GAO urges FBI to formalize academic partnership plan

The Government Accountability Office issued a report recommending that the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation develop and implement a plan to strengthen the FBI's partnerships with academic institutions. The FBI concurred with the recommendation.

The FBI defines non-traditional intelligence collectors (NTCs) as individuals whose primary profession is not intelligence collection but who actively or passively gather sensitive U.S. information for foreign entities. Researchers and students at universities may act as NTCs when they collect non-public research on behalf of a foreign entity, and their activities may not constitute a legal violation until the information is transferred abroad.

FBI officials and academic association representatives identified several challenges. Identifying and investigating NTCs is difficult because the conduct may not breach the law until data is shared. Cultural differences between the FBI and academia - where institutions promote free exchange of information - can impede communication, and relationships vary across universities.

The FBI's Office of Private Sector leads information-sharing and engagement with the private sector, while the Counterintelligence and Espionage Division, the National Counterintelligence Task Force, and field-office Counterintelligence Task Forces coordinate investigations and partner agency efforts.

GAO's recommendation remains open, and the agency will update the record when the FBI's actions in response to the recommendation are confirmed.