[exclusive] Readable redactions: DEA uses SearchPointe to investigate pharmaceutical diversion

In early June, a 2006 Justice Dept Inspector General’s report that had been posted online went missing. It concerned the Drug Enforcement Administration’s “Efforts to Control the Diversion of Controlled Pharmaceuticals” (i.e. prescription drugs being sold on the black market). The Memory Hole obtained a copy and posted it on July 9 [here]. Five days later, it reappeared on the Justice Dept Inspector General’s website [here], with no indication of why it had been pulled (in fact, there was no indication it had been pulled).

Comparing the newly posted version with the original version, I discovered that the first version is improperly redacted. A small black bar appears eight times in “Appendix 1: Group Supervisor Questionnaire,” in the subsection “D. Intelligence Support for Diversion Investigations” (pages 46-7).

Selecting the text under the black bars, then copying and pasting it into Word, I found that they all hide a single term: SearchPointe.

The website for SearchPointe (now called ChoiceTrust) explains its purpose:

Conduct an instant national search for doctors, dentists, chiropractors and nurses across several specialty areas. Check out their credentials, including general contact information, education and license details.

Nearly 100,000 sanctions and disciplinary actions exist for health care providers throughout the country. Before entrusting your health and your family’s health to a health care provider, confirm the provider you selected has an active license and clean credential history.

According to the questionnaire in the Inspector General’s report, the DEA uses SearchPointe/ChoiceTrust to generate tips and leads for opening pharmaceutical-diversion investigations. It also uses LexisNexis, FinCEN, ARCOS, and other sources, although none of these was redacted in either version. Only SearchPointe was deemed worthy of hiding.

In the newly posted version of the report, the redactions of “SearchPointe” are secure.

See The Memory Hole’s original post

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