In 2010 over 64% of cases involving Guideline K: Handling Protected Information decided at Defense Office of Hearings and Appeals (DOHA) resulted in security clearance denials or revocations. All of these cases also cited Guideline E: Personal Conduct and/or Guideline M: Use of Information Technology as potentially disqualifying issues. These addition issues were directly related to the Guideline K conduct, because they displayed questionable judgment and unreliable behavior and/or because they involved computers.

Outside activities that present a security concern are usually those involving a foreign business, organization, or government. Without a favorable security evaluation of the outside activity by the appropriate federal agency, the applicant is left with the problem of deciding whether to preemptively eliminate the potential security concern by terminating the activity and suffer a loss of income or other personal benefit before being told if the activity actually represents a disqualifying condition.

Most cases involving misuse of information technology (Guideline M) have involved only 1 of the 8 potentially disqualifying conditions”—the “unauthorized use of a government or other information technology system.” These cases have almost always involved the viewing of pornographic material on a government or company-owned computer in violation of their employers’ rules.