I am with a gov contractor and already had my clearance for six years but was going into a more sensitive area that required a CI Poly since I was up for a promotion. I had the CI Poly done on me two months ago. Everything was going well until the examiner(white male) accused me of having ties to a foreign government. I was like huh? I said no. Then he said I must be dating a foreign woman and changed it to foreign connections and implied my “culture”(Nepal) has a woman waiting for me. He then asked why am I reacting to that question.
I told him i live in a neighborhood with lots of ethnic restaurants from all over the world which I go to. He then accused me of traveling outside the USA without permission. I said all travel whether personal or work has been reported to relevant groups and I have followed all protocols. He kept staring at me in a creepy way then said I need to come back for a second session and I got called only today to come back in February.
I never knew much about this stuff before going in but this is so bizarre and feels unscientific, like a freak show. Some other co-workers that are white have passed without any issue so it makes me certain this examiner doesn’t want to pass non-whites.
So could I report him to HR or sue him? I have no criminal record yet he is messing with my livelihood so it is only fair game if I don’t advance this one guy will be responsible.
I am certain in the second session he or some other henchman will try this again. Cause of his actions, I already started the process of interviewing with other pure non-gov private sector work where I can earn 2x to 3x the salary and not deal with this stupidity.
It is all very unscientific. Read all the research on polygraphs. There must be some sort of process for reporting your concerns. Two people alone in a room stressed out and talking personal things is an atmosphere ripe with concerns. This type of job is too prone to bad behavior that there has to be a checks and balances process. Ask your supervisor? or some sort of reporting hotline?
So I am not sure how the polygraphs work since I only do investigations but I do know, as an investigator, that we are required to confront the Subject with information we have received even if the Source is not credible and record the response given by the Subject. I am speculating, but I would assume the polygraph process is similar and all information received, whether credible or not, has to be addressed. So some friend or coworker may have been mistaken and said you had foreign ties that you don’t have. The Source may have confused you with another person. I have been told that it is not uncommon to be told that you failed even if you didn’t or be called in multiple times for multiple exams just messing with you. I refuse to apply to any positions that require poly because that whole process is very stressful and I don’t want to deal with it.
I’ve heard that polygraphers, just like police detectives, will use any tactic they deem necessary, fair or unfair, to trip you up in order to gauge your reaction. This includes repetition (asking the same question over and over), rephrasing the same questions, accusing you of saying things you didn’t say and outright lying.
Baseless accusations are common in polygraph screening. But it is certainly possible that racial or ethnic bias contributed to the treatment you received.
Federal agencies (with the notable exception of the FBI) routinely audio-record polygraph examinations, so you could file an Inspector General complaint and request a review of the recording.
You could also file a lawsuit, but it would likely be costly, lengthy, and ultimately unsuccessful. It could also result in retaliation (such as revocation of your existing clearance).
Well the questions seems to be standardized but he seemed focused on that question afterwards and made me feel like I am not American even though I am born here and integrated in society. I don’t want to leave the company, but his actions made me feel like you you have to be white to go far. I don’t want to believe that but he reshaped my thinking and messed up my thinking for the last two months.
Retaliation?
Last I checked if people file a complaint they are protected from retaliation even in the federal workplace.
Just cause someone doesn’t use a racial slur, doesn’t mean they are not racist.
My session was recorded and yes his accusation at the end were baseless and that is why I felt he is doing this cause of my race.
Just concerned about the second session.
I don’t mean to downplay your feelings at all. I have personally made more than one Subject cry in their Subject Interview and I have had Subjects complain to my supervisor claiming some sort of prejudice, interrogation, singling out, excessive questioning, and acting condescending. The issues discussed in the interview were not outrageous or disqualifying and I simply asked the required questions, wrote the required notes, and obtained the required documentation. Sometimes procedures can be misinterpreted and appear strange to the Subject. I would hate for you to give up an opportunity based on a misunderstanding.
Despite prohibitions, retaliation does happen. A simple way that it can happen is the arbitrary revocation of a security clearance. Such decisions are not reviewable by the courts.
For your next polygraph, I would recommend that you familiarize yourself with polygraph procedure and avoid behaviors that could make a false positive outcome more likely.
See my list of what not to do during a polygraph:
Common Polygraph Pitfalls to Avoid
Breathing slowly and regularly. The federal polygraph school at Fort Jackson, South Carolina teaches students that a normal breathing rate is 15-30 cycles (in and out) per minute. Anything outside of that range is considered abnormal and may result in an accusation of deception or attempted countermeasure use (which is much worse than simply failing the polygraph). Nonetheless, many people, even truthful ones with nothing to hide, when put in a stressful situation like a polygraph interrogation, will start breathing slowly and regularly in an attempt to remain calm. Don’t do that.
Deep breathing. When you take a deep breath, it causes a spike on the electrodermal channel of the polygraph. Polygraph operators interpret that as an attempted countermeasure. Don’t take deep breaths.
Physical movement. You are expected to sit still during the “in-test” phase of the polygraph session, when you’re wired up and the operator is asking you a series of questions that will be reviewed in advance. If you have a nervous habit of tapping a finger, a toe, or shaking a leg, do your best to keep it under control. It may be mistaken for a countermeasure attempt.
Explaining why you might have reacted to a question. If, at the conclusion of your polygraph session, you’ve told the truth, and yet the polygraph operator accuses you of withholding information and asks what you were thinking about that might have caused you to react to any of the relevant questions, the only correct answer is, “I was thinking about the question you asked and my truthful answer.” If your polygrapher accuses you of withholding information at the end of polygraph session, it means you’ve failed. You are disqualified at that point, and the polygraph operator is not going to “go to bat for you” with headquarters. Federal polygraph operators are rated based on the percentage of post-test confessions they obtain after a failed test. They have a strong incentive to characterize anything you might say as an admission that you lied. As an example, suppose you truthfully admitted during the pre-test phase that you smoked marijuana 3 times while in high school back in 2012. You’re certain of this. Yet the polygraph operator accuses you of “having a problem” with the drug use question, and asks whether you might feel more comfortable stating that you used marijuana “less than ten times,” and asks you to sign a statement to that effect. When you sign that statement that you used marijuana “less than ten times” rather than the 3 times you stated during the pre-test, this will be taken as a post-test confession. You’ll be permanently branded as a liar not only with the agency that polygraphed you, but all federal agencies. Sign no statements.
Signing any statement agreeing that you “altered or manipulated your physiology.” For a federal polygraph operator, nothing is more precious than obtaining an admission from an examinee that he or she tried to beat the polygraph. As a consequence, false accusations of attempted polygraph countermeasures are common, and numerous applicants have been duped into signing statements that suggest they tried to beat the polygraph, when in fact they did not. For example, one U.S. Customs and Border Protection applicant tried to remain calm during his pre-employment polygraph session by thinking calming thoughts of his young daughter. He admitted this during a post-test interrogation during which he was asked what he was thinking about. His polygraph operator asked him to put this in a written statement and sign it, which he did, thinking that he needed to do so in order to continue in the hiring process. His innocent admission was reported to CBP’s polygraph unit as a confession that he used countermeasures in an attempt to beat the polygraph. This statement will forever torpedo his career prospects with CBP and other federal agencies. Such statements often include a spoon-fed statement by the subject that he or she “purposefully manipulated my physiology in an attempt to alter the outcome” of the polygraph examination. Again, sign no statements.
No harm taken. I understand and appreciate your insight. I believe in actual evidence. Asking questions, noting them down, and investigating is a more scientific method than using a machine to measure an impulse. I don’t want to leave and not to brag but I have had offers in the past to go fully private but I believe in a greater good in helping this country.
Ok so what if during the post test he accuses me again of hiding info and does the creepy stare? Or what if he keeps asking again why I get a reaction out of that question.
That’s it, I failed even though I didn’t make any confession?
I can’t just get up and walk out the door since I guess he would think that is suspicious but I don’t want to have a back and forth with him either.
The weird thing is I was physically still the whole time and didn’t even move.
Also, he told me the next time we meet we won’t do the whole thing again, just the relevant questions, not those baselines. What do you make of that?
Making Subject’s cry and/or complain about your behavior during the interview is not professional. We are not law enforcement and we carry no enforceable mechanism or authority. This behavior makes it harder for the rest of us to do our job when Subject’s and source’s avoid us, no show, or refuse to cooperate due to a past bad experience with an investigator. Every source and subject should feel that they have been treated with respect, dignity, empathy, fairness, and ethics.
Before you even start the next poly…address your concerns of racial bias with the polygrapher right from the start. Approach it in a very empathetic humble manner without causing them to get defensive. Ask what a person should do if they sense true racial sexist biases from their polygrapher and what source of recourse a Subject has. Chances are you aren’t the first person to have these feelings and ask about them.
You don’t know me and you are making some hefty assumptions on a topic you don’t know about. I have never been unprofessional during my interviews and I am actually a lot more friendly than most. The complaints were a result of not understanding the process. Saying I was condescending was due to me asking after every discrepancy the reason for the discrepancy, as is required. Singling out was due to the interview taking longer than other colleagues but this person had more issues, several were financial, and it took time to go over all the materials. Crying was due to uncovering information that the Subject assumed would disqualify them and they might have to find a new job. I never told them this would be the result, they came to the conclusion themselves, I told them it was not up to me and I simply had to gather the information to send to the adjudicator. I have also had people cry due to they were the only bread winner in the family and they felt like they had too many issues… again, I did not tell them this and they came to that conclusion on there own. I do not appreciate your accusations as I am very good at my job. Maybe you should ACT like an investigator and not draw conclusions on limited information.
By your own admission you “made” Subject’s cry. Making someone cry and having someone cry in your presence due to the circumstances they find themselves in are two very different. Humanity, Empathy, and Civility have a place in the security clearance investigator/poly world. That’s what makes our country greater than all of the others.
The emotional reaction was due to information that I confronted them with or questions that I asked, hence the wording, I “made” them cry… you can play semantics all night about the word “made” but it does not change the point behind what I said. Misinterpretation of the process can upset or alarm the Subject needlessly. For some reason you are on some kind of power trip and feel the need to put down a fellow investigator and jump to incorrect conclusions. I understand the situations I have to discuss with my Subjects more so than I’d like. I’ve had some rough spots in my past as well. Maybe you need to learn some of that civility you speak of.
First, I think it is unlikely that you’ll be “tested” by your original polygraph operator. It will probably be someone else next time.
You should be mentally prepared for further interrogation and more baseless accusations. These are standard interrogation tactics employed by polygraph operators across the federal government. You may care to review the federal polygraph school’s interrogation manual:
You can indeed “fail” a counterintelligence-scope polygraph examination without making any disqualifying admission. You can also end up being accused of having employed countermeasures without actually having done so. If that happens, it will likely result in the revocation of your current clearance and your permanent blacklisting.
Regarding this:
Also, he told me the next time we meet we won’t do the whole thing again, just the relevant questions, not those baselines. What do you make of that?
The polygraph operator was lying. There is no polygraph technique approved by the federal polygraph school that includes only relevant questions.
For a detailed explanation of the various polygraph techniques, see Chapter 3 of The Lie Behind the Lie Detector: