How did leak suspect access top secret Pentagon documents?

How was a 21-year-old inferior subordinate of a reserve unit allegedly capable to entree apical concealed US documents?

Access to classified quality is really overmuch much communal than it mightiness seem.

Jack Teixeira, who appeared successful tribunal connected Friday, worked arsenic a cyber transport systems journeyman with the US Air National Guard.

These see a precocious schoolhouse acquisition and a "Single Scope Background Investigation".

Experts accidental this vetting process is reasonably comprehensive.

It includes looking into a candidate's acquisition background, fiscal past and relationships, and volition besides see interviews with radical who cognize them.

And having high-level entree to information, adjacent astatine 21, is not retired of the ordinary.

"It is reasonably commonplace for individuals of his property to person entree to classified information," says Alexandria Seymour, an subordinate chap astatine the Technology and National Security Program astatine the Center for a New American Security deliberation tank.

Around fractional of active-duty enlisted members of the US subject are aged 25 oregon younger, according to Department of Defence statistics.

While the nonstop details of Mr Teixeira's occupation are inactive emerging, Ms Seymour says it's imaginable that his enactment whitethorn person required entree to a wide scope of quality documents.

"Often radical astatine his level are supporting elder leaders, and helium mightiness person a 'need to know' if helium was prepping elder leaders oregon putting unneurotic briefing books," she says.

Dan Lomas, elder lecturer successful quality and information studies astatine Brunel University, says thousands of radical crossed the US subject and quality constitution person a akin level of access.

"It's portion of this thrust to get arsenic overmuch accusation arsenic imaginable for analysts to use," helium says. "And that thrust means that you are perchance opening up entree to accusation that could beryllium leaked."

That propulsion began successful the years aft the September 11 attacks connected New York and Washington, helium says, erstwhile nonaccomplishment to stock quality betwixt US authorities agencies was 1 of the cardinal shortcomings identified by authorities inquiries.

It's unclear precisely however Mr Teixeira was allegedly capable to people disconnected the classified documents and sneak them retired of a subject base, either electronically oregon connected paper. But Mr Lomas notes that erstwhile information breaches - specified arsenic leaks by Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning - person demonstrated that information guidelines are not ever rigorously followed.

Mark Zaid, a nationalist information lawyer, told the BBC that Mr Teixeira's enactment would person fixed him entree to the Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System, oregon JWICS, which helium described arsenic a "library of information" regarding US intelligence.

And there's a log of astatine slightest immoderate of Mr Teixeira's enactment connected classified systems, according to the transgression complaint, which notes that helium searched for the connection "leak" astir the clip the documents archetypal got mainstream attraction successful quality reports past week.

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin announced a reappraisal of quality entree connected Thursday. During a property briefing, helium said that "every US work member, Department of Defence civilian and contractor with entree to classified accusation has a solemn ineligible and motivation work to safeguard it and to study immoderate suspicious enactment oregon behaviour".

But Mr Lomas says the US quality assemblage could beryllium entering a "difficult period" and that caller restrictions volition bounds accusation sharing betwixt agencies.

"To person greater restrictions connected accusation means much of a determination towards a accepted benignant of strict need-to-know principles," helium says.

Kurt Volker, erstwhile US ambassador to Nato, says US policymakers volition inactive privation quality to get to apical officials.

"You bash person to administer it, but you person to bash it successful a astute way," helium told the BBC. "You've got to beryllium smarter than conscionable making it disposable to everybody, permanently."

And ultimately, Ms Seymour says, the quality strategy relies connected the radical handling the data.

"It does rise questions astir however we are grooming individuals connected however to grip classified information," she says. "It's exposing gaps successful the strategy that volition beryllium looked astatine … but there's besides a level of spot that you spot successful these individuals, that they are determination for the close reasons."

An affidavit provided by an FBI cause stated that Mr Teixeira would person "signed a beingness binding non-disclosure agreement" to instrumentality connected his role, and that helium would person realised that releasing classified accusation could unfastened him up to transgression charges - similar the ones helium present faces.