A discussion on the world of spies and spying.

1. Espionage

2. What is “espionage”?
Espionage (/ɛs.pi.ə.nɑ:ʒ/) or spying involves a
government or individual obtaining
information that is considered secret or
confidential without the permission of the
holder of the information. Espionage is
inherently secret, so that the legitimate holder
of the information doesn’t change plans or
take other countermeasures once it is known
that the information is in unauthorized hands

3. Spies
Basically, anyone who works in the world of
espionage could be called a spy. Many of the
world’s spies work for government intelligence
agencies such as the American CIA, the British
MI-6, and the former Soviet KGB.
A spy’s primary job is to collect valuable
information for their agency. To do this, an
ideal spy doesn’t stand out in the crowd. In
fact most real spies at first may seem to be
very boring people that you would never want
to talk to. Real spies do not dress in expensive
clothes, carry guns in their pockets, or drive
expensive cars.

4. Robert Hanssen

5. Handler
A handler or case officer is an intelligence
officer who is a trained specialist in the
management of agents and agent networks.
Case officers manage human agents, and human
intelligence networks. Case officers spot
potential agents, recruit prospective agents, and
train agents in tradecraft. Case officers
emphasize those elements of tradecraft which
enable the agent to acquire needed information,
as well as to enable the case officer to
communicate with and supervise the agent.
Most of all, case officers train agents in methods
of avoiding detection by host nation counter-
intelligence organizations.

6. Secret Agents
By definition, an "agent" acts on behalf
of another, whether another individual,
an organization, or a foreign government.
Agents can be considered either witting
or unwitting, and in some cases, willing
or unwilling. Agents typically work under
the direction of a principal agent or a
case officer. When agents work alone,
and are not members of an agent
network, they are termed "singletons". In
intelligence circles, agents are often
known as assets.

7. Mole
A mole or double-agent is a spy who works
for an enemy nation, but whose loyalty
appears to be to his own nation's
government. In some usage, a mole differs
from a defector in that a mole is a spy
before gaining access to classified
information, while a defector becomes a
spy only after gaining access. However,
others use the term mole to describe any
agent of a foreign power within a
government organization.
The term "mole" is also commonly used to describe anyone working in one
organization, seeking access to confidential information that they will pass to the
organization for whom they really work. For example, a news reporter seeking
information on a certain company may take a job with the company to observe the
practices first-hand.

8. Spy Ring
A group of spies working together in
the field to accomplish a mission are
often known as a spy ring. Many spy
rings a cell system where none of the
members of the cell know all of the
other members of their same cell. In
this way, if one spy is captured, they
can not put all of the other members of
the operation in danger because they
can not tell secrets if they do not know
them.
A cell of agents living in a foreign country that is not currently active is
known as a sleeper cell. A sleeper cell may remain inactive for a long
period of time, until the time for their mission arrives.

9. What do you think?
• Do you think it would be interesting to be a
spy?
• What kind of spy work do you think you would
be best suited for: a handler, an agent, or a
mole?
• Have you ever met someone who you thought
could be a spy?

10. Dead drop
A dead drop or dead letter box is a method of espionage tradecraft used
to pass items between two individuals by using a secret location and thus
does not require them to meet directly. Using a dead drop permits a Case
Officer and his Agent to exchange objects and information while
maintaining operational security. The method stands in contrast to the live
drop, so called because two persons meet to exchange items or
information.

11. Concealment device
Concealment devices or diversion safes are used
to hide things for the purpose of secrecy or
security. They are made from an ordinary
household object such as a book, a soda can, a
candle, a can, or something as small as a coin. The
idea is that such an inconspicuous object would
not be expected to contain anything of worth.
Examples in espionage include dead drop spikes for
transferring items to other people, and hollowed-
out coins or teeth for concealing suicide pills.
Examples in smuggling include suitcases with false
bottoms for hiding contraband.

12. False Flag Operation
False flag (aka Black Flag) operations are
covert operations designed to deceive the
public in such a way that the operations
appear as though they are being carried
out by other parties. The name is derived
from the military concept of flying false
colors; that is flying the flag of a country
other than one's own. False flag
operations are not limited to war and
counter-insurgency operations, and can be
used in peace-time.

13. Honeypots
In the world of espionage, the term
“honeypot” refers to the use of sexual
seduction to recruit agents, or perhaps trap
an enemy agent.
For example, a scientist living in London,
Mordechai Vanunu, who had disclosed Israeli
nuclear secrets, began an affair with a
Mossad (the Israeli intelligence service)
agent, Cheryl Bentov, operating under the
name "Cindy" and masquerading as an
American tourist, on September 30, 1986.
She persuaded him to fly to Rome, Italy, with
her on a holiday. Once in Rome, other
Mossad agents drugged him and smuggled
him to Israel on a cargo ship.

14. Surveillance
Spys often employ survaillance
techniques to gather information.
Surveillance is basically the monitoring of
the behavior, activities, or other changing
information, usually of people for the
purpose of influencing, managing,
directing, or protecting.
Another method used by spies is
eavesdropping. Eavesdropping is the act
of secretly listening to the private
conversation of others without their
consent. For example it is common for
spies to tap into the phone system to
listen in on the calls of the people they
are watching.

15. Bugs and Wiretaps
A covert listening device, more commonly
known as a bug or a wire, is usually a
combination of a miniature radio transmitter
with a microphone. The use of bugs, called
bugging, is a common technique in
surveillance, espionage and in police
investigations. It is often necessary for an
agent to sneak into a private area to plant a
bug, so that they can then listen to the
conversations in that room.
A bug does not have to be a device specifically designed for the purpose of
eavesdropping. For instance, with the right equipment, it is possible to remotely
activate the microphone of mobile phones, even when a call is not being made,
to listen to conversations close to the phone.

16. Cryptography
Cryptography (from Greek κρυπτός,
"secret"; and γράφειν, "writing“) is the
practice and study of techniques for
secure communication in the presence of
third parties (called adversaries). The
method most often used to ensure
secure communication is through the use
of secret codes. While secret codes have
been used for thousands of years, in
modern times computers and high-level
math are often used to create secret
codes.

17. Substitution Cypher
The pigpen cipher is a geometric simple
substitution cipher which exchanges letters
for symbols which are fragments of a grid. The
example key shows one way the letters can be
assigned to the grid.
The use of symbols is no impediment to
cryptanalysis, and this system is identical to
that of other simple substitution schemes.
Due to the simplicity of the cipher, it is often
included in children's books on ciphers and
secret writing.

18. One-time pad
In cryptography, the one-time pad is a type of encryption which has been
proven to be impossible to crack if used correctly. Each bit or character from the
plaintext is with a character from a secret random key (or pad) of the same
length as the plaintext, resulting in a coded message. If the key is truly random,
as large as or greater than the plaintext, never reused in whole or part, and kept
secret, the coded message will be impossible to decrypt or break without
knowing the key.

19. What do you think?
• Did you ever use secret codes when you were
in school to keep secrets from your teachers?
• Are you worried about people listening in on
your phone conversations?
• Do you think a honeypot could convince you
to do something you think is wrong? What if it
is only a small thing?