December 8, 2026 | 2:00PM - 3:00PM ET | VIRTUAL EXPERIENCE

Federal grant-making agencies face growing scrutiny over the presence of foreign entities participating in national research initiatives. A primary exposure vector is visiting scholars who gain full access to university labs and sensitive data without standard background checks. When violations are caught post-award, sensitive technical knowledge has already been transferred, leaving agencies and universities facing costly Justice Department enforcement.

At issue is the lack of proper vetting and control over who is actually associated with the research that federal agencies commission. This 30-minute briefing details the challenge, why it matters to federal agencies, and how automated intelligence verifies researcher identities and screens grant portfolios before dollars cross the threshold.

Who Should Attend:

Program directors, grant administrators, CIOs, and compliance executives across federal funding agencies (such as NSF, NASA, NIH, USDA, and Defense entities).

4 Key Takeaways:

1. Close the Short-Term Appointee Gap: See why visiting scholars represent a major unaddressed vulnerability in federal funding policies.
2. Automate Pre-Award Screening: Move from slow manual searches to instant checks across complete scholar career histories.
3. Set Clear Risk Controls: Learn how tiered risk baselines and 1- to 3-year cooling-off periods streamline award decisions.
4. Live Tool Demo: Watch how Digital Science’s Research Security Tool matches author identities and flags foreign Entity List ties in seconds.