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Research Security

Overview of Research Security

Global engagement and international collaborations in research and scholarship foster open exchange of ideas, the advancement of science, and the development of innovation. Those collaborations are to be founded in core principles and values of openness and transparency, accountability, honesty, impartiality and objectivity, and respect.

In recent years, the U.S government among the Group of Seven (G7), has raised concerns related to inappropriate foreign interference affecting the integrity and security of the research enterprise. The G7 members in their commitment to ensuring their research remains both open and secured defined:

  • Research Integrity is the adherence to the professional values, principles, and best practices that underpin our research communities. It forms the base on which to collaborate in a fair, innovative, open, and trusted research environment.
  • Research Security involves the actions that protect our research communities from actors and behaviors that pose economic, strategic, and/or national and international security risks. Particularly relevant are the risks of undue influence, interference, or misappropriation of research; the outright theft of ideas, research outcomes, and intellectual property by states, militaries, and their proxies, as well as by non-state actors and organized criminal activity; and other activities and behaviors that have adverse economic, strategic, and/or national security implications.

In 2021, the White House issued “Presidential Memorandum on United States Government – Research and Development National Security Policy” (NSPM-33”). NSPM-33 tasked research funding agencies with establishing policies and regulations related to research security.  As a result, agencies are implementing mandates and requirements that institutions and individual investigators must comply with to be eligible federal funding recipients.

Research Security at Temple University

Temple University is committed to upholding research integrity and security principles without stigmatization or unfair treatment of any member of its research community regardless of their ethnic or national origin. Temple’s OVPR is working with other relevant units across campus in the development and implementation of its Research Security Program which encompasses several components.

research security program components

Disclosure of External Activities

Individuals must disclose all outside activities in accordance with Temple’s policies, procedures and forms. In addition, investigators have an obligation to report their international activities to funding agencies as prescribed by their biographical sketches the current and pending and other support forms.

DIGITAL PERSISTENT IDENTIFIERS (DPI)

A digital identifier that is globally unique, persistent, machine resolvable and processable, and has an associated metadata schema. Consistent with NSPM-33, digital persistent identifiers are used to disambiguate and identify an individual person and agencies have been instructed to develop policies requiring individuals applying for federally funds to support research, to be registered with a service providing a digital persistent identifier.  

It is expected that DPIs or PIDs will be required by all agencies. NIH and DOE will require ORC IDs from researchers applying for funding by May 2025.  See Temple University Libraries' ORCID Guide for information about registering to obtain an Open Research and Contributor ID.

Undue Foreign Influence

International collaboration is important and necessary in the advancement of research and knowledge, but some foreign exchanges can pose risks to research security, intellectual property, and national security if sensitive information is misused. Undue foreign influence in research occurs when outside groups, like foreign governments or entities, try to access or control research for their own benefit. Protecting research from these threats is crucial for maintaining academic integrity and national safety.

A Foreign Talent Recruitment Program (FTRP) is an effort organized, and managed, or funded by a foreign government, or foreign entity, to recruit science and technology professionals or students.

Participation in any FTRP must be disclosed to federal sponsors according to their biosketches, current and pending and other support requirements.

A key concern are foreign talent recruitment programs, which aim to attract researchers to share cutting-edge knowledge and are considered malign by the US Government. Temple University researchers are encouraged to carefully review the following before agreeing to participate in a FTRP. Temple University prohibits participation of covered individuals in Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs (MFTRPs).

TEMPLE POLICY: PARTICIPATION IN FOREIGN TALENT RECRUITMENT PROGRAMS

    ​​​​​​​What are Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs (MFTRPs)?

    MFTRPs are foreign government-sponsored talent recruitment programs that operate with the intent to import or otherwise acquire from abroad, sometimes through illicit means, proprietary technology or software, unpublished data and methods, and intellectual property to further the military modernization goals and/or economic goals of a foreign government. A detailed definition of MFTRPs can be found in the Temple Policy. A broad description of a MFTRPs is any program, position, or activity that includes compensation in exchange for an individual:

    1.  Engaging in unauthorized transfer of IP, materials, data, or other nonpublic information;
    2. Being required to recruit trainees or researchers to enroll in such program;
    3. Establishing a lab or company, accepting a faculty position, or undertaking any other employment or appointment in violation of the terms and conditions of a Federal award;
    4. Being unable to terminate the foreign talent recruitment program contract;
    5. Being  limited in capacity out carry out research, or required to duplicate or significantly overlap work sponsored by a federal award;
    6. Being required to apply for funding from the sponsoring foreign government’s funding agencies;
    7. Being required to omit acknowledgement of the individual’s US institution or a federal research agency sponsoring research;
    8. Being required to not disclose to a federal research agency or the US institutions the individual is affiliated with, their participation in such program, position, or activity; or
    9. Having a conflict of interest or commitment contrary to the terms and conditions of a federal award

    AND a program that is sponsored by -

    1. A foreign country of concern or an entity based in a foreign country of concern. Currently, that includes China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia; or
    2. An academic institution or FTRP on lists developed under paragraphs (8) and (9) of Section 1286(c) of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019.
    ​​​​​​​What type of activities are not considered foreign talent recruitment programs?

    Generally, a foreign talent recruitment program does not include the following international collaboration activities, so long as the activity is not funded, organized, or managed by an academic institution or a foreign talent recruitment program on the lists developed under paragraphs (8) and (9) of Section 1286(c) of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019:

    1. Making scholarly presentations and publishing written materials regarding scientific information
    2. Participating in international conferences or other international exchanges, research projects or programs that involve open and reciprocal exchange of scientific information,
    3. Advising a foreign student enrolled at an institution of higher education or writing a recommendation for such a student, at such student's request
    Where can I view Temple's Policy on Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs?

    Click here to view the policy.

    Required Investigator Certifications

    All individuals designated as senior/key personnel on the National Science Foundation (NSF) proposals must certify that they are not a party to a malign foreign talent recruitment program. Effective June 7, 2025, all Principal Investigators (PIs) and co-Principal Investigators (co-PIs) named on NSF awards made on or after May 20, 2024, to annually certify in Research.gov that they are not affiliated with a Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program (MFTRP).

    What to know about the required certifications:

    • Who must certify: Only PIs and co-PIs. This is not an organization certification. NSF is working to expand the MFTRP annual certification requirement for all senior/key personnel roles at a future date.
    • Where to certify: In www.Research.gov, Impacted PIs and co-PIs will be prompted to complete the MFTRP certification after signing into Research.gov.
    • How often: Impacted individuals are required to complete a certification once per year, regardless of the number of qualifying awards.
    • Certification visibility: PIs and co-PIs can view their certification response in the Academic/Professional Information section of their Research.gov profile. NSF is working to provide organizations with access to the annual certifications.

    For more details, refer to PAPPG Chapter II.D.1.e(ii) and II.D.1.d(ix). Frequently Asked Questions and MFTRP contract examples will be available on the MFTRP section of the Office of the Chief of Research Security Strategy and Policy website

    Questions?

    Training

    NSPM-33 and the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 mandate grant making agencies to require recipient institutions to implement  research security, export controls, and foreign travel security training programs for all  “Covered Individuals” (Key Personnel). Training must be completed within twelve months` prior to an application to the funding agency and completion of that training must be certified by the institution and/or the individual applying.

    Specific guidance from each agency about their implementation of research security training varies but the following are common requirements Temple upholds:

    Who must complete the training?

    “Covered individuals” include anyone who contributes in a substantive and meaningful way to a DOE-funded project. This includes:

    • Principal Investigators (PIs)
    • Co-PIs
    • Project Directors and Co-Project Directors
    • Project Managers
    • Graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, or consultants (if functionally serving in one of the above roles)
    When is training required?
    • Before Proposal Submission: Training must be completed within 12 months prior to the submission of an application for funding from federal agencies
    • Annually: Training must be recertified annually during the life of the award.
    How to complete the training?

    The training can be accessed at CITI Program (https://www.citiprogram.org/). You will have to log in to your CITI Program account and select “Add a Course” under the “My courses” Tab. If you do not have a CITI Program account yet, click on the “Register” button at the right top corner and follow directions to create and affiliate your account with Temple University. After that, you will have access to all the courses offered by Temple and the option to add and complete the “Research Security Training (Combined Course)”.

    How long does it take to complete the training?

    The Research Security Training (Combined Course) is a consolidated version of Modules 1–4 developed by the National Science Foundation. Completion is estimated to take approximately 90 minutes.

    Tracking and compliance

    Upon completion of the course, you will obtain a dated certificate, which will serve as official documentation of your training. In addition, training completion for key personnel listed in proposals will be tracked in ERA and confirmed prior to submission. Please note your proposal may not be submitted by Temple University if training requirements have not been met.

    Who can I contact with questions?

    For questions about your training status or compliance obligations, please contact: Dwayne King at 

    Temple University has adopted the CITI “Research Security Training (Combined Course)” which fulfills requirements for the agencies listed below:

    Department of Energy

    As noted in the DOE's October 7, 2024 Financial Assistance Letter, - Effective May 1, 2025, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) requires all covered individuals listed on DOE-funded research and development (R&D) proposals and awards to complete mandatory research security training. Prime applicants must “certify that each covered individual who is employed by such institution or organization and listed on the application has completed such training.”

    National Science Foundation

    As noted in the NSF's July 10, 2025 Important Notice No. 149 - Effective October 10, 2025, the National Science Foundation requires each individual identified as a senior/key person must certify that they have completed the requisite research security training that meets the requirements specified in Item 2 of Important Notice No. 149 within 12 months prior to proposal submission. The Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must certify that all individuals identified as senior/key personnel have completed the requisite research security training.

    National Institutes of Health

    Per the NIH's July 17, 2025 NOT-OD-25-133 - Effective October 1, 2025, the National Institutes of Health  requires recipients to provide training to all faculty and researchers identified as Senior/Key Personnel on the requirement to disclose all research activities and affiliations (active and pending) in Other Support (see Other Support form). The new requirement to train researchers to comply with other support disclosure requirements adds to the current policy (see NIH Grants Policy Statement [GPS], Section 2.5.1 "Just-in-Time Procedures") in order to provide a comprehensive plan in the area of disclosure requirements for recipients.

    U.S. Department of Agriculture

    Per the USDA's July 8, 2025 America First Memorandum for USDA Arrangements and Research Security effective dates for Research Security Training are dependent upon award.  As a term and condition of entering into an arrangement with USDA related to research and development (R&D) or science and technology (S&T), applicants must certify that research security training has been completed not more than one year prior to the date of application and must recertify annually for the duration of the award.

    Cybersecurity

    Protecting research against security threats, misappropriation, and interference requires implementation of protocols, procedures, and robust systems to safeguard data accessed, used, created, stored, and transmitted when conducting research.

    Temple University is committed to fostering a secure research environment that safeguards intellectual property, complies with export control regulations, enables secure collaboration, and mitigates cybersecurity risks, ultimately supporting innovation and trust within the research community. The Office of Information Security at Temple University is dedicated to empowering researchers with the knowledge and support necessary to protect research data, ensuring privacy, security, and compliance with regulations for sensitive research.  enhances research security through regulatory awareness, researcher and compliance consultations, project involvement, IT coordination, and security requirements in contract reviews.

    Visit the Information Security Education website and contact  if you have any question or need assistance. 

    International Travel

    NSPM-33 requires for covered institutions to implement a travel reporting program that includes organizational records of international travel for covered individual s participating in R&D awards.  certify that they provide training to each covered individual engaged in international travel.

    Please visit the International Travel Planning page for information on registration requirements and procedures when planning an international trip related to your Temple University role.

    Export Controls

    Export controls are federal laws and regulations that govern if and how information, technology, software, services, and physical items designated as “defense articles” or “dual use” items can be exported or shared from the U.S. to foreign countries or to foreign national (deemed export) within the United States or abroad. See Temple’s Policy and procedures and Compliance for International Research and Collaboration (Export Control).

    Additional Resources

    Questions?

    If you have any questions about research security at Temple University, please contact Maria Palazuelos Jorganes, Associate Vice President of Research Compliance, at 215-707-7265 or mariapj@temple.edu.

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