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Highlights
- Earlier this year, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) updated its primary authority on Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities (SCIF) standards, known as Intelligence Community Directive 705 (ICD-705).
- Including significant changes to address radio frequency and electromagnetic threats, the update is the largest made to SCIF standards in 15 years.
- As detailed in this Holland & Knight alert, these changes will substantially impact SCIF landlords and developers, as well as contractors who require SCIF space.
Earlier this year, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) updated its primary authority on Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities (SCIF) standards, known as Intelligence Community Directive 705, or ICD-705. This overhaul represents the largest update to SCIF standards since 2010, with significant changes to address radio frequency and electromagnetic threats. These changes address emerging threats in global surveillance technology, particularly in electromagnetic espionage and radio frequency interception.
These changes will have significant impacts on landlords and developers of SCIF space, as well as contractors who require SCIF space. ICD-705 broadly focuses on uniform standards for SCIF physical security (e.g., layouts, structure, points of access and perimeter security) and technical security (e.g., surveillance, emanations, equipment, construction materials, alarms and device management). As explained below, the changes to both physical and technical security requirements will require those involved with the development, maintenance and use of SCIF space to adjust their approach to these spaces.
How Have SCIF Standards Changed?
Although ICD-705 has existed since 2008 with periodic updates, the new overhaul represents the highest level of security to date and is designed to better protect classified information and stay ahead of new threats. Where previous SCIF standards were designed to protect secured space acoustically and physically, the new standards are directed toward increasing protections against surveillance and data leaks. There are two major changes to be aware of:
- Radio Frequency (RF) Shielding. Under the new ICD-705, SCIFs are required to have a higher level of shielding to block unauthorized electronic emissions and sound from escaping the space or being intercepted by unauthorized third parties. RF shielding must be integrated into a SCIF's basic physical structure, including the walls, ceilings and doors. This means that many (if not most) existing SCIFs will require a complete rebuild in order to comply. In addition to physical upgrades, the new ICD-705 requires faster response protocols for RF security incidents.
- TEMPEST Specifications. ICD-705 now contains a new set of countermeasures, known as Telecommunications Electronics Materials Protected from Emanating Spurious Transmission (TEMPEST), that SCIFs must incorporate in order to prevent the escape of electromagnetic signals, acoustics and mechanical vibrations from inside the space. TEMPEST has a broader focus than RF shielding and requires special construction materials such as conductive enclosures, shielded cabling, secured conduits, fiber optics, power line filtering and honeycomb steel panels on all sides of a SCIF. Additionally, TEMPEST requires heightened protocol standards for space layout, equipment positioning, personnel training and frequent reporting.
Other minor updates to ICD-705 include increased focus on inventory tracking and reporting and stricter technologies for physical access control and CCTV.
What Do Defense Contractors Need to Know?
By the end of this year, ODNI requires all defense contractors to create comprehensive plans showing how they will comply with the new standards. Contractors must implement these plans and monitor compliance over the next four to five years, depending on the government agencies with which they do business. With expected supply chain delays for unique components (such as vault doors, specialized seals and radiant foil barriers) and inflated costs for SCIF materials and labor, defense contractors should be proactive in planning their approach to ICD-705 implementation and evaluating their existing contracts to identify whether current SCIFs can be updated to comply with the new standards or must be rebuilt altogether.
Government contractors with SCIF requirements should review the "alterations" provisions in their existing leases to better understand the extent to which the lessor's consent and approval are required for any SCIF updates, as well as the timing constraints related to obtaining such approval. The request for alterations and upgrades should be considered in light of the remaining term of the lease, and extensions or renewals may need to be considered, as well as temporary space options because the renovation will not be able to be performed during occupancy.
For contractors with multiple SCIF spaces, prioritization and phasing are important in order to fast-track retrofitting efforts for customers who need constant SCIF access to perform mission-critical work or whose space cannot accommodate temporary or portable SCIFs. For contractors considering leasing newly accredited SCIF space, increased rent should be expected, and the cost should be factored into renewals of existing government contracts requiring SCIF space. Government contractor tenants negotiating new leases and new lease amendments should also consider addressing responsibility for SCIF maintenance, lessor preapproval of any future upgrades required by a government contract and incorporating termination options if required building upgrades are unable to be completed. Proactivity is key, as failure to comply with the new standards carries significant monetary penalties and the risk of losing SCIF accreditation.
What Do Lessors Need to Know?
Lessors with existing leases that include SCIFs should consider whether their building's current SCIF space can be retrofitted to conform with the new standards or if complete rebuilding is necessary. For both scenarios, it is important to understand the feasibility of whether extensive modifications can be made, considering the building's age and present structural capabilities. Because ICD-705 requires enhanced modifications to a SCIF's physical walls and internal structure, retrofitting may be more costly than a complete rebuild. With this in mind, lessors should consider whether the agency or contractor tenant will pay for the costs, the remaining firm term in the lease and the tenant's duty to restore the space after the lease terminates. For example, with respect to federal leases, the General Services Administration's (GSA) current standard lease (L100) contains a waiver of restoration for an agency tenant's use and any alterations made during the lease. Lessors who are concerned about SCIF retrofitting or installation causing unwanted physical damage to their building should consider negotiating a restoration duty. With respect to government contract leases housing SCIF space, lessors should be prepared for tenants to request alterations to be performed to their space with the understanding that tenants who are not compliant may be at risk of losing SCIF accreditation and, ultimately, their government contracts. On the other hand, having accredited SCIF space in an existing building is often a valuable upgrade that attracts government and contractor tenants.
Lessors should have early conversations with their tenants about how SCIF modernization will affect the tenant's operations and work together to consider any possible temporary space solutions while retrofitting takes place. Options such as modular, portable or temporary SCIFs could be an option for a tenant to use if the leased space permits. Lessors should plan ahead for any construction time frames, keeping in mind that accreditation itself typically takes 12 to 18 months and possibly longer given the expected increase in demand for the new standard.
Lessors who seek to lease space to the federal government or government contractors are in a competitive position to offer buildouts that comply with the new SCIF standards and attract new government and contractor tenants who cannot afford the cost or time that retrofitting SCIFs in an existing leased space takes or whose existing leased space cannot structurally support a SCIF retrofit. Being able to offer a building capable of housing accredited SCIF space could allow lessors to negotiate longer lease terms, favorable renewal options and higher rent. Due to the heightened physical construction requirements of ICD-705, lessors with older buildings may need to invest heavily in their shell space to ensure that SCIF installation and accreditation are possible for a prospective government or contractor tenant. Relatedly, GSA requires lessors to be responsible for maintaining and replacing all lessor-installed security equipment as part of the lease's operating rent, such as CCTV, intrusion detection systems and security screening equipment. These costs will need to be budgeted into a lessor's proposal to lease space.
Whether a lessor is seeking a new lease agreement with the federal government or government contract tenant or is negotiating an amendment to an existing lease, the lease language should explicitly assign responsibility for SCIF maintenance, building upgrades, termination options and liability for security breaches.
Conclusion
The 2025 updates to ICD-705 represent a substantial shift in the design, construction and maintenance of SCIFs in leased space. Current lessors of SCIF-accredited space should proactively evaluate their current building and have early conversations with tenants about their plans to modernize SCIF space to comply with the new standard, giving special attention to the new RF shielding and TEMPEST specifications in ICD-705. Prospective lessors have a strategic opportunity to offer compliant SCIF space to the federal government and government contractors in exchange for longer lease terms, higher rents, and more favorable renewal options and other terms. Careful design and early planning for ICD-705 will help lessors keep and maintain lease agreements with the government and government contractors.
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