Tools B: Information Technology

Establish a secure, flexible, and modern information technology system that fully supports the collection, analysis, and dissemination of information.

Other Information:

Situation: Prior to 9/11, the FBI made substantial investments to upgrade technologies that directly supported investigations (e.g., surveillance equipment, IAFAS), but little attention was paid to technology related to the more fundamental tasks of records creation, maintenance, dissemination, and retrieval. As a result, the FBI’s information technology infrastructure became antiquated and unable to support operations effectively. Most of the FBI’s computer systems were designed at a time when the conventional wisdom and prevailing technology were that data was “owned” — collected and manipulated — in discrete systems. Such systems are now viewed as “stove-pipes” because the information stored in them cannot be quickly shared or cross-referenced. The FBI has been hamstrung by outdated technology in terms of networks, hardware, software, and infrastructure support. Information technology requires constant upgrading in order to remain viable and flexible to changing requirements. The FBI hired experts from outside to modernize its systems. The first imperative was to develop an Enterprise Architecture . However, 9/11 created immediate critical needs to prevent further terrorist attacks. Decisions were made and actions taken to meet those exigent needs. As noted by the GAO, there are inherent risks in modernizing information technology systems without the benefit of an Enterprise Architecture. The decisions that were made took into account such risks. The FBI chose to be an early majority technology adopter with a strong bias toward purchase versus development. We selected a few key standards, and in some cases specific mainstream products, to anchor the technology portion of our architecture. Even without a comprehensive architecture, the FBI was still able to achieve enumerable successes as a result of the character and resolve of its personnel. It is imperative that the FBI have the ability to view, conjoin, and analyze data already in its possession in ways and places not previously anticipated. The FBI threat forecast predicts the continued emergence of temporal threats and the need to quickly shift to emerging threats. The FBI must be able to quickly search all in-house data or legally accessible external data, regardless of source or location, for relevant intelligence. Moreover, the FBI will need to ensure that its systems are compatible for sharing information electronically to the widest extent possible to meet the intelligence needs of our partners.

Objective(s):

T B.1: Harmonized System

T B.2: Mobility

T B.3: Data Storage and Retrieval

T B.4: Speed and Efficiency

T B.5: Data Security

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