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NSF ... NSFW

Apr 08, 2009

Senators Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) and Barbara Mikulski (D-Md) say in a letter that NSF has not responded adequately to their investigation into NSF employees who viewed pornographic material while at work. According to the New York Times, the allegations involve more than 30 employees and extend over 10 years. The senators write that in five of 11 cases of employees accused of viewing sexually explicit material or being involved in sexual harassment cases never led to any administrative action and for one employee who admitted going to pornographic sites, there was no disciplinary action. The Times adds that all the employees under investigation had been through mandatory security awareness training. "Clearly, N.S.F.'s current polices and their implementation are apparently insufficient to deter, among other things, inappropriate Web access for the purpose of viewing sexually explicit material," the senators write.

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