Safeguarding Our Researchers

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What is the risk?

Federal concerns about transfers of federally funded research, intellectual property, and other sensitive information from U.S. universities to foreign entities have escalated in recent years.  Higher education institutions and their employees may be a priority target for foreign intelligence services that seek information about U.S. technologies, federally funded research, intellectual property, export‐controlled information, financial data, or other sensitive information that could lead to a military, technological or economic advantage.

Foreign adversaries use a number of different tactics to target such information.  In addition to traditional cyber security methods, such as phishing or hacking research systems, the FBI and the Department of State have identified certain techniques or activities that have been used to access sensitive research information or intellectual property from university researchers:

• Foreign conference or presentation opportunities
• Talent recruitment programs
• Gift or sponsored research funding
• Publishing opportunities
• Joint research opportunities
• In-kind support including research lab access or research personnel

These techniques or activities may create opportunities for the inadvertent sharing or theft of intellectual property and sensitive or restricted information.  This can occur by adverse interests gaining access to university systems or research by leveraging normal academic and research collaborative scenarios for unintended purposes.  Likewise, researchers may unknowingly be subjected to cyber security theft in the course of conducting engagements with outside entities (ex. traveling abroad, connecting to unsecured networks, etc.).