Overview
Authority security classifications, or security clearances, are statuses assigned to personnel allowing them access to classified or sensitive information, including areas of Authority sites that are normally closed off to the general staff. Clearance is generally very limited in scope—most people can't access everything, but rather information that is relevant to their current projects. In other words, clearance formalizes what information you "need to know" to do your job.
Security clearance is wholly detached from an individual's rank and position- what is cleared to each person depends wholly on what they are actually expected to be working on. For example, the administrator of a Site might have less access to RPCs than a junior researcher, because what would an administrative staff member need with an anomaly?
Clearance Ratings
Individual ratings for clearance within the Authority generally follow a standardized number and letter format (eg. 1R, 2P, 3C, 4A), with the number designating a clearance level (0-5, as seen below), and the letter designating a Branch Code.
The only exception to this rule is level 0 and level 5 personnel, who do not follow the Branch Code system.
Each Branch Code indicates which division of the Authority that personnel are assigned to, namely R for Research, P for Protection, and C for Containment. Additionally, A for Affiliate, designates members of an allied or affiliated Group or Government of Interest who require limited, temporary clearance for the purpose of liaison or informational exchange work.
The Affiliate Branch Code
Affiliate personnel are regarded as outside of the divisional structure of the Authority, even if they are jointly assigned to work on a particular divisional project or operation. To that end, they receive their own specialized Branch Code. Branch A's are always temporary, usually lasting only a few weeks or months depending on the affiliate personnel in question, and must be renewed on a case-by-case basis to maintain information security. Under some highly specific and carefully-regulated circumstances, some Utility-class or otherwise helpful humanoid or sentient anomalies with a proven loyalty record may be granted extremely limited Affiliate clearance.
As part of procedure, affiliate personnel are never granted level 5 clearance and are only granted heavily restricted level 4 under certain circumstances.
Level 0
Level 0 security clearance is the informal designation assigned to non-essential personnel, specifically Confined Subject (Disposable) sacrificial personnel (i.e CSD-01234), test subjects, or contractors, who do not need access to information regarding the Authority or its assets. Access to Authority sensitive data is restricted and only partial information should be disclosed in order to ensure personnel with Level 0 clearance can perform their daily duties.
Level 0 personnel are generally not assigned a branch code unless their work is exclusively the purview of a single Division of the Authority. For instance, contracted construction personnel under Containment Division supervision might be classed as 0C clearance.
Level 1
Level 1 security clearance designates personnel that operate near to, but not necessarily in direct contact with, RPC objects. Level 1 staff can, with proper authorization, interact with and assist with research and containment on Alpha, Neutralized and Theta-level anomalies on a case-by-case basis. They are permitted limited informational access to objects of a higher Containment Rating, as well as access to support facilities needed to maintain containment or security procedures.
Personnel with Level 1 clearance are generally newly employed Research support staff or those from other Divisions working in janitorial, logistical, or administrative positions.
Level 2
Level 2 security clearance is generally given to security and research personnel that require direct access to detailed data regarding anomalies within containment. Level 2 personnel are mostly security staff, research staff, field agents, and containment specialists.
Level 3
Level 3 security clearance is a senior access level given to personnel who require direct access to anomalies, as well as in-depth information regarding the background, circumstances and long-term contingency planning surrounding anomalies within containment. Personnel designated Level 3 are often assigned to administrative staff, senior research staff, senior security staff, and Mobile Specialized Team operators.
Level 4
Level 4 security clearances are assigned to senior administrative officials that require access to operational data of Regional and Site operations, along with strategic intelligence regarding Authority operations and research projects. Personnel with Level 4 clearance are generally assigned to high-level leadership positions such as Regional Directors, Site Directors, Departmental Heads, or Mobile Specialized Team Commanders.
Level 5
Level 5 security clearance designates the highest-ranking administrative personnel and grants effectively unlimited access to all Authority data and restricted areas. Personnel with Level 5 clearance are exclusively Global Directors or other global-level operations and administration staff.
Administrative Personnel
The Authority maintains a hierarchical staffing structure in order to facilitate information compartmentalization, day-to-day management, and the maintenance of the chain of command in the event of catastrophic containment or/and security breaches. While Administrative Personnel are assigned a Branch Code as part of their individual security rating, their duties are frequently much broader than encompassed by a single Division.
Head Researcher
The Head Researcher is in charge of a specific sub-division or office (Ex. Bio-science, Medical, etc) within a Site. Their responsibilities are setting the goals and policies within their area of work, approving containment protocols, and coordinating with other sub-divisions and/or departments. Often, Head Researchers are assigned oversight of nearby related OL-Sites as part of their operational duties.
Department Director
The Department Director is in charge of directing the goals, policies, and responsibilities of a department within a Site, such as Security, Research, Medical, Technical & Engineering, et cetera. Department directors are usually raised to Level 4 clearance, and assigned a Branch Code relevant to whichever department they are in charge of. The Department Directors of a given Site constitute its Site Management Team, which answers to and advises the Site Director.
Site Director/Area Director
Site Directors are the highest-ranking personnel of any individual Authority facility and are responsible for the continuity and security of the facility, and all of its assets, projects, and contained anomalies. Site Directors are generally discouraged from becoming directly involved with research, containment or protection work on RPC objects and uncontained Anomalies to avoid compromising informational security.
Area Directors are responsible for Authority facilities that do not contain anomalies, such as Observational Facilities, Research Facilities, Garrisoned MST Facilities, Protected Facilities, and many more.
Both Site Directors and Area Directors have the authority to order the construction of new OL-Sites or other semi-permanent Authority facilities with the approval of their Regional Director. Personnel at this level maintain the Branch Code relevant to their previous Division of employment as a formality, given the multi-Divisional nature of their work. All the Site and Area Directors within a given region of Authority oversight form the Regional Management Team, which reports to the Regional Director.
Regional Director
The Regional Director is the highest-ranking Authority officer in an entire Authority-controlled region or continent. These Regional Directors coordinate large-scale Research, Protection and Containment operations, approve the creation of new Sites as needed, and appoint Area and Site Directors. They are based exclusively in Regional Sites or Areas, which act as communications, logistics and managerial hubs for their work. Regional Directors are forbidden to come into contact with anomalies due to the sensitive nature of their position and report directly to the Global Directors.
Global Director
The Global Directors refers to an administrative body that consists of high-ranking officials of the Authority. With complete overall jurisdiction and access to all sensitive information within the Authority, the Global Directors oversee all operational duties of the Authority worldwide. However, due to the sensitive nature of their work, the identity, operational structure, and selection process of the Directors is strictly classified, and direct personal contact between them and even Regional-level staff is rare.