience as a United States Air Force Pararesumen and an officer at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to inform their intelligence collection efforts to support their law enforcement partners.DeliverFund provides actionable intelligence to their law enforcement partners, and many of their employees have spent their entire backgrounds dismantling illicit networks overseas against violent extremists in high threat environments. Moving into the private nonprofit sector, the organization implements these same strategies against human traffickers.On this episode of ClearedCast, we talk about his journey through the military, working intelligence for three letter agencies, and how listeners can pivot careers by reinventing themselves every five years.Security Clearance Management in the Spotlight as OMB Updates Benchmarks
15:53The transformative effort to improve the security clearance process has been underway for the past several years, with significant new benchmarks announced just this month at the recent U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on Capitol Hill. Jason Miller, Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget and chair of the Performance Accountability Council Program Management Office discussed the recently announced metrics and reforms within the security clearance process, and how PAC-PMO is providing accountability and a management framework for the government to achieve its aggressive timeline goals. The government is looking to move away from 90% reporting and will include 100% of the cleared population in its reporting benchmarks, along with creating more aggressive timelines around reform.