Should I lie about smoking pot?

[UsandThem]

When I enlisted and was filling out the forms, it asked if I have ever smoked marijuana.

I marked yes.

When the recruiter was reviewing it, he asked me about it, and then destroyed that form, and had me put down no a new form.

As he put it, if nobody else knew about it and you never were arrested or ticked for it, then just pretend it never happened.

 

[irishScott]

Don't lie, grow a pair, and deal with the consequences of your actions.

 

[Kirby]

I was thinking about telling the truth, I just needed some support.

 

[sjwaste]

Originally posted by: TallBill
I'll just tell you this, you will have a tough time gaining your clearance if you are caught lying. Make up your mind from there. Oh, and if your name matches the one in your profile, I'd probably not lie at this point.

Haha, good catch. Yeah, might not be a good idea to lie, especially now!

 

[Kirby]

No one's answered what kind of test they do.

 

[TallBill]

Originally posted by: sjwaste

Haha, good catch. Yeah, might not be a good idea to lie, especially now!

Yes, well I work for a company that does security clearances

 

[Kirby]

Originally posted by: sjwaste

Originally posted by: TallBill
I'll just tell you this, you will have a tough time gaining your clearance if you are caught lying. Make up your mind from there. Oh, and if your name matches the one in your profile, I'd probably not lie at this point.

Haha, good catch. Yeah, might not be a good idea to lie, especially now!

Like I said, I was thinking of telling the truth anyway, so it's not a big deal.

 

[bignateyk]

Originally posted by: nkgreen
No one's answered what kind of test they do.

They don't do any test. You could easily lie about it and get away with it, but like I said above, this will come back to haunt you dearly should you ever try to get a higher clearance. When they ask if you have ever lied on your SF-86, you WILL fail your polygraph, and you will lose your clearance forever, and your job at the same time. No matter how many years from now it happens.

 

[Bateluer]

Never lie on a government form. You can still get a secret clearance having smoked pot in the past.

Edit - The Air Force typically does urine tests, unless circumstances require different/additional tests.

 

[Chiropteran]

I voted for "yes", because if you lie and get caught and write about it later it would be more entertaining.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: lokiju
I'm sure it'd vary.

What kind of security clearance?

I got security clearance to work on a security system for a large shipping port and I didn't lie They didn't seem to care.

Yep I work gov and have TS myself. They are not looking for bad things as much as they are looking to see if you are honest.

Now if you are still smoking then does not matter as you will get caught. If it has been over a year+ then you might be ok if you tell the truth and be 100% honest.

 

[Mxylplyx]

I'd lie in a heartbeat.

 

[Farang]

There are better sources than me on this but even hair tests can only go back so far. I believe they usually only test enough to go back 6 months or so, if you wanted to be safe just cut your hair to 2" length.

 

[moshquerade]

tell the truth. the truth always comes out anyway.

 

[Kirby]

Originally posted by: Farang
There are better sources than me on this but even hair tests can only go back so far. I believe they usually only test enough to go back 6 months or so, if you wanted to be safe just cut your hair to 2" length.

I'm bald.

 

[nakedfrog]

Originally posted by: Chiropteran
I voted for "yes", because if you lie and get caught and write about it later it would be more entertaining.

Topic Title: Thanks for nothing, ATOT!
Topic Summary: Lost my job and facing criminal charges :|

 

[Vic]

I need a little clarification here. Does it ask if you've done "drugs" or does it ask if you've smoked weed?

Because I had a few beers over the weekend myself.

 

[nakedfrog]

Originally posted by: Vic
I need a little clarification here. Does it ask if you've done "drugs" or does it ask if you've smoked weed?

Because I had a few beers over the weekend myself.

IIRC, it's either "illegal drugs" or "controlled substances," it's been a while.

 

[HardcoreRobot]

DO NOT LIE ON AN SF86.


END THREAD

 

[cheezy321]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog

Originally posted by: Chiropteran
I voted for "yes", because if you lie and get caught and write about it later it would be more entertaining.

Topic Title: Thanks for nothing, ATOT!
Topic Summary: Lost my job and facing criminal charges :|

THIS!

 

[Vic]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog

Originally posted by: Vic
I need a little clarification here. Does it ask if you've done "drugs" or does it ask if you've smoked weed?

Because I had a few beers over the weekend myself.

IIRC, it's either "illegal drugs" or "controlled substances," it's been a while.

In that case, my dentist gave me a script for vicodine a few months ago because of a tooth he was working on.

 

[DawsonsDada]

Originally posted by: jpeyton

Originally posted by: nkgreen
Should I lie about smoking pot?

Yes, unless you want them to trash your clearance request immediately.

I would say that your response is and EPIC FAIL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The thing about lying is that if you tell one, you have to tell more to keep the original one you started with. Tell the TRUTH from the beginning.

I used to be one of the people that processed the clearances and did the investigations for security clearances. If I, and most everyone else I worked with, even THOUGHT you were lying about something on the questionare we did two things IMMEDIATELY.

1. Rejected an interim with cause.
2. Notified the investigators to specifically search for information about the subject matter in question.

99.9% of the time our reservations about the applicant were correct.

If you are honest the first time, it is easier to get a clearance, regardless of what you have done that it is to get one by lying about something that WILL be found out. If you lie to begin with and you are found out you face Federal charges for falsification of information.

 

[Codewiz]

Originally posted by: jpeyton

Originally posted by: nkgreen
Should I lie about smoking pot?

Yes, unless you want them to trash your clearance request immediately.

You don't know shit.

I smoked pot, ate acid, ate shrooms and I still got a clearance. I got it because I was honest.

Honesty is the key. You shouldn't run your mouth about things you know nothing about.

 

[Viper GTS]

So I guess this thread brings up another question: Are they more suspicious of "No" answers than "Yes" answers?

I can honestly say I've never done any illegal drugs, save for underage alcohol + tobacco. No pot, nothing. If my friends are any indication of most people my age I'm in a distinct minority. Wonder if anyone would believe me if I ever needed a security clearance.

Viper GTS

 

[Cold Steel]

I've had at least a secret clearance most of my 30+ year career. DON'T LIE! If you lie now, you will probably get the clearance. If it's found out at any time in the future that you lied about drugs, you will lose your clearance immediately. And NOT because you did drugs, but because you lied.