- Joined
- Jan 5, 2010
- Messages
- 12,289
- Points
- 113
Human intelligence (humint) and technological or technical intelligence (techint) have always been twin pillars in the espionage arsenal. Where technical expertise has failed, human pride, fear, emotion, carelessness, greed and lust have always made up the difference. As such the intelligence community has no shortage of both technical tools as well as human-manipulation-psychological strategies at their disposal to get the intel they require.
In recent years, the advancement of behavioral science as well as psychological profiling methods have made governments and military more efficient in identifying possible human threats to organizational and information integrity. At the same time, the pace of technological innovation in the field of espionage has slowed. The FBI's recruitment of sleeper agents in the Anonymous network is one attempt at reviving the technical expertise that the intelligence community currently lacks and exploiting technical resources that even governments do not fully comprehend. There have been others, but none have yielded promising results that can take techint to the next level.
As such there is a movement within intelligence circles to better exploit humint, which is after all the traditional tool of espionage for centuries before the use of technology revolutionized the intelligence industry. Government scholars are increasing sent to study psychology, behaviourial science, and even psychiatry. With international politics mired in power and socio-economic struggles on the scale never seen before in human history, the intelligence community will find no shortage of reasons to increase their ability to exploit humint and governments will ensure they have every resource at their disposal.
In recent years, the advancement of behavioral science as well as psychological profiling methods have made governments and military more efficient in identifying possible human threats to organizational and information integrity. At the same time, the pace of technological innovation in the field of espionage has slowed. The FBI's recruitment of sleeper agents in the Anonymous network is one attempt at reviving the technical expertise that the intelligence community currently lacks and exploiting technical resources that even governments do not fully comprehend. There have been others, but none have yielded promising results that can take techint to the next level.
As such there is a movement within intelligence circles to better exploit humint, which is after all the traditional tool of espionage for centuries before the use of technology revolutionized the intelligence industry. Government scholars are increasing sent to study psychology, behaviourial science, and even psychiatry. With international politics mired in power and socio-economic struggles on the scale never seen before in human history, the intelligence community will find no shortage of reasons to increase their ability to exploit humint and governments will ensure they have every resource at their disposal.
