How Does the CIA Keep Its IT Staff Honest? 238
Tootech points out this story for anyone who's been curious about getting that top-secret clearance and the promise of a cushy pension from the CIA, as a reward for decades of blood-curdling, heart-pounding, knuckle-whitening IT service: "Be prepared to go through a lot of scrutiny if you want to work in the Central Intelligence Agency's IT department, says chief information officer Al Tarasiuk. And it doesn't stop after you get your top secret clearance. 'Once you're in, there are frequent reinvestigations, but it's just part of process here,' says Tarasiuk, who also gets polygraphed regularly, though he won't be more specific. For those senior IT managers who are the 'privileged users,' meaning system administrators, 'there is certainly more scrutiny on you,' Tarasiuk says. 'It's interesting: there's so much scrutiny that a normal person might not want to put up with that. But it's part of the mission.'"
Re:Hmmm (Score:4, Interesting)
... paying them well?
Haha, good one.. it's a government job.
Re:Hmmm (Score:5, Interesting)
I'm aware of a few people employed with 3 letter agencies doing sysadmin work at remote facilities that bring in ~$150k. The worse part of it, in my opinion, is that the background checking must be so stringent, it apparently makes it hard to hire competent admins. I've had to walk more than one of them through some basic linux cli stuff like mount, restarting daemons, etc.
Gets polygraphed regularly (Score:2, Interesting)
Fuck, if they're already putting the nation's security into the hands of a pseudoscientific carnival trick, why not also use an E-meter?
Re:Hmmm (Score:4, Interesting)
The fed actually pays pretty well for most of their IT and engineering jobs. Have a look on usajobs.gov if you think otherwise. The problem is, they almost all require TS/SCI, which is neither cheap nor easy to get. Also, if you are "inside the beltway" near DC, the commutes to the suburbs can soak 2 to 3 hours each way even if you live near mass transit. Living in DC on budget is, uh, iffy. Don't get lost.
The contractors are a mixed bag. Even though the companies often gets paid more for the positions than they would otherwise cost overall, the employees frequently end up either underpaid or are on contract terms that are not renewed and lack benefits.
Re:He gets polygraphed regularly (Score:4, Interesting)
Yep! We have an agency that leverages all of the latest technological tools and sociological strategies still believing in what amounts to unreliable voodoo.
Re:Cushy Pension (Score:5, Interesting)
"Cushy pension"? Federal Employees get 1% for each year of service i.e. work 30 years and get 30% of your annual salary as a pension. They also get a 4% contribution to a 401(k). Better than nothing, but not really "cushy". Employees who are required to carry guns get a better deal, but TFA had to do with "IT" employees.
I wanted to be an FBI agent, and went through part of the hiring process a few years ago when they were aggressively trying to hire people with advanced CS degrees. I dropped out of the process due to the salary: ~$50-62k (depending on location), including the extra "availability" (overtime) compensation. At the same time, the FBI was posting >$100k positions for (non-agent) computer scientists.
CIA recruiting seminar (Score:5, Interesting)
I've attended FBI, CIA, NSA ... uh ... events.
Straight and narrow-fests. Usually boring people. Often from small towns.
They make it clear that your job will usually suck and have nothing to do with what you see on TV or read in books 99% of the time.
You generally do not get to say what you do. Sure, the boring stuff isn't classified, but I've learned it is easier just to never talk about anything. Ever.
The FBI guys who I've met were all boy scouts.
The CIA sends out pretty people. Even the men tended to be pretty. In the back office are regular people.
The NSA ... I can't say.
Low government pay when compared to non-startup corporate jobs. EMC employees would laugh at CIA pay. You can look up the government pay scales. http://www.fedjobs.com/pay/pay.html [fedjobs.com] A G-12 makes less than $80K! The only way to be well paid in the government is to stay there for 30 yrs. I'd call that an IQ test failure. Guess I'm not government employee material. I was earning over G-15 rates at age 35 in the private sector.
Re:Hmmm (Score:4, Interesting)
Well, government jobs tend to be low-paying by definition
Depends whether you're looking at just the salary, or salary + benefits, because it's usually in the benefits area where gov't jobs shine - Lots of vacation, medical / dental, maybe a pension, job security, 35 hours a week... So it depends on your priorities, and where you are in life - Some people would rather earn less and have enough time off to go backpacking in Thailand for five weeks.
Re:Hmmm (Score:5, Interesting)
I'm aware of a few people employed with 3 letter agencies doing sysadmin work at remote facilities that bring in ~$150k. The worse part of it, in my opinion, is that the background checking must be so stringent, it apparently makes it hard to hire competent admins. I've had to walk more than one of them through some basic linux cli stuff like mount, restarting daemons, etc.
It really does take a "special" kind of person to go and work for the CIA and other such agencies. Not only are the entry requirements and investigations rigorous, the continual monitoring of bank accounts, credit cards, social media, email and regular polygraphed interviews are not what most IT personalities would be down for.
The pay and other compensation are incredible, though. Has to be for the hassle and the stress of the work. I have known some guys that were/are in "The Agency" and like the work and serving their country. Not for me though.
Re:Hmmm (Score:4, Interesting)
bad thing is that if they are TOO generic, it would be easier to duplicate. Sure it wont get you past the key lock, but it would assist in social engineering if you get spotted in a hallway.
We put up with it 'cause it's part of the contract (Score:3, Interesting)
Generally, working for the federal govt in the U.S., for skilled or highly skilled people, means accepting a ~30-year commitment to public service, during which time you get low pay, reasonable insurance, reasonable vacation time, and (theoretically) reasonable treatment from management during your working years. It also means a fair (not guaranteed unless you hired on before about 1983 when the rules changed) shot at a decent retirement package.
Note in the "inb4" category, just so we don't get sidetracked - people who tell you feds are overpaid have an axe to grind and are misusing statistics to prove their point. The fed pays an almost-living wage to bottom end employees, something that inflates the overall payment stats. They also provide decent health insurance with a similar impact on overall per-person compensation stats. For highly skilled or highly educated employees, though, federal pay is generally lousy. As a Unix SA, for example, I turned down multiple offers of employment over the years. I don't think I ever got an offer that would not have, at minimum, tripled my pay. I didn't take any of them because I liked the idea of working for an employer who I felt reasonably sure would still be around to pay me the pension that (among other factors) persuaded me to take the job in the first place.
In return for stability and a shot at a decent retirement, you have to work till you're old enough to retire. Everybody knows it and accepts it when they sign on.
I wouldn't really call that "dog eat dog". What is the retirement like for public employees in your country? How is it so much better that you think of ours as "dog eat dog"?