A bizarre case of a potential threat is brewing from within the United States feeling. The rocket scientist Dr. James Gord got a 32-year-old prostitute a well-paid job at the US defense company Spectral Energies, a US Air Force contractor. However, Gord did this not because he wanted to promote a career changer, but to be able to comfortably continue his contacts with the prostitute (ie without the knowledge of his wife).

The story seems bizarre, but it also provides food for thought for (security) decision-makers about how people can get into a company that actually has nothing to do there – and thus for a potential threat from within shall. The case highlights the importance of background checks for employees processing sensitive data and brings Dr. Gord, who in this case plays a very manipulative role.

Da Gord in 2021 for unknown reason died, some questions related to this story will never be resolved. One thing is certain: it was a respected scientist who according to ResearchGate was involved in more than 500 scientific publications.

When the plan fell apart, senior researcher Dr. James Gord threatened to kill the woman’s supervisor and himself, according to a search warrant. https://t.co/diu7gfoqS7

— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) July 19, 2022

However, Dr. Gord also had a strong fondness for sex workers, whom he sought out during his business trips. He paid for the prostitutes’ services with his company credit card – after all, his adventures should not appear on the family credit card account. When it dawned on him that sooner or later this behavior would become problematic, he hatched a perfidious plan. He claimed to the CEO of Spectral Energies that on a flight he met a woman whose technical know-how and academic background would be a perfect fit for the company, which was looking for an “administrative technician” at the time. The company’s CEO was quickly convinced and hired the 32-year-old.

According to Gord, the woman studied at the University of Tennessee, the University of South Florida and the University of Cincinnati. However, the sex worker’s academic record was not assessed until after the full story came to light. The Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) determined in less than 24 hours that the Air Force career changer was never enrolled at any of the listed universities.

In order to keep up his charade, Gord arranged for her to chair a scientific panel as a technical expert at a conference. So it didn’t take long for the woman’s lack of expertise to seep through to the top. The CEO had to realize that not only was she incompetent in her alleged area of ​​expertise, but she also lacked all the basics necessary for office work – such as using Microsoft Office.

This led to an argument between Dr. Gord and the CEO, who, after consulting with an employment attorney, sought to fire the woman for subpar and inappropriate relationships with the program manager. The busy scientist then bluntly threatened with the CEO that he would let his good connections with the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) play: the “Old Boys Club” would never believe a manager coming from Bangladesh with the accusations against a respected scientist like he .

At the time (March 2019), the CEO of Spectral Energies consulted AFOSI and explained that Gord had also regularly offered the prostitute services to his colleagues while at the facility — and while traveling with the U.S. Air Force. End of 2019 sealed search warrant (PDF) shows how happy the AFRL was that Dr. Gord had acted out of pure hedonistic interest – and it was not an attempt to infiltrate Spectral Energies and thus the AFRL.

The best part about this story is that the prostitute was apparently hired by a competing tech company — so the original company, even after realizing she wasn’t proficient as a researcher, gave her a raise by moving her to another department.https://t.co/nbRpYmfiPb

— Chris (@cecurry) July 22, 2022

In retrospect, it becomes clear which human frailties Dr. Gord took advantage of it to get the sex worker into the position (in the company) he wanted. First, he used his personal relationship with the CEO of Spectral Energies to influence the hiring decision. A routine background check would have uncovered the fictitious resume and likely put an immediate end to the specter. Since that didn’t happen, Gord was able to continue his game and provide the alleged expert with the AFRL’s organizational structure and various lab plans.

In addition, analysis of Gord’s work laptop in August 2019 revealed that he had been using it for illegal activities for years. This also included numerous relationships with escort girls, some of whom were from countries the US classifies as a risk to national security. Dr Gord had one National Security Clearance, thus was considered a trustworthy person within the US government. A requirement for this security clearance: All contacts with foreigners must be made public.

The fact that Gord used the government-issued work device for illegal activities raises several questions — most notably why the IT team responsible for monitoring and maintaining the device failed to detect the abuse. Others join:

• What if Gord was a threat from within?

• What if it was an operation run by a competitor or another state, with the help of a well-trained individual?

The same scenario can be exploited to:

• Infiltrate competitors or state-run cyber actors for the purpose of abusing the company’s access to the U.S. Air Force.

• Using Gord’s behavior (or that of others within the AFRL community who had relations with him) as the basis for compelling classified information or its disclosure to hostile intelligence agencies or competitors.

(FM)

This post is based on an article from our US sister publication, CSO Online.