The ability of a CIA officer to tell their family about their true employer depends heavily on their specific role and the level of "cover" required. For those in "overt" or administrative positions based at Langley, they can generally tell their immediate family (spouse, parents, children) that they work for the CIA, though they are strictly prohibited from discussing the details of their daily tasks, classified intelligence, or the identities of their colleagues. However, for officers working in undercover or clandestine operations, the rules are far more rigid. In these cases, an officer may have to maintain a "cover story"—such as working for a different government agency or a private consulting firm—even with their own children or extended family. Spouses of undercover officers are usually "cleared" and brought into the secret to provide emotional support and help maintain the cover story, but this is a formal process involving security briefings. Breaking these "gold standard" secrecy protocols can lead to immediate termination and, in cases where classified information is leaked, criminal prosecution under the Espionage Act.