Nice try Infernal Affairs.
I’ve known people with clearances at Govt contractors. They could say what they do, EE/ME for X project but not many details beside that.
It's like this for many gov agencies working with intelligence because labeling yourself as an intelligence worker makes you a target for foreign intelligence agents.
That may sound a little strange if you aren't part of that industry, but it is the truth.
That seems like a difficult to keep secret
What do the folks in Virginia say to their neighbors? “Oh I work for the DOD. So your a spy right haha?”
I don't think this is as absolute as you make it sound. Plenty of NSA employees have published papers using their real names in conjunction with nsa.gov or ncsc.mil email addresses
OTOH, I have never met anyone who has admitted to working for the CIA - either directly or as a contractor. There is a definitely a non-disclose policy for them.