CIA inspector general quitting at end of month

The Central Intelligence Agency has announced its inspector general is resigning, effective Jan. 31.

David Buckley, who’s had the watchdog post for more than four years, had investigated how the CIA handled records relating to torture activities. The report, issued in July of last year, determined that the agency had “acted in a manner inconsistent" with the agreement between the CIA and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.

That “manner” involved CIA employees hacking into SSCI computers in an effort to see what Senate staff was investigating, and even, it is alleged, attempting to remove documents the agency wanted kept hidden from congressional oversight (see: Panetta Report).

The IG report was sent to the Department of Justice, which opted to smile blankly and wave.

According to reports, Buckley was departing to “pursue an opportunity in the private sector.” As suggested by intelligence community-watcher (and Al Jazeera contributor) Marcy Wheeler, JPMorgan Chase and IronNet Cybersecurity, the consulting firm set up by former NSA chief Keith Alexander and friends, would make lovely private opportunities.

JPMC is still dealing with the aftermath of a 2014 security breach that exposed the private information of 76 million households and 8 million businesses, while Alexander & Co. is asking seven-figure fees for teaching financial institutions how to guard against the very kinds of cybersleuthing and malware that the retired spymaster oversaw during his years drawing a government paycheck.