RESEARCH SECURITY

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Research security is a critical focus of federal and state funding.  Over the past several years, Congress, numerous federal agencies, and the State of Texas have raised concerns about inappropriate foreign influence on research and scholarship conducted at U.S. universities. Research security is aimed at securing the nation's research enterprise.  Such efforts are essential to national defense and economic stability.  The State of Texas (Texas SB 1565 and GA-48) and federal government (NSPM-33 and CHIPS and Science Act) aim to ensure the security of the research it supports, while balancing the need for international collaborations in science and engineering.   

Research security is important to protect public investment in research, prevent the misuse of research data and advanced technology generated at universities, and to protect the safety and security of employees and students traveling abroad. Texas State University takes research security seriously and has developed a research security program in accordance with federal and state regulations. This website is intended to provide the research community with the relevant components of research security to support the Texas State research enterprise. 

 

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  • Research security is a collective system of controls that safeguard the research enterprise against threats to national and economic security, theft, foreign influence, and ethical violations. Foreign entities may try to apply undue influence and pressure on researchers to sway research objectives and obtain access to valuable research data and information that is not yet available in the public domain. These concerns raise important considerations for researchers and institutions alike. Understanding and mitigating potential risks is crucial for protecting our research.    

    Recent governmental attention on research security has led to:  

    • Greater scrutiny of international interests and collaborations: It is imperative that researchers be transparent and disclose all foreign affiliations, collaborations, outside financial interests, funding sources, and activities.
    • Prohibition on participating in Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs (MFTRP): Both the U.S. federal government and State of Texas prohibits researchers from participating in MFTRPs.
    • More stringent risk assessments: Federal funding agencies are conducting more thorough risk assessments before awarding grants.
    • Restrictive grant requirements: Grant agreements now include specific research security clauses, potentially restricting certain activities or requiring data protection measures, or requiring risk mitigation plans. Federal funding agencies now require research security training for those seeking funding.
    • More emphasis on cybersecurity: Researchers need to be vigilant in protecting their data from unauthorized access and cyberattacks.   

  • The Federal and state government have raised concerns about efforts of certain countries to inappropriately influence the U.S. research enterprise or gain access to sensitive research information or intellectual property. Some foreign governments have sought to inappropriately obtain confidential, sensitive or proprietary research information from U.S. researchers to gain an economic or national security advantage. Such efforts can result in the inappropriate sharing of information, data breaches, contract noncompliance, ethics issues, and even national security concerns. Federal and state funding agencies are taking a significantly greater interest in the international interests and collaborations of their awardees. 

    Research security is one of the tenants of responsible and ethical conduct in research.  It relates to full and transparent disclosure, good stewardship of public money spent on research, and ensuring the integrity of the research.  Ensuring research security is addressed throughout the lifecycle of the research project ensures that resources can be leveraged, including the power of international collaborations. Additionally, if there are any security issues or sensitive information in use in the research, such risks can be easily mitigated.

  • While most international affiliations do not present a security risk, the U.S. federal government and State of Texas have raised concerns about the efforts of certain countries to inappropriately influence the U.S research enterprise and acquire sensitive research information through espionage, cyberattacks, or even seemingly benign collaborations.  

    At the present time, the U.S. federal government has identified the following countries as “countries of concern:”  

    China (includes Hong Kong and the Macau Special Administrative Region)  

    • Iran  
    • North Korea 
    • Russia  

    The U.S federal government has also identified certain universities, companies, and recruitment programs within these countries as higher risk. If you are planning a research collaboration with colleagues at institutions in a country of concern, we encourage you to contact RIC early in the process. RIC will be able to provide guidance and conduct a restricted party screening to ensure compliance with relevant regulations.  

    In addition, the State of Texas (GA-48)prohibits Texas State researchers from accepting any gift from an entity associated with or travel to, for professional purposes, a country listed on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s foreign adversaries list under  15 CFR 791.4. 

    The following countries are categorized as “foreign adversaries”:  

    • China  
    • Cuba  
    • Iran  
    • North Korea  
    • Russia