I'm in the military and got a call that one of the classified encryptors wasn't working properly. I asked for the basic information like alarm lights, physical characteristics, and the display. All the alarm lights were on which indicated that the user pressed the zeroize button and I needed to reload the key. Happens more than I would like to admit. We even put "DO NOT PUSH THE RED BUTTON TO TURN OFF THE DEVICE!" I will admit it's not the user's fault. Most people think GREEN = GO and RED = STOP, when in fact they need to hit the green button for both off and on and the red one is the bug-out button that deletes everything. Anyway, I tell the user to hang tight and I would be out shortly to fix it. I get my laptop, key loader, some cables and tools incase they destroyed the cables too and drive to their location. Mind you it's an all of 10 minute drive, and I knock on there door.
He answers the door and say's hello, notices my name tag and remembers that he just spoke to me on the phone. I start to walk into the room and he goes, "Hold on a minute, I am going to need to see your (security clearance) before you can work in here." I'm like, is this dude serious? First off I explained if you need to see a security clearance for entrance into a room, then that office would have a method to look up security clearances because you are NEVER required to carry it on you (because it can be falsified). Second, the only thing that makes the room classified is the content that is displayed openly. (for example if a secret document is out it only needs to be escorted and have a cover sheet). Then I said, "If your encryptor is down, then you don't have access to the secure network. You can scrub the room before I enter and escort me to the encryptor." He still insisted on a security clearance...
Anyway, this guy happened to catch me in a bad mood so I replied, "Sir, you do realize that I don't care if your network gets fixed or not. I don't have my (security clearance) on me, nor is it standard procedure to bring it on jobs. I'll take my leave, put your ticket back in queue for someone else to grab. The ticket would be at the bottom, and you can take it up with my leadership." and I started to walk away.
This... coming from a lowly E-3 that's been in for all of a year or so to an E-7.. The glare he gave me is unforgettable. He let me into the room and I had it fixed in <10minutes. Those were the most uneasy 10 minutes of my junior career-but I knew my stuff.
Some stuff is in parenthesis so I don't have to explain acronyms... I hate acronyms.
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