Read on to learn how Hamas uses 3 covert communications techniques – the courier, the saved draft, and the virtual world. Continue reading…
6. Taking a Closer Look at Cyber Covert Actions
The President has the ability under Executive Order 12333 and Title 50 of the US Code to authorize a covert action whose purpose is “to influence political, economic, or military conditions abroad, where it is intended that the role of the United States Government will not be apparent or acknowledged publicly”. This includes the use of cyber weapons if the plan can secure the approval of the National Security Council’s National Security Planning Group (NSPG), which is the NSC’s committee overseeing covert action.
There are specific approval procedures in place that every proposed covert action (or “special activity” as they’re called in EO 12333) must comply with. In general, these procedures include… Continue reading…
5. Covert Ops: Is Duqu Preparing for the Next Stuxnet?
I’m sure you are all familiar with the Stuxnet computer virus, but for those who are not clear on how it works, it was essentially a virus that was designed to mess up Iran’s nuclear weapons/energy infrastructure. Once it got into the computers at Iranian nuclear facilities, it tweaked the rotation speed on Uranium enrichment centrifuges. By speeding up or slowing down the spin of these centrifuges, it throws off the degree of enrichment that takes place, in the end making the Uranium useless for initiating a nuclear chain reaction.
However, there is also a Trojan Virus called Duqu making the rounds. Duqu infiltrated computers by making use of a Windows kernel exploit, then installs itself on the computer, bundles information on the hard drive, encrypts it, and then sends that information off to places and personalities that are unknown at this time. Whoever is doing it has covered their tracks exceedingly well. According to Securelist.com, “We believe Duqu and Stuxnet were simultaneous projects supported by the same team of developers.” Continue reading…
4. The Assassination of a Hamas Commander: Covert? Clandestine? Answers…
The Mossad’s Mission: Covertly and clandestinely locate and kill Mahmoud al-Mabhouh – a known Hamas Commander and Arms Dealer – and make it look like a heart attack. Was this the first attempt on his life? No, the Mossad attempted to kill him on 3 other occasions.
Snapshot of the Assassination
A team of males and females arrived in Dubai, in alias, some arrived as couples, but most arrived as individuals. They set up surveillance at the airport and waited for the target to arrive. He was identified without pause by the team, then a “discreet/not to lose” surveillance was conducted to his hotel.
Once at the hotel, the team determined… Continue reading…
3. JSOC Covert Ops in the Philippines?
On the night of February 2nd, 2012, a bomb was dropped on a terrorist cell’s meeting in progress taking place in The Philippines southern Sulu Province. The resulting explosion killed three terrorist leaders as well as twelve other members of the infamous Al-Qeada associated Jemaah Islamiyah, or JI for short. Continue reading…
2.Chinese Espionage Methodology
Spying holds a unique place in the minds of Chinese political and military planners, the ideas and concepts long ago embedded in Chinese culture by great minds such as Confucius and Sun Tzu.
In the West, intelligence agencies serve to inform elected leaders of what is going on in the world so that they can make the best possible policy decisions. In China, “the PRC’s intelligence apparatus is more than just a support department for policymakers. It is inextricably linked to the foreign policy decision making process and internal methods of economic development and political control.”
The vertical integration of intelligence gathering with economics and political control cannot be over emphasized here. Chinese intelligence operations are not a mirror image of American’s approach to intelligence operations. Continue reading…
1. The Men of Covert Operations
Covert operations. Everything about them must be in secrecy – the preparation, the execution, and the responsibility. The world would see the outcome, but they can never know who was responsible. The political implications could/would be catastrophic, but the cause to undertake the operation must have been paramount. These operations could range anywhere from sabotage (hacking into Iran’s nuclear reactor and causing a meltdown), assassinations, and, most commonly, covert regime change actions.
Read on as we pay tribute to four covert operators who lost their lives in battle, and whose stars are now on the CIA’s Memorial Wall. Continue reading…
(Featured Image Courtesy: Northeastern University)
COMMENTS