AEROGRAPHER'S MATE 3 & 2 



control of the dissemination of classified infor- 

 mation. Therefore, knowledge or possession of 

 classified information is permitted only to those 

 who actually require it in the performance of 

 their duties, and then only after they have been 

 granted the appropriate security clearances. This 

 principle is generally referred to as a "need 

 to know," and is a prime requisite for access 

 to classified information. 



Access to classified material is not auto- 

 matically granted because a person has the 

 proper clearances, holds a particular billet, 

 or is sufficiently senior in authority, but only 

 if the criteria of proper clearance and "need 

 to know" are both met. 



LIMITATIONS OF SECURITY 



Security is a means — not an end. Rules which 

 govern security of classified matter are much 

 the same as gunnery safety rules. They do 

 not guarantee protection and they do not attempt 

 to meet every situation. 



Security regulations are not intended to re- 

 strict the initiative of mature individuals. With 

 common sense and mature thinking, it is possi- 

 ble to obtain a satisfactory degree of security 

 with a minimum of sacrifice in operating ef- 

 ficiency. 



CLASSIFICATION CATEGORIES 



Official information which requires protec- 

 tion in the interest of national defense is lim- 

 ited to one of three categories: Top Secret, 

 Secret, or Confidential. No information may 

 be withheld or classified, if otherwise releas- 

 able, simply because such information might 

 reveal an error or inefficiency or might be 

 embarrassing. 



Top Secret 



The use of the classification Top Secret is 

 limited to defense information or material which 

 requires the highest degree of protection. Top 

 Secret is applied only to that information or 

 material, the defense aspect of which is para- 

 mount and the unauthorized disclosure of which 



could result in EXCEPTIONALLY GRAVE DAM- 

 AGE to the Nation, such as the following: 



1. Leading to a break in diplomatic rela- 

 tions, armed attack on the United States or its 

 allies, or a war. 



2. The compromise of nr'litary plans or 

 scientific or technological developments vital 

 to the national defense. 



Secret 



The use of the classification Secret is lim- 

 ited to defense information or material, the un- 

 authorized disclosure of which could result in 

 SERIOUS DAMAGE to the Nation, such as the 

 following: 



1. Jeopardizing the international relations 

 of the United States. 



2. Endangering the effectiveness of a pro- 

 gram or policy vital to the national defense. 



3. Compromising important military or de- 

 fense plans, scientific or technological develop- 

 ments important to national defense. 



4. Revealing important intelligence opera- 

 tions. 



Confidential 



Information or material classified Confiden- 

 tial is placed in the category whose unauthorized 

 disclosure could cause damage to the defense 

 interest of the Nation. 



If it is desired to understand more thor- 

 oughly the various categories of classified mat- 

 ter, the Security Manual has a number 

 of examples in each category. However, the most 

 important thing to be learned at this time is that 

 each category represents a degree of damage 

 to the Nation that could be done by letting 

 this material get into the hands of unauthorized 

 persons. The category also determines how the 

 material is handled and the measures used for 

 its protection, as will be seen later in this 

 chapter. 



SPECIAL CATEGORIES 



Theoretically, the three classifications dis- 

 cussed above should safeguard any information 



418 



