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NASA Blocks Everyone From Access To Everything on NTRS

By Keith Cowing
NASA Watch
March 22, 2013
Filed under , , ,

NASA Tightens Security In Response To Insider Threat, Information Week
“NASA has closed down its technical reports database and imposed tighter restrictions on remote access to its computer systems following the arrest of a Chinese contractor on suspicion of intellectual property theft.”
NASA Technical Reports Database Goes Dark, Secrecy News
“There is a HUGE amount of material on NTRS,” said [National Academy of Sciences] space policy analyst Dwayne Day. “If NASA is forced to review it all, it will never go back online.” … “I’d also note that a large amount of historical Mercury/Gemini/Apollo documents that were previously available at NARA Fort Worth is now apparently withdrawn due to ITAR [export controls],” said Dr. Day.”
Keith’s note: There is a new notice on NTRS now: “The NASA technical reports server will be unavailable for public access while the agency conducts a review of the site’s content to ensure that it does not contain technical information that is subject to U.S. export control laws and regulations and that the appropriate reviews were performed. The site will return to service when the review is complete. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.”
How can we be certain that there isn’t something posted on SAO/NASA Astrophysics Data System Abstract Service or at lanl.arXiv.org? If NASA was really trying to check on whether things have been posted that should not have been posted then shouldn’t NASA lock down these sites too? What about NASATechBriefs? Look at all that technology transfer goodness on their site.
If NTRS is offline why are the JPL Technical Report Server, NASA Johnson Technical Reports Server and the NASA Engineering Network online? If you want to see the NACA material from 1917-1958 that NTRS has taken offline (1917? Yes, the Wright brothers built warplanes) you can still see it here. The University of Texas seems to have a lof NTRS stuff online as well.
NASA Technical Reports Server Mysteriously Taken Offline, earlier post

NASA Watch founder, Explorers Club Fellow, ex-NASA, Away Teams, Journalist, Space & Astrobiology, Lapsed climber.

13 responses to “NASA Blocks Everyone From Access To Everything on NTRS”

  1. Brian_M2525 says:
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    This stuff has been on-line, most of it for decades. The horse has left the barn. Its too late now. If anyone was interested in capturing and making a library of these materials in their own country, they did so long ago. I can see a couple of full time Chinese who have been doing nothing but downloading and writing abstracts and following up with a translation process for the last decade. Why waste the effort now to try and control all of this stuff?

    Maybe take a look at what has gone on-line in the last few weeks and decide on that.

  2. Matthew Travis says:
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    And how many of us have our own “private” libraries of NTRS documents? I downloaded all of them about 5 years ago and keep it stored offline when I need reference material. Heck, I’ve hosted the SP-8000 series on a website for anyone to get for years. Should I wait for the cease and desist letter? It’s waaaay too late now. Besides, since when did NASA’s mission change from supposedly releasing all of its work to the public?

    • Paul451 says:
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      “Should I wait for the cease and desist letter?”

      If you are illegally exporting ITAR-restricted material to foreign nationals and foreign nations you will know about it when they arrest you.

      • Steve Whitfield says:
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        Paul,

        That’s a tricky situation, too.  Based on the information (from NASA) that there was nothing on the NTRS that violated ITAR, I have included material from the NTRS in several books over the years.  The booksellers all have web sites that will sell to anyone on the planet who pays their money.  So, if it turns out that any or all of the NTRS content is retroactively declared to be non-ITAR compliant, who is “guilty” of “exporting” it if any of the reclassified material happens to be in any of those books?  To make the situation even more convoluted, I’m Canadian, the publisher is in Canada (although the US is the publisher’s biggest “customer”), and the booksellers are in many different countries.  Some things simply can’t be undone.

        Steve

  3. Dave Akin says:
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    What the hell is wrong with you, Keith? The proper response to hysterical action is not to encourage more hysterical actions, even if you’re trying to prove a point. Taking down NTRS is a travesty, particularly as the response to one grandstanding congressman. As an engineering professor, I use NTRS every day in both research and teaching classes. Every document added to NTRS for the last decade, at least, has passed ITAR review. There is absolutely nothing on NTRS that is anywhere near as valuable to competing countries as is the act of denying researchers and students access to the vast body of work sponsored by NASA and (previously) freely disseminated as directed in the National Space Act that created the agency in 1958. 

    • kcowing says:
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      Huh?  Are you suggesting that no one knew about these other websites until I mentioned them here? 

  4. Steven Harrington says:
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    I use NTRS in my Aerospace Engineering Senior Design Project class at UCSD. I never imagined they would shut it down because China needs it to develop their space program. Last time I looked, China was doing fine with Russian tech.

  5. Anonymous says:
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    Sounds like the “contractor” likely had access to that system and they are worried he stashed sensitive information, a needle in a haystack if you will, which could then be easily retrieved by the foreign government/company he was working for.

  6. Bob Dobbs says:
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    Seems to me they likely think that their “contractor” stashed some IP he was trying to steal, if anything, in NTRS; a needle in a haystack so to speak.  Then it could be easily retrieved by the foreign government/contractor he was working for, assuming that is the case.  By the time someone at NASA would have noticed the out of place files on the servers, too late.  But since it sounds like they busted him it would make sense for them to suddenly shut the system down so they could sweep.

  7. Gary Williams says:
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    The server at trs-new.jpl.nasa.gov is taking too long to respond. Looks like they pulled that one too.

  8. Steve Whitfield says:
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    If it should turn out that all of the accusations made by Rep Wolf, and all of the knee-jerk reactions by so many people, were baseless and completely unnecessary, will there be any compensation for all the people who are being adversely affected?  Will Rep. Wolf be expected to publicly apologize, and will he comply?  Taking down NTRS is pointless.  By now there must be people who are worrying about whether this might affect them personally.

    Even if it turns out that this Chinese national was attempting to smuggle data out of the US to China, the reaction to it is probably reaching the point of doing more damage to the US than the alleged theft.  How long will it be before the trial happens?  How much “reaction” will continue to happen in the mean time?  If China, or any other country, wanted to cause trouble for the US, this is the way to do it — just start the ball rolling and then let the home team continue damaging themselves through overreaction.

  9. Nassau Goi says:
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    Here we go again. Reactionaries like Rep Wolf seeking to gain some political momentum and monetary influence over nonsense is a never ending theme in this country.

    Americans like it, this is the same reason we have reality TV.