Born secret information, restricted from the start, contains descriptions and test results of potentially dangerous technologies. Laws governing this type of information originated from US government actions during World War I and II. High-ranking officials are the only ones with access, and inventors must follow specific steps to keep details secret. Declassified items usually concern nuclear weapons or similar technologies, while some classified information is considered a threat to a country’s economic stability. The legality of these restrictions has been challenged as a possible violation of some rights.
Some groups of information are termed secrets born when they have limited access from the start. Secret birth information usually contains descriptions and scientific test results of technologies that could potentially threaten the safety of a country’s citizens. Laws related to born classified data originate from United States (US) government actions during World War I and World War II. Officials have placed secrecy restrictions on patents for specific weapons that could do a lot of damage in the wrong hands. This type of legislation was originally intended to be temporary, although it later became permanent under the Invention Secrecy Act which was passed into law in 1951.
High-ranking military and government officials are typically the only personnel with access to born secret information. Born classified inventions are subject to specific restrictions under the jurisdiction of national patent granting agencies. Inventors do not receive a blanket patent and are required to follow specific steps to keep the details of their work secret. This type of restriction is generally known as a secrecy order.
Government bodies such as the US State Department have strict and comprehensive guidelines for who can gain access to a born secret. Both civilian and military workers can generally only learn this information when absolutely necessary. They are usually expected to agree to extensive background checks of both their career histories and personal personas to determine whether they pose any security breach risks.
The exact details of the secret technologies born are unknown, but some comparable inventions have had these restrictions lifted. These declassified items usually concern nuclear weapons or similar technologies applied to national defense measures. The specifics of the design, manufacture and operation of these weapons are normally kept as classified information due to the possibilities of large-scale destruction in times of war.
Some types of classified information born are considered threats to a country’s economic stability rather than to the security of its people or infrastructure. This data may include details about global trade that could be exploited if disclosed to groups wishing to harm a particular nation. Depending on the laws of different countries, exposure of this type of secret information carries varying degrees of punishment, depending on the severity of the secrecy orders enforced. The legality of the restrictions born secret has also been challenged as a possible violation of some rights such as freedom of the press.
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