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Evolution of China’s Cyber Threat Riley.C.Murray Thu, 09/23/2021 - 5:21am
In 1989, a team of American analysts presented an argument that the next generation of war would have blurred lines between war and politics, and civilians and combatants. This has become increasingly true as corporations now have major stakes in global conflict and are able to influence outcomes of global politics and war. The Russo-Georgian War further blurred those lines when the Georgian government transferred Internet capabilities that were under attack to TSHost servers in the United States. Private cybersecurity firms and non-state sponsored hackers can influence diplomacy on a global scale due to the deep penetration of the internet into the military, critical infrastructure, and everyday society. This penetration has increased the effectiveness of information warfare and cyber espionage.

SOF News: House Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations

Thu, 02/04/2021 - 1:53pm

A new subcommittee under the U.S. House Armed Services Committee has been formed. The Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations will focus on specific activity areas of the Department of Defense. The new subcommittee with be chaired by Representative Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) He is a Marine Corps combat veteran who deployed to Iraq in 2005 for an eight month long deployment.

The Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations (ISO) will have the following jurisdiction:

  • military intelligence
  • national intelligence
  • countering CBR weapons of mass destruction, counterterrorism
  • special operations forces
  • counter-proliferation
  • counterterrorism
  • sensitive military operations

There are currently seven permanent subcommittees of the U.S. House Armed Services:

  • Tactical Air and Land Forces
  • Military Personnel
  • Readiness Committee
  • Seapower and Projection Forces
  • Strategic Forces
  • Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems
  • Intelligence and Special Operations

It appears that the Intelligence and Emerging Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee has been replaced by two new subcommittees: Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems and the Intelligence and Special Operations Subcommittees.

Doing Intelligence Differently via ‘Intelligence Engineering’ (IE)

Sat, 04/18/2020 - 10:14am
Today is an appropriate time for encouraging and indeed advocating some further innovative change both to and for contemporary intelligence. This article aims to accomplish that objective by featuring and further advancing an understanding of the recently introduced and developing concept of ‘Intelligence Engineering’, abbreviated henceforth as ‘IE’, and also known as the ‘Bridgehead Methodology’.

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The Coronavirus Pandemic is a Failure in Leadership - Not Intelligence

Fri, 04/03/2020 - 6:58pm
Words mean things. The mantra of the best Senior Intelligence Analyst I know has a curt humor to it, but in our business, it is advice worth remembering. In a recent opinion piece for "Foreign Policy", political scientist and author, Micah Zenko describes the leadership shortcomings of the Trump administration throughout the COVID-19 crisis. The article’s title? “The Coronavirus Is the Worst Intelligence Failure in U.S. History.” Words mean things.

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The Primacy of Information Intelligence

Mon, 09/30/2019 - 9:48am
Our need to scrutinize information becomes more acute as automation outstrips human understanding. If machine-learnt becomes machine-taught, we may lose the power to make responsible decisions. At the same time, our drive for technological advantage creates dependence on complex networks such as the “collaborative sensing grid.” Uncertainty persists.

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Same Dog, New Tricks: Trends in Russian Intelligence Services

Mon, 09/23/2019 - 6:48am
Russian intelligence has adapted to exploit modern tools and the host of vulnerabilities they present, building on a robust history of exploiting the open access to media and information that are hallmarks of western, democratic societies. Russian confidence is at an all-time high, where intelligence activities are conducted with little regard for political costs.

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