Security threats

Independent Report: NSF Must Take Action to Improve US Research Security

A report from the independent science advisory group JASON recommended that the National Science Foundation take the necessary steps to improve awareness of research security and establish a mechanism capable of identifying research projects that are considered sensitive due to their impact on national security.

NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan said that the report will help researchers navigate a world with new and evolving risks related to security while encouraging transparency and openness domestically and in the international community.

Commissioned by the NSF in 2019, the report highlighted the value of international collaboration while recognizing the need to quickly differentiate sensitive and nonsensitive research, the NSF said.

Due to the growing threat coming out of Beijing, lawmakers have been advocating to enhance the U.S. national security strategy. In February, Arati Prabhakar, director of the Office of Science and Technology, a past Wash100 awardee and past Potomac Officers Club event speaker, said that he is prioritizing the rollout of the Research Security Program Standard Requirement to ensure the security of government-supported research and development initiatives.