At a glance: Examples of files found online

updated 4:29 p.m. ET July 11, 2007

An Associated Press survey of several file transfer protocol servers run by government agencies or contractors found documents that officials, when asked for them directly, deemed too sensitive to release.

A sample of the documents downloaded from FTP sites both by the AP and Christopher Freeman, a North Carolina resident who has privately researched the subject for years:

FOUND ONLINE: Photos, graphics and charts that outline the security features, as well as proposed upgrades to the facility's perimeter fencing, at Tallil Air Base in southeastern Iraq.

WOULD THEY RELEASE IT? No. A spokeswoman for the Army Corps of Engineers in Iraq said the material could jeopardize the security of troops at the base.

THE RESPONSE: The Corps of Engineers has changed its policies for storing material online.

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FOUND ONLINE: Documents containing aerial photographs and detailed schematics of Camp Bucca, a military base in southern Iraq used to hold detainees.

WOULD THEY RELEASE IT? No. Contractor CH2M Hill Companies Ltd. referred document requests to the military. They refused, citing "operational security."

THE RESPONSE: CH2M Hill has added password protection to its FTP site.

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FOUND ONLINE: Notes about Contingency Operating Base Speicher, a military base in Tikrit, Iraq, that describe potential security problems.

WOULD THEY RELEASE IT? No. CH2M Hill referred document requests to the military. They refused, citing "operational security."

THE RESPONSE: CH2M Hill said the document should not be released until the company can consult with the Department of Defense.

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FOUND ONLINE: Geographical surveys and aerial photographs of U.S. military airfields near Balad and Al Asad, Iraq.

WOULD THEY RELEASE IT? No. The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency refused, citing "operational security."

THE RESPONSE: The agency is planning to review its policy related to how documents are made available.

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FOUND ONLINE: Schematic maps and detailed descriptions of a future Army Corps of Engineers project to expand the fuel infrastructure at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.

WOULD THEY RELEASE IT? No. CH2M Hill referred document requests to the military. The Army Corps of Engineers labeled the documents as sensitive and requested that the AP promptly dispose of them.

THE RESPONSE: The Corps of Engineers has changed its policies for storing material online.

FOUND ONLINE: Detailed maps of buildings and infrastructure at Fort Sill, an Army base in Oklahoma.

WOULD THEY RELEASE IT? No. Benham Companies LLC said the maps were sensitive and should have been password protected. Officials at Fort Sill initially expressed concern that the documents could provide "bad guys a map of bombing targets," but later said they would make it available via a Freedom of Information Act request.

THE RESPONSE: Benham plans to secure its site in response to the Corps of Engineers' new policy.

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FOUND ONLINE: Schematic drawings of possible security upgrades at Fort Campbell, an Army base that straddles the Kentucky-Tennessee border.

WOULD THEY RELEASE IT? No. CH2M Hill referred document requests to the military. Officials at Fort Campbell said CH2M could release the documents, but requested they not be published "so as to protect the safety and security of the many soldiers who live and train on Fort Campbell."

THE RESPONSE: CH2M Hill said the drawings were not classified and handled appropriately.

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