Review of DOD Investigation of Leak of Classified Information to The Washington Post

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) investigation of disclosure of classified information to a newspaper. Specifically, GAO was asked to: (1) give an opinion on DOD compliance with its directives on the use of the polygraph; (2) provide assurance that the ability of the investigators to act in an impartial, professional manner was not compromised by the level at which the investigation began; (3) analyze the efficacy of the investigation in removing security risks from positions of trust; and (4) ascertain whether DOD followed procedures and conducted an investigation to effectively search out wrongdoers and protect the rights of DOD employees.