Protocols to safeguard classified material were violated an additional 497 times
WASHINGTON – The U.S. State Department
informed Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) that it has completed its investigation into the mishandling of classified information that passed through former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s unauthorized email server. The investigation revealed that 38 employees were found culpable for 91 separate violations of security protocols. The department uncovered an additional 497 violations for which no individual was found culpable. The investigation concluded that Clinton’s use of a personal email server to conduct official business increased the risk of unauthorized disclosures and security compromises.
The State Department also noted that the review was complicated by the fact that it was not able to contemporaneously review and address protocol violations during 5-to-9 years between the time that Clinton began using the server and the completion of the department’s review. By the time the department was able to access the emails, Clinton and many other employees had already left, and many of those individuals involved in the violations could not be reached for interviews.
The State Department’s administrative review of the emails began in 2015 before pausing while the FBI investigated possible criminal violations stemming from Clinton’s mishandling of highly-classified information. As then-chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Grassley led congressional oversight on the mishandling of classified information and alienation of federal records that passed through the unauthorized server.
In March of 2017, Grassley
requested an update on the security clearance review related to the mishandling of classified information on Clinton’s server. The department
confirmed it was reviewing the mishandling of classified information in June of that year. In October of last year, the department confirmed that
Clinton’s security clearance had been withdrawn at her request. In June, the Department noted that it
identified 30 security incidents and that its review was ongoing. In a letter this week, the department confirmed the conclusion of its review and outlined its process and findings.
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