Intelligence officer
Encyclopedia
An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile and/or analyze information (known as intelligence
) which is of use to that organization. Organizations which employ intelligence officers include armed forces
, police
, civilian intelligence agencies
and customs
agencies.
or the United Kingdom's Secret Intelligence Service
(MI6)) may spend much of their careers abroad. Officers of domestic intelligence agencies (such as the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation
or the UK's Security Service
(MI5)) are responsible for counter-terrorism
, counter-espionage
, counter-proliferation
and the detection and prevention of serious organized crime
within their own countries (although, in Britain, the Serious Organised Crime Agency
has been set up to take care of serious organized crime).
Responsibilities which are common to most intelligence officers include compiling and analyzing intelligence to determine the identities, intentions, capabilities and activities of hostile individuals or groups, and planning or enacting the necessary steps to disrupt or prevent such activities.
Intelligence (information gathering)
Intelligence assessment is the development of forecasts of behaviour or recommended courses of action to the leadership of an organization, based on a wide range of available information sources both overt and covert. Assessments are developed in response to requirements declared by the leadership...
) which is of use to that organization. Organizations which employ intelligence officers include armed forces
Armed forces
The armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense, fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body, and to defend that body and the nation it represents from external aggressors. In some countries paramilitary...
, police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
, civilian intelligence agencies
Intelligence agency
An intelligence agency is a governmental agency that is devoted to information gathering for purposes of national security and defence. Means of information gathering may include espionage, communication interception, cryptanalysis, cooperation with other institutions, and evaluation of public...
and customs
Customs
Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties and for controlling the flow of goods including animals, transports, personal effects and hazardous items in and out of a country...
agencies.
Sources of intelligence
Intelligence officers make use of a variety of sources of information, including- Open source intelligenceOpen source intelligenceOpen-source intelligence is a form of intelligence collection management that involves finding, selecting, and acquiring information from publicly available sources and analyzing it to produce actionable intelligence...
(OSINT): Derived from publicly available sources such as the InternetInternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, libraryLibraryIn a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
materials, newspaperNewspaperA newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
s, etc. - Communications intelligence (COMINT): EavesdroppingEavesdroppingEavesdropping is the act of secretly listening to the private conversation of others without their consent, as defined by Black's Law Dictionary...
and interception of communications (e.g., by wiretappingTelephone tappingTelephone tapping is the monitoring of telephone and Internet conversations by a third party, often by covert means. The wire tap received its name because, historically, the monitoring connection was an actual electrical tap on the telephone line...
) including signals intelligence (SIGINT) and electronic intelligence (ELINT). - Imagery intelligence (IMINT): Derived from numerous collection assets, such as reconnaissance satellitesSpy satelliteA spy satellite is an Earth observation satellite or communications satellite deployed for military or intelligence applications....
(e.g., the Key HoleKey HoleKey Hole is the designation for a series of American optical reconnaissance satellites:* KH-1 Corona* KH-2 Corona* KH-3 Corona* KH-4 Corona* KH-5 Argon* KH-6 Lanyard* KH-7 Gambit* KH-8 Gambit 3* KH-9 Hexagon/Big Bird...
series) or aircraftSurveillance aircraftA surveillance aircraft is an aircraft used for surveillance — collecting information over time. They are operated by military forces and other government agencies in roles such as intelligence gathering, battlefield surveillance, airspace surveillance, observation , border patrol and fishery...
(e.g., Lockheed U-2Lockheed U-2The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed "Dragon Lady", is a single-engine, very high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency . It provides day and night, very high-altitude , all-weather intelligence gathering...
). - Human intelligence (HUMINT): Derived from covert human intelligenceHuman intelligenceHuman Intelligence may refer to:* Human intelligence in the species as the property of mind that encompasses many related abilities, such as the capacities to reason, plan, problem solve, think, comprehend ideas, use languages, and learn....
sources (agents or moles) from a variety of agencies (e.g., the United States Intelligence CommunityUnited States Intelligence CommunityThe United States Intelligence Community is a cooperative federation of 16 separate United States government agencies that work separately and together to conduct intelligence activities considered necessary for the conduct of foreign relations and the protection of the national security of the...
) and activities. - Measurement and signature intelligenceMeasurement and Signature IntelligenceMeasurement and signature intelligence is a branch of intelligence gathering activities.MASINT, may have aspects of intelligence analysis management, since certain aspects of MASINT, such as the analysis of electromagnetic radiation received by signals intelligence are more of an analysis...
(MASINT): Derived from collection assets that collect and evaluate technical profiles and specific characteristics of certain targeted entities (e.g., E-8 Joint STARSE-8 Joint STARSThe Northrop Grumman E-8 Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System is a battle management and command and control aircraft of the United States Air Force...
). - Technical intelligenceTechnical intelligenceIn a pure military context, Technical Intelligence is intelligence about weapons and equipment used by the armed forces of foreign nations .The related term, scientific and technical intelligence, addresses information collected at the strategic level.Technical intelligence is intended primarily...
(TECHINT): Based on scientific and technical characteristics of weapons systems, technological devices and other entities. - Financial intelligenceFinancial intelligenceFinancial Intelligence is the gathering of information about the financial affairs of entities of interest, to understand their nature and capabilities, and predict their intentions...
(FININT): The gathering of information about the financial affairs of entities of interest.
Role and responsibilities
The actual role carried out by an intelligence officer varies depending on the remit of his/her parent organization. Officers of foreign intelligence agencies (e.g. the United States' Central Intelligence AgencyCentral Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
or the United Kingdom's Secret Intelligence Service
Secret Intelligence Service
The Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...
(MI6)) may spend much of their careers abroad. Officers of domestic intelligence agencies (such as the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
or the UK's Security Service
MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
(MI5)) are responsible for counter-terrorism
Counter-terrorism
Counter-terrorism is the practices, tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, militaries, police departments and corporations adopt to prevent or in response to terrorist threats and/or acts, both real and imputed.The tactic of terrorism is available to insurgents and governments...
, counter-espionage
Counter-Espionage
-Cast:* Warren William as Michael Lanyard* Eric Blore as Jamison* Hillary Brooke as Pamela Hart* Thurston Hall as Insp. Crane* Fred Kelsey as Detective Wesley Dickens* Forrest Tucker as Anton Schugg* Matthew Boulton as Inspector J...
, counter-proliferation
Counter-proliferation
Counter-proliferation refers to diplomatic, intelligence, and military efforts to combat the proliferation of weapons, including both conventional weapons and weapons of mass destruction...
and the detection and prevention of serious organized crime
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
within their own countries (although, in Britain, the Serious Organised Crime Agency
Serious Organised Crime Agency
The Serious Organised Crime Agency is a non-departmental public body of the Government of the United Kingdom under Home Office sponsorship...
has been set up to take care of serious organized crime).
Responsibilities which are common to most intelligence officers include compiling and analyzing intelligence to determine the identities, intentions, capabilities and activities of hostile individuals or groups, and planning or enacting the necessary steps to disrupt or prevent such activities.
See also
- Bureau of Intelligence and ResearchBureau of Intelligence and ResearchThe Bureau of Intelligence and Research is an intelligence bureau in the U.S. State Department tasked with analyzing information. Originally founded as the Research and Analysis Branch of the Office of Strategic Services , it was transferred to the State Department at the end of World War II...
- Central Intelligence AgencyCentral Intelligence AgencyThe Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
- Federal Bureau of InvestigationFederal Bureau of InvestigationThe Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
- National Geospatial-Intelligence AgencyNational Geospatial-Intelligence AgencyThe National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States with the primary mission of collecting, analyzing and distributing geospatial intelligence in support of national security. NGA was formerly known as the National Imagery and Mapping Agency ...
- National Security AgencyNational Security AgencyThe National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
- Defense Intelligence AgencyDefense Intelligence AgencyThe Defense Intelligence Agency is a member of the Intelligence Community of the United States, and is the central producer and manager of military intelligence for the United States Department of Defense, employing over 16,500 U.S. military and civilian employees worldwide...
- Intelligence BureauIntelligence BureauIntelligence Bureau was the main internal intelligence agency of British India. It can also refer to:* Intelligence Bureau , the domestic intelligence organization of India...
- Internal Revenue ServiceInternal Revenue ServiceThe Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
- National Counterterrorism CenterNational Counterterrorism CenterThe National Counterterrorism Center is a United States government organization responsible for national and international counterterrorism efforts. It is based in a modern complex near McLean, Virginia called Liberty Crossing...
- Government Communications HeadquartersGovernment Communications HeadquartersThe Government Communications Headquarters is a British intelligence agency responsible for providing signals intelligence and information assurance to the UK government and armed forces...
- Serious Organised Crime AgencySerious Organised Crime AgencyThe Serious Organised Crime Agency is a non-departmental public body of the Government of the United Kingdom under Home Office sponsorship...
- Her Majesty's Revenue and CustomsHer Majesty's Revenue and CustomsHer Majesty's Revenue and Customs is a non-ministerial department of the UK Government responsible for the collection of taxes and the payment of some forms of state support....
- Canadian Security Intelligence ServiceCanadian Security Intelligence ServiceThe Canadian Security Intelligence Service is Canada's national intelligence service. It is responsible for collecting, analyzing, reporting and disseminating intelligence on threats to Canada's national security, and conducting operations, covert and overt, within Canada and abroad.Its...