Classified information Classified information is material that a government body deems to be sensitive information that must be protected. Access is restricted by law or regulation to particular groups of people with the necessary security clearance and need to kn ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

is a system used to protect information from intentional or inadvertent release to unauthorised readers. The system is organised by the Cabinet Office and is implemented throughout central and local government and critical national infrastructure. The system is also used by private sector bodies that provide services to the public sector. The current classification system, the

Government Security Classifications Policy The Government Security Classifications Policy (GSCP) is a system for classifying sensitive government data in the United Kingdom. GPMS Historically, the Government Protective Marking Scheme was used by government bodies in the UK; it divides dat ...

, replaced the old Government Protective Marking Scheme in 2014. Since classifications can last for 100 years many documents are still covered by the old scheme.

Policy

Policy is set by the Cabinet Office. The

Security Policy Framework The Security Policy Framework (or "SPF") is a set of high-level policies on security, mainly affecting the UK government and its suppliers. The structure has changed over time. Version 11 was published in October 2013; it has 20 "Mandatory Requirem ...

(SPF) superseded the Manual of Protective Security and contains the primary internal protective security policy and guidance on security and risk management for His Majesty's Government (HMG) Departments and associated bodies. It is the source on which all localised security policies are based. The classification system was formerly included in the ''Manual of Protective Security'' (MPS) which specified the impact of release and protection level required for each classification. Departments issued localised versions of the content of the MPS as appropriate to their operational needs.

Government Security Classifications Policy

The Cabinet Office issued the

(GSCP) in 2013; it came into effect in 2014. It replaced the old Government Protective Marking Scheme (GPMS). Classifications must be capitalised and centrally noted at top and bottom of each document page, save at OFFICIAL where the document marking is optional. All material produced by a public body in the UK must be presumed to be OFFICIAL unless it is otherwise marked. Like the GPMS, which it superseded, the GSCP classifications are applied only to the confidentiality of the data under classification. ;TOP SECRET: Information marked as ''TOP SECRET'' is that whose release is liable to cause considerable loss of life, international diplomatic incidents, or severely impact ongoing intelligence operations. Disclosure of such information is assumed to be above the threshold for prosecution under the

Official Secrets Act 1989 The Official Secrets Act 1989 (c. 6) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that repeals and replaces section 2 of the Official Secrets Act 1911, thereby removing the public interest defence created by that section. Lord Bingham s ...

. ;SECRET: This marking is used for information which needs protection against serious threats, and which could cause serious harm if compromised—such as threats to life, compromising major crime investigations, or harming international relations. ;OFFICIAL: All routine public sector business, operations and services is treated as OFFICIAL. Many departments and agencies operate exclusively at this level. It is often incorrectly assumed that the OFFICIAL classification replaces the GPMS markings of PROTECT, RESTRICTED and CONFIDENTIAL, however this is not the case, since the criteria on which GPMS markings were applied bear no relationship to the criteria used for GSCP classifications. It is quite possible, and not uncommon, for data within an OFFICIAL classification to have serious impacts including serious injury in the event of unauthorised disclosure. This is one of the characteristics of the GSCP which differs significantly from the Protective Marking Scheme which it replaced. At the OFFICIAL classification there is a general presumption that data may be shared across Government, however where a need to know principle is identified data may be marked as "OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE"; "OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE COMMERCIAL"; "OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE LOCSEN" or "OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE PERSONAL". All OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE data must be marked and contain handling instructions identifying why the data is deemed sensitive, how it must be held, processed and transferred.

Government Protective Marking Scheme

The older system used five levels of classification, supplemented with caveat keywords. The keyword was placed in all capital letters in the centre of the top and bottom of each page of a classified document and described the foreseeable consequence of an unauthorised release of the data (a ‘breach of confidentiality’). In descending order of secrecy, these are: ; TOP SECRET : Information marked as ''TOP SECRET'' is that whose release is liable to cause considerable loss of life, international diplomatic incidents, or severely impact ongoing intelligence operations. Prior to the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, the highest level was "Most Secret"; it was renamed so that both the UK and U.S. operated to a consistent system. ; SECRET : This marking is used for information whose side-effects may be life-threatening, disruptive to public order or detrimental to diplomatic relations with friendly nations. ; CONFIDENTIAL : The effects of releasing information marked as ''CONFIDENTIAL'' include considerable infringement on personal liberties, material damage to diplomatic relations, or to seriously disrupt day-to-day life in the country. ; RESTRICTED : Information marked as ''RESTRICTED'' is at a level where the release of the material will have effects such as significant distress to individuals, adversely affecting the effectiveness of military operations, or to compromise law enforcement. ; PROTECT : Such information will cause distress to individuals; cause financial loss or improper gain; prejudice the investigation of, or facilitate the commission of, a crime; or disadvantage government in commercial or policy negotiations with others. PROTECT should always be used with a descript such as “Commercial”, “Management”, “Personal”, or a similar term. ; UNCLASSIFIED : The term "UNCLASSIFIED" or "NOT PROTECTIVELY MARKED" may be used in UK Government documents to indicate positively that a protective marking is not needed. Documents classified under the Protective Marking Scheme still exist and need correct handling. After 100 years all the classifications will have run out but the procedures may still be of interest to historians.

Handling

Access to protectively marked material is defined according to a vetting level which the individual has achieved. Vetting is intended to assure the department that the individual has not been involved in espionage, terrorism, sabotage or actions intended to overthrow or undermine Parliamentary democracy by political, industrial or violent means. It also assures the department that the individual has not been a member of, or associated with, any organisation which has advocated such activities or has demonstrated a lack of reliability through dishonesty, lack of integrity or behaviour. Finally, the process assures the department that the individual will not be subject to pressure or improper influence through past behaviour or personal circumstances. Protectively marked material must be accounted for in a manner appropriate to its classification level and disposal must be in accordance with the SPF. The act of destruction or disposal is included in the accounting process.

Descriptors

Protectively marked material may also be marked with a descriptor, or privacy marking, which identifies sensitivities around distribution and handling. Examples of descriptors include, but are not restricted to: *Budget *Commercial *Honours *Management *Medical *Personal *Policy *Staff *Visits (domestic or foreign royalty and ministers)

Nationality caveat

Protectively marked material may bear a nationality ''

caveat Caveat may refer to Latin phrases: * ''Caveat lector'' ("let the reader beware") * '' Caveat emptor'' ("let the buyer beware") * '' Caveat venditor'' ("let the seller beware") Other: * CAVEAT, a Canadian lobby group * ''Caveat'', an album by N ...

'', a descriptor defining which nationality groups it may be released to. By default material in the UK is not caveated by nationality, the classification being sufficient protection. Examples of nationality caveats include, but are not limited to: *UK

EYES ONLY Eyes only is jargon used with regard to classified information. Whereas a classified document is normally intended to be available to anyone with the appropriate security clearance, an "eyes only" designation, whether official or informal, indica ...

*CANUKUS EYES ONLY: Canadian, UK or US citizens. * AUSCANNZUKUS: Australia, New Zealand, Canada, UK and USA (the

UKUSA Community The United Kingdom – United States of America Agreement (UKUSA, ) is a multilateral agreement for cooperation in signals intelligence between Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The alliance of intellig ...

, also known as the "Five-Eyes"). *BURNING BUSH: Quadripartite discussions (between the US, UK,

FRG FRG may refer to: * Family Readiness Group in the United States Army * Federal Republic of Germany ** West Germany * FMN reductase (NAD(P)H) * Friendship Radiosport Games * Functional renormalization group * Guatemalan Republican Front The Insti ...

and France). in particular the restricted format of “Heads of Government Representatives” initiated by Mr Brzezinski in January 1980.

Codewords

Dissemination of already protectively marked material may be further limited only to those with a legitimate ''need to know'' using compartmentalisation by use of codewords. Examples of compartmented material would include information about nuclear warheads,

fusion Fusion, or synthesis, is the process of combining two or more distinct entities into a new whole. Fusion may also refer to: Science and technology Physics *Nuclear fusion, multiple atomic nuclei combining to form one or more different atomic nucl ...

, and naval

nuclear propulsion Nuclear propulsion includes a wide variety of propulsion methods that use some form of nuclear reaction as their primary power source. The idea of using nuclear material for propulsion dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. In 1903 it was ...

. In some cases, the existence of a codeworded compartment is itself classified. Examples of codewords include, but are not limited to: * LOCSEN: has local sensitivity, and may not be shown to local officials. * NATSEN: has national sensitivity. * DEDIP, DESDEN: may not be shown to certain named officials.

References

{{Reflist
Los Alamos table of equivalent US and UK classifications
(dated) United Kingdom government information Public policy in the United Kingdom National security of the United Kingdom