Video from Hoover Institute
Are We Dumb about Intelligence? -Amy Zegart on the Capabilities of American Intel Gathering
"Recorded on March 17, 2022 Amy Zegart is a fellow at the Hoover Institution, a professor of political science at Stanford University, and the author of a new book, Spies, Lies, and Algorithms: The History and Future of American Intelligence. In this frank conversation, Zegart grades American intelligence-gathering operations, recent and historical, and compares them to their counterparts in China and Russia. Professor Zegart also discusses Silicon Valley’s crucial role in these operations and how they often conflict with the politics of the people running tech companies. Finally, Zegart discusses the crucial ability of the intelligence community to recruit the next generation of spies and analysts, some of whom may be her own students." from video introduction.
Top 10 Best Intelligence Agencies in the World in 2020
"Intelligence agencies are the first line of defense against potential internal and external threats. They are tasked with gathering intelligence, conducting various forms of espionage, advising the government when it comes to national security matters, spreading fake information, and, in the case of some agencies, even carrying out assassinations.
But some intelligence agencies are better than others. These agencies will be based on sheer determination on dealing with problems quickly Here are the top 10 best intelligence agencies in the world. Almost all of the intelligence agencies listed here mainly deal with external threats, so don’t expect to see agencies such as the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Federal Security Service (FSB).." from the article: Top 10 Best Intelligence Agencies in the World in 2020
From the Kryptia to the CIA: A Historical View of Intelligence Gathering
"CIA. KGB. MSS. All acronyms that anyone familiar with the intelligence world would know. (For those who may not be familiar, they stand for: Central Intelligence Agency — United States, Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti — Soviet Union/Russia, and the Ministry for State Security — China). They are all well-represented in the modern media.
But what about the lesser-known, more obscure intelligence apparatuses out there and throughout history? Some had a definitive intel mission, while others were more of a “grey area.” But they all served the purpose of providing commanders and policymakers with a clear picture of a given situation.
This is the first of a series of articles that will introduce and discuss these units, from ancient to modern times.
Biblical Spies
The gathering of intelligence for tactical, strategic, and political purposes dates back to biblical times. According to the Old Testament (Joshua 2), in preparation for an attack on the city of Jericho: “Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. ‘Go, look over the land,’ he said, ‘especially Jericho.’ So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.”.. from the article: From the Kryptia to the CIA: A historical view of intelligence gathering