Information is prohibited from being classified for the following reasons:
- To conceal violations of law, inefficiencies, or errors
- To prevent embarrassment
- To restrain competition
Information can only be classified if it is necessary to protect national security and meets specific government criteria. Classification must not be used to cover up wrongdoing, administrative mistakes, or to protect personal or organizational reputation. These prohibitions are set to ensure that classification is only applied for legitimate security reasons and not for improper purposes.
