USIS (US Investigation Services) was a US corporation that provided security-based information and service solutions to both government and corporate customers, in the United States and abroad. Its corporate headquarters were in
Falls Church
Falls Church is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,658. Falls Church is included in the Washington metropolitan area.
Taking its name from The Falls Church, an 18th-century Churc ...
,
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
, in
Greater Washington, D.C.
Training took place in
Boyers,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
. USIS was a part of
Altegrity Inc., a company headquartered in the Falls Church area that was owned by
Providence Equity Partners
Providence Equity Partners L.L.C. is a specialist private equity firm, private equity investment firm focused on media, communications, education, technology investments across North America and Europe. The firm specializes in growth-oriented pri ...
.
History
USIS was founded in 1996 after the investigative branch, Federal Investigative Service, of the
United States Office of Personnel Management
The United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is an independent agency of the United States Federal Government that manages the US civilian service. The agency provides federal human resources policy, oversight and support, and tends t ...
(OPM) was privatized. Its creation was due to an effort of
Vice President of the United States
The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice ...
Al Gore
Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic Part ...
to reduce the size of the civil service. Originally known as US Investigations Services Inc.,
[ it was at first an employee-owned company.
The ]Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group is a multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services corporation based in the United States with $376 billion of assets under management. It specializes in private equity, real assets, and pri ...
invested in USIS and in 2003, Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe
Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe (WCAS), also referred to as Welsh Carson, is a private equity firm. WCAS was formed in 1979 and focuses on investing in two growth industries, technology and healthcare, primarily in the United States. WCAS has a ...
also committed capital to them. In 2007, Carlyle announced that it would sell USIS to Providence Equity Partners, a private equity firm, for US$1.5 billion.
In the fiscal year 2012, USIS received $253 million for the contract work of the OPM, 67% of the OPM's contract spending for the fiscal year.[
]
Background checks
Aaron Alexis background check
In 2007, an OPM contract investigator employed by USIS conducted the field work for the OPM-FIS background investigation on Aaron Alexis
The Washington Navy Yard shooting occurred on September 16, 2013, when 34-year-old Aaron Alexis fatally shot 12 people and injured three others in a mass shooting at the headquarters of the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) inside the Washin ...
, who has been accused of killing twelve people at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday, September 16, 2013.
Edward Snowden investigation
In 2011, OPM contract investigators employed by USIS conducted the field work for the OPM security clearance re-investigation on Edward Snowden
Edward Joseph Snowden (born June 21, 1983) is an American and naturalized Russian former computer intelligence consultant who leaked highly classified information from the National Security Agency (NSA) in 2013, when he was an employee and su ...
, who leaked classified documents beginning on June 5, 2013.
On June 18, 2013, the Subcommittee on Efficiency and Effectiveness of Federal Programs and the Federal Workforce and the Subcommittee on Financial and Contracting Oversight, both of the U.S. Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee
The United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is the chief oversight committee of the United States Senate. It has jurisdiction over matters related to the Department of Homeland Security and other homeland s ...
, held a joint hearing. Michelle B. Schmitz, the OPM assistant inspector general for investigations, testified that USIS had been under investigation since late 2011, stating that it involves a "complicated contract fraud
In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain, or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compens ...
case."[ Patrick McFarland, the OPM inspector general, did not reveal the reason for the investigation of USIS, and said when asked about Snowden's security clearance re-investigation, "We do believe there may be some problems."][
]
USIS response to accusations regarding Alexis and Snowden
In a September 8, 2014, media release, the company insisted that, despite being "the target of inaccurate and misleading public allegations," USIS is a responsible government contractor. It labeled as myth reports that USIS botched its field work for OPM background investigations on Aaron Alexis and Edward Snowden, calling the claim "absolutely false." The company asserted that "OPM confirmed in sworn testimony before Congress on February 11, 2014 that the investigative file compiled by USIS on Aaron Alexis 'was complete and in compliance with all investigative standards.'" USIS also said it followed all OPM-mandated procedures and protocols in its background investigation of Edward Snowden.
The company further clarified that it "does not grant security clearances and plays no role in making those determinations." The decision to grant or renew a clearance, said USIS, "is the sole responsibility of the federal government agency that requested the background investigation." However, the OPM hired USIS to perform not only background checks but also secondary reviews of those checks to ensure that no one who shouldn't have access to state secrets was overlooked by mistake.
While USIS did have staff to review these background investigations and to ensure they met government investigative standards, the federal government and the OPM was still responsible for the adjudication in granting of security clearances.[
]
Fraud investigation and charges
In June 2013, the office of Senator Claire McCaskill
Claire Conner McCaskill (; born July 24, 1953) is an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Missouri from 2007 to 2019 and as State Auditor of Missouri from 1999 to 2007.
McCaskill is a native of Rolla, Missouri. She gr ...
stated that USIS was "under active criminal investigation". A statement from USIS stated that it was unaware that it was under criminal investigation. It added that "USIS complied with that subpoena and has cooperated fully with the government's civil investigative efforts". USIS, as the government's No. 1 provider of background checks for the United States, earned $253 million in awards this year alone.
On January 23, 2014, the U.S. Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...
filed fraud charges against USIS. The suit was originally filed by a long time USIS employee, whistleblower Blake Percival. The suit, ''United States of America, ex rel Blake Percival vs USIS'' alleges that beginning in at least March 2008 and continuing through at least September 2012, USIS management devised and executed a scheme to deliberately circumvent contractually required quality reviews of reports of investigation of completed background investigations in order to increase the company's revenues and profits. USIS responded that the faulty checks "relate to a small group of individuals over a specific time period." In August 2015, Altegrity agreed to forgo $30 million in payments the U.S. government owed to USIS in order to settle the case with the Department of Justice.[
]
Cyber attack
On July 7, 2014, the company said it was hit by a cyber attack
A cyberattack is any offensive maneuver that targets computer information systems, computer networks, infrastructures, or personal computer devices. An attacker is a person or process that attempts to access data, functions, or other restricted ...
prompting the US government to suspend its work with the firm. Multiple experts including USIS Lead Information Security Engineer John Nolan who have examined the hack "believe it has all the markings of a state-sponsored attack," but did not detail possible suspects. The investigation revealed that the hackers broke into USIS by pivoting from an SAP system managed by a third party.
OPM drops USIS
On September 9, 2014, the OPM confirmed it would not renew any of its contracts with USIS upon their expiration at month's end. USIS said it was "deeply disappointed with OPM's decision," which affects 3,000 employees handling a caseload that averaged about 21,000 background investigations a month for total fees of $320 million during the last fiscal year.
Bankruptcy
In early 2015, USIS's parent company, Altegrity (also known as Corporate Risk Holdings) filed for bankruptcy.[
]
References
Further reading
Safeguarding our Nation's Secrets: Examining The Security Clearance Process
" .
USIS Announces Agreement to Be Acquired by Providence Equity Partners; New Growth Opportunities for Leading Pre-employment Screening and Security Services Firm
"
Archive
The Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group is a multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services corporation based in the United States with $376 billion of assets under management. It specializes in private equity, real assets, and pri ...
. Thursday May 10, 2007.
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