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The United States military and many American companies work with sensitive technologies and information that might do damage if seen by the wrong people. To determine individual trustworthiness, potential employees/service members must undergo background checks to gain the necessary level of security clearance. Gaining a security clearance is no trivial matter and can cost a significant amount of money to complete.

The US military has different levels of secrecy for information that is deemed more or less sensitive. A service member might be required to gain a Confidential, Secret, or Top Secret security clearance depending on the duties that he is expected to perform. Civilian companies that work with the military use the same levels of security clearance. Potential employees are required to submit to the same checks as military members as they may be working with some of the same technology and information. Having a security clearance means that the employee has the official trust of the US government and that he can access the information required by his job without fear that he will compromise it.

Confidential is the lowest security clearance level. To receive a confidential security clearance a basic check will be performed to confirm the person’s identity, any foreign employment, and any personal relationships with foreign nationals. The person attempting to get the security clearance is responsible for providing the necessary personal information to be checked out. The Confidential security clearance usually requires only a few weeks to complete.

Secret is the middle security clearance level. A Secret security clearance requires the same checks as a confidential security clearance but may receive more scrutiny. The check might involve fingerprint and credit checks to garner as much information about the potential employee as possible from public databases. A Secret security clearance can take up to a year to complete depending on the job applied for.

Top Secret is the highest security clearance level. To obtain a Top Secret security clearance, a person must pass the checks involved in getting a Secret security clearance along with increased scrutiny of his personal records. Investigators may interview friends, former employers, family members, and even former teachers of the potential employee depending on the nature of the information that he will be exposed to. A Top Secret security clearance can take anywhere from three months to three years to complete, depending on the record of the potential employee and how quickly he is needed for the job. The Top Secret security clearance must be renewed every five years.

When an investigator interviews acquaintances, no information is off limits. The investigator might ask about alcohol consumption habits, dating habits, study habits, what he does with his free time, how he is with his money, if he consorts with foreign nationals, and what his sexual preferences are. If the acquaintances give less than flattering answers to the difficult questions, the potential employee might be rejected and will not receive the security clearance.