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A thread to discuss espionage (both international and corporate) and its impact on world affairs.

If you're new to OTC, it's worth reading the Introduction to On-Topic Conversations and the On-Topic Conversations debate guidelines before posting here.

As with other OTC threads, off-topic posts may be thumped or edited by the moderators.


NOTE: The Israel and Palestine thread is currently locked. Although we generally permit posts in other threads that involve one or both and are directly on-topic, espionage is inherently controversial and that approach doesn't really work here.
  • Posts about espionage related to the conflict between Israel and Palestine are prohibited.
  • Any posts about espionage involving Israel or Palestine and unrelated to the conflict are permitted as long as they stay on topic for the thread.

    Original OP 
Would like to get a discussion ongoing about espionage and anything that can affect the current world affairs...


For starters, I have (still do when possible) some interest in Mossad/Shin Bet/Israeli Police's use of informant within the Palestinian populace to root out militants and help Israeli commando identify HVTs. Although their recruitment comes at a heavy price.

https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2014/01/28/267836867/a-palestinian-explains-why-he-worked-as-an-israeli-informant

- This article is a good read since it talks about one Palestinian member of Fatah who abandoned it after its members accuse him of being an Israeli mole.

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-palestinian-informant-for-israel-says-police-abandoned-him-1.5462490

- This one mentions an arrest made by Palestinian police on a man who's been working with Israeli police for some time and was found to have a pistol for protection.

Edited by Mrph1 on May 28th 2024 at 9:14:18 AM

Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#376: Aug 6th 2022 at 2:35:54 AM

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/head-russian-hypersonics-lab-arrested-treason-tass-2022-08-05/

Andrei Shiplyuk of the hypersonics laboratory at the Novosibirsk Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics was arrested by the FSB for supposedly helping China by providing info from the institute.

tclittle Professional Forum Ninja from Somewhere Down in Texas Since: Apr, 2010
Professional Forum Ninja
#377: Aug 11th 2022 at 10:23:51 PM

There's a chance we might be seeing a former US president being charged with espionage:

Washington Post sources are saying the FBI raid on Donald Trump owned Mar-a-lago was to look for classified nuclear secrets, among other items.

"We're all paper, we're all scissors, we're all fightin' with our mirrors, scared we'll never find somebody to love."
DeMarquis (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#378: Aug 12th 2022 at 2:48:49 PM

It wouldn't be espionage. He could be charged with ignoring security protocols, however.

I'm done trying to sound smart. "Clear" is the new smart.
Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#379: Aug 12th 2022 at 4:23:03 PM

We now have the warrant, it explicitly states they’re investigating potential breaches of the Espionage Act.

So they have evidence that he wasn’t just privately hoarding the documents.

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
DrunkenNordmann from Exile Since: May, 2015
#380: Aug 12th 2022 at 4:23:50 PM

[up]

Some of the stuff he took with him also seems to have a incredibly high classification level?

Edited by DrunkenNordmann on Aug 12th 2022 at 1:24:02 PM

We learn from history that we do not learn from history
Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#381: Aug 12th 2022 at 4:27:11 PM

The receipt for the seizure lists the following

  • One list of documents marked "TS/SCI" - or top-secret/sensitive compartmented information
  • Four sets of "top secret documents",
  • Three sets of "secret documents,”
  • Three sets of "confidential" documents.

Now, taking the documents isn’t itself espionage, that requires them to be provided or (or the intention to be to provide them to) another country. It’s worth noting that any country will do, there’s no requirement for it to be “enemies” who are given the stuff.

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
DrunkenNordmann from Exile Since: May, 2015
#382: Aug 12th 2022 at 4:31:29 PM

[up]

Though from what I've heard, the removal of TS/SCI-marked documents is already Serious Business in itself?

Edited by DrunkenNordmann on Aug 12th 2022 at 1:31:41 PM

We learn from history that we do not learn from history
DeMarquis (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#383: Aug 12th 2022 at 6:15:34 PM

"The warrant shows federal law enforcement was investigating Trump for removal or destruction of records, obstruction of justice and violating the Espionage Act — which can encompass crimes beyond spying, such as the refusal to return national security documents upon request. Conviction under the statutes can result in imprisonment or fines."

Article here.

I'm done trying to sound smart. "Clear" is the new smart.
Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#384: Aug 16th 2022 at 6:34:41 PM

Love it how the MAGA verse is still trying to defend Trump over bringing home documents that are suppose to be classified.

Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#386: Sep 7th 2022 at 10:21:00 AM

Albania is ordering Iranian diplomats to get out after a cyberattack in the country after Tehran's blamed for it.

Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#388: Sep 16th 2022 at 2:27:21 AM

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2022-09-15/china-wanted-ge-s-secrets-but-then-their-spy-got-caught

A story on how a burned out MSS officer tried to get GE's company secrets. Instead, the tables turned for him.

Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#389: Sep 26th 2022 at 8:25:45 PM

https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2022/09/c5ff89796a8b-update1-japan-consul-held-in-vladivostok-for-having-classified-info-report.html

FSB detained a Japanese consul in Vladivostok for getting his hands on classified information.

Edited by Ominae on Sep 26th 2022 at 8:25:58 AM

Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#390: Sep 29th 2022 at 7:35:42 PM

First espionage case related to the war in Ukraine. A trans man and his wife are arrested for trying to provide medical records of US military figures to "supposed" FSB officers, who are undercover FBI officers.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A former U.S. Army major and his anesthesiologist wife have been criminally charged for allegedly plotting to leak highly sensitive healthcare data about military patients to Russia, the Justice Department revealed on Thursday.

Jamie Lee Henry, the former major who was also a doctor at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, and his wife, Dr. Anna Gabrielian, were charged in an unsealed indictment in federal court in Maryland with conspiracy and wrongful disclosure of individually identifiable health information about patients at the Army base.

Although the indictment identifies Henry with the pronouns "he" and Henry used male pronouns during an initial court appearance on Thursday, in prior media interviews dating back to 2015, Henry came out as a transgender female.

Henry's attorney David Little declined to comment on the charges, but said his client was released on home detention.

An attorney for Gabrielian could not immediately be reached for comment.

The indictment alleges that after Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in February, the pair sought to assist the Russian government by providing it with data to help the Putin regime "gain insights into the medical conditions of individuals associated with the U.S. government and military."

The couple met with someone they believed was a Russian official but was in fact an FBI undercover agent, the indictment says.

At a hotel in Baltimore on Aug. 17, Gabrielian told the undercover agent "she was motivated by patriotism toward Russia to provide any assistance she could to Russia, even if it meant being fired or going to jail," the indictment says.

In the meeting, she volunteered to bring her husband into the scheme, saying Henry had information about military training the United States had provided to Ukraine, among other things.

At another meeting later that day, Henry told the undercover agent he too was committed to Russia, and said he had even contemplated volunteering to join the Russian army.

"The way I am viewing what is going on in Ukraine now, is that the United States is using Ukrainians as a proxy for their own hatred toward Russia," Henry told the agent, according to prosecutors.

The agent in turn urged them to read a book called "Inside the Aquarium: The Making of a Top Soviet Spy," telling the pair it would help them understand what they were about to do.

"It's the mentality of sacrificing everything ... and loyalty in you from day one," the agent said. "That's not something you walked away from."

Henry had some reservations about providing healthcare data, saying it would violate the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), according to the indictment, but Gabrielian had no hesitations.

In a subsequent Aug. 24 meeting, she told the agent her husband was a "coward" to be concerned about violating HIPAA, but she broke the law "all the time" and would ensure they could provide Russia with access to medical records from Fort Bragg patients.

By the end of the month, she had handed over information on current and former military officials and their spouses, the indictment says.

TotemicHero No longer a forum herald from the next level Since: Dec, 2009
No longer a forum herald
#391: Oct 24th 2022 at 11:29:47 AM

A pair of Chinese intelligence officers have been charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with attempting to obstruct a case against China-based telecommunications company Huawei.

They attempted to bribe someone with bitcoin to steal documents and information about the case, but said someone was a double-agent for the FBI. Whoops.

A couple of other cases against Chinese agents have also been announced, one in New York and another in New Jersey, and there appear to be more cases being worked on that are being kept under wraps for the moment.

Expergiscēre cras, medior quam hodie. (Awaken tomorrow, better than today.)
Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#392: Nov 2nd 2022 at 6:47:07 AM

Almost all British intelligence agencies are being lenient for prospective recruits if they have parents who don’t have British nationality (recruit must be legally British). Before, if he/she has a British parent/parent who comes from a list of nationalities that are “allowed” by London, then said person is considered for the job.

It’s said that it’s mean to diversify the rank and file to reflect British society.

The other non-UK nationalities that are allowed are British Overseas Territory, British Subject and British national (overseas), as well as a British Overseas Citizen and a British Protected Person. This also includes a country of the Commonwealth, a country in the European Economic Area (EEA) and the United States of America.

So if the applicant has a British parent and a Finnish parent, then he or she will be treated fairly in the application.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/nov/02/recruitment-of-uk-spies-no-longer-restricted-to-those-with-british-parents

Edited by Ominae on Nov 2nd 2022 at 7:05:18 AM

Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#393: Nov 12th 2022 at 8:01:02 AM

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63601266

Sweden announced arrests of two Iranian-Swedish national who worked on behalf of GRU. They worked before under the Swedish Security Service (SAPO).

Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#394: Nov 16th 2022 at 7:05:29 AM

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/hydro-quebec-china-spy-1.6650832

Police arrested an employee from Hydro-Quebec (Utility company in Quebec) for sending company trade secret to Beijing.

Ominae Since: Jul, 2010
#395: Dec 1st 2022 at 2:38:12 AM

https://ras-nsa.ca/back-to-the-future-the-creation-of-a-foreign-human-intelligence-service-in-canada/

A NSA paper in Canada that has both sides arguing that Canada needs a foreign intelligence service.

For the record, CSIS can do foreign intelligence collection, but it's limited to non-Canadians/Canadian P Rs and can (mostly) do their work in Canada.

DeMarquis (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#396: Dec 1st 2022 at 5:54:48 AM

Canada doesn't have an intelligence agency?

Edited by DeMarquis on Dec 1st 2022 at 9:02:17 AM

I'm done trying to sound smart. "Clear" is the new smart.
Zendervai Since: Oct, 2009
#397: Dec 1st 2022 at 5:57:35 AM

[up] ...is that supposed to be a joke? CSIS (the Canadian Security Intelligence Service) is Canada's intelligence agency.

fredhot16 Don't want to leave but cannot pretend from Baton Rogue, Louisiana. Since: Jan, 2015 Relationship Status: Too sexy for my shirt
Don't want to leave but cannot pretend
#398: Dec 1st 2022 at 6:01:59 AM

If it’s a joke, I don’t get the punchline. Maybe there’s some definition of “intelligence agency” that needs explaining?

Trans rights are human rights. TV Tropes is not a place for bigotry, cruelty, or dickishness, no matter who or their position.
DeMarquis (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#399: Dec 1st 2022 at 6:03:09 AM

Forgot the question mark. I was trying to express surprise because the article implies that they don't have one.

I'm done trying to sound smart. "Clear" is the new smart.
Zendervai Since: Oct, 2009
#400: Dec 1st 2022 at 6:03:36 AM

Like, it's true that CSIS has a limited international mandate, but like...that's not that strange. The US has like 20 intelligence services and a bunch of them of them operate almost exclusively within American borders. The FBI is one of them.

Oh okay.

Yeah, CSIS. IIRC, they have a reputation for being a lot more on the ball than the FBI, but that's mostly because CSIS isn't competing with like five major other agencies for information and they network with the RCMP on a regular basis. They also have deals with pretty much every other major Western intelligence service. If they have a reason to need it, they can ask MI 6 for information, for example.

Edited by Zendervai on Dec 1st 2022 at 9:06:35 AM


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