D.5.3 - Global trade
Global Trade refers to those activities the Federal Government undertakes to advance worldwide economic prosperity by increasing trade through the opening of overseas markets and freeing the flow of goods, services, and capital.
Trade encompasses all activities associated with the importing and exporting of goods to and from the United States. This includes goods declaration, fee payments, and delivery/shipment authorization. Export promotion involves the development of opportunities for the expansion of U.S. exports. Merchandise inspection includes the verification of goods and merchandise as well as the surveillance, interdiction, and investigation of imports/exports in violation of various Customs laws. Tariffs/quotas monitoring refers to the monitoring and modification of the schedules of items imported and exported to and from the United States. The recommended categorization for the global trade information type follows:
Security category
Confidentiality High
The confidentiality impact level is the effect of unauthorized disclosure of export promotion information on the ability of responsible agencies to advance worldwide economic prosperity by increasing trade through the opening of overseas markets and freeing the flow of goods, services, and capital. Also, the confidentiality impact level is the effect of unauthorized disclosure of merchandise inspection information on the ability of responsible agencies to accurately determine, report, and record the discovered status of imported or exported merchandise as it bears on violations of various Customs laws. Generally, the unauthorized disclosure of merchandise inspection information will not jeopardize the completion of other merchandise inspection missions, as shipment status is generally information of public record. The confidentiality impact level is also the effect of unauthorized disclosure of tariffs/quotas monitoring information on the ability of responsible agencies to enforce various Customs laws, and preserve statistical data concerning the historical compliance with such laws. Typically, the unauthorized disclosure of tariffs/quotas monitoring information will not jeopardize the completion of other tariffs/quotas monitoring missions because the information is publicly available. Unauthorized disclosure of information that has supported an export promotion process may undo the results of successful export promotion processes. The consequent threat to agency image or reputations can cause a catastrophic adverse effect on an agency's mission capability. Consequently, the general confidentiality impact level associated with export promotion information is high. Some information that has supported a tariffs/quotas monitoring process might be of higher sensitivity, such as intelligence information36 that might point to a dumping situation. The unauthorized disclosure of this information might jeopardize the success of future tariffs/quotas monitoring processes. Consequently, the confidentiality impact level associated with tariffs/quotas monitoring information is high. Intelligence information is included in national security systems. National security information and national security systems are outside the scope of this guideline. Some information that has supported a merchandise inspection process might be of higher sensitivity. The unauthorized disclosure of this information might jeopardize the success of future merchandise inspection processes. The consequent threat to agency image or reputations may cause a serious adverse effect on an agency's mission capability. Consequently, the general confidentiality impact level associated with merchandise inspection information is high. Recommended Confidentiality Impact Level: The provisional confidentiality impact level recommended for global trade information is high.
Integrity High
The integrity impact level is based on the specific mission and the data supporting that mission, not on the time required to detect the modification or destruction of information. The consequences of unauthorized modification or destruction of global trade information depends on whether the information is time-critical. Unauthorized modification or destruction of information affecting export promotion information may adversely affect mission operations and result in potentially serious economic repercussions. Trade agreements that have been implemented are generally matters of public record. Therefore, the specific negotiated terms, etc., must be accurately recorded. The modification of merchandise inspection information may result in significant financial consequences to an importer or exporter whose shipment is in question and may adversely affect mission operations and result in potentially serious economic repercussions. The results of completed inspections are matters of public record and must be accurately recorded. For tariffs/quotas monitoring information, the requirement for adequate means to detect data corruption is high. This information is used in policy and strategic analysis, and the accuracy of this statistical information is critical. Unauthorized modification or destruction of information affecting tariffs/quotas monitoring information may adversely affect mission operations and result in potentially catastrophic economic repercussions. Recommended Integrity Impact Level: The provisional integrity impact level recommended for global trade information is high.
Availability High
The availability impact level is based on the specific mission and the data supporting that mission, not on the time required to re-establish access to global trade information. Export promotion and merchandise inspection missions are generally tolerant of significant delays. If the export promotion and merchandise inspection information are time-critical, the availability impact may be high. This would be the case where such an occurrence could result in significant financial consequences as a result of uncertainty regarding the status of an imported or exported shipment. Tariffs/quotas monitoring missions are also tolerant of significant delays. Typically, this information is used in high level policy and strategic analysis, and denial of access might cause an inconvenience but no significant mission impact. However, the availability impact associated with tariffs/quotas monitoring information may be high, if denial of access could result in serious damage to the image or reputation of an agency resulting from uncertainty regarding the compliance statistics of a major sovereign trade partner. Recommended Availability Impact Level: The provisional availability impact level recommended for global trade information is high.