A little birdy sent this my way, and I thought you might find it of interest. And this article is "scanned, not shaken or stirred." ;-) COMPUTERWORLD AUGUST 1, 1994 Agents spy Internet data By Mitch Betts Langley, VA After decades of viewing public information as practically useless, U.S. intelligence agencies are planning to exploit the wild and ultrapublic Internet in search of cheap but useful nuggets of information. By summer's end, the Central Intelligence Agency and five other intelligence units will hook up to the Internet to collect and share "opensource," or unclassified, information, CIA official Joseph Markowitz confirmed. "The six-node Internet link will give intelligence analysts an access point to the Internet at large, including access to electronic mail by subject-matter experts across the globe,"Markowitz said in a recent interview. He is director of the CIA's Community Open Source Program Office, which opened March 1. "The Internet will be a gateway to commercial on-line information services, he added, as well as a vehicle for sharing open-source intelligence with sister agencies such as the National Security Agency and the Defense Intelligence Agency." Naturally, the spy agencies are keenly aware of the danger of security breaches from Internet hackers. Markowitz said they are installing a commercial-grade "firewall"--essentially a server with access-control software--to protect internal computer networks from Internet intrusions. In addition, a special, undisclosed hardware device will allow analysts to transfer Internet files to their high-security workstations while preventing file transfers in the opposite direction, Markowitz said. These days the Internet is getting crowded with investigators of all sorts. Many private-sector researchers already use the Internet to supplement their heavy-duty use of online vendors such as Dialog Information Services, lnc. For example, John F. Quinn, a business intelligence professional in Vienna, Va., and former CIA analyst in Japan, recently used the Internet's Gopher navigation tool to collect information on foreign reaction to the death of North Korea's leader. James Cook, a California-based business investigator, runs an Internet-based discussion group called InfoPro, where information professionals swap advice and establish far-flung contacts. But using the Internet for intelligence has a downside. For example, queries posted on public news groups or mailing lists may alert the world to the research topic unless the query is artfully phrased. "There is a danger of tipping your hand," Quinn said. "I use the lnternet to contact a colleague [directly], but I am loathe to post something publicly." Another problem is information overload and the urgent need to filter incoming Internet messages. "The information will be affordable and accessible, but electronic filtering hasn't progressed as far as we'd like," Markowitz said. Furthermore, private-sector researchers warned there are no quality-control police on the Internet. The danger of getting outdated or bad information is quite real. On-line researcher Helen Burwell in Houston put it this way: "The Internet is a great big closet full of junk and treasures, so you have to go in there judiciously." "You may get to know 100 to 500 new contacts, including ones in Italy and Russia, but the next question is how competent and reliable are they?" said Cook, a due diligence consultant for business investors. "You need to build a circle of trusted people." Markowitz agreed that it takes a lot of mining to get a few nuggets from the Internet. "With open sources, there's lots more information available, but it has a poor signal-to-noise ratio," he said. A big challenge is getting the clandestine service to accept open-source intelligence as being valuable, Quinn said, because the spy culture figures that "if it's not secret, it' s not worthwhile . " One reason for the new interest in on-line resources is they are low-risk and cheap when compared with billion-dollar spy satellites at a time of shrinking budgets. Further, the spy agencies are being asked to provide unclassified reports about more diverse topics, Markowitz said. "The reality is that open sources are now superior in many cases to existing classified sources, such as in dealing with African crises, where the intelligence community has mediocre to nonexistent capabilities," said Robert D. Steele, president of Oakton, Va.-based Open Source Solutions, Inc., a non-profit organization that promotes the broader use of open-source intelligence. "The creation of our office is a recognition that open sources are a valuable resource. As we draw back in some parts of the world, our office provides an information safety net," Markowitz said. --------------------------------------------- Watering holes in cyberspace Intelligence analysts are likely to be poking around in these Internet nooks and crannies: Open Source Intelligence Resources: Gopher: gopher oss.net Somalia News Update: Usenet newsgroup: alt.current-events.somalia China Headline News Service: E-mail: info@asiainfo.com Reports by Voice of America Correspondence: Gopher: gopher.voa.gov Slovakia Document Store: World Wide Web: http://www/eunet.sk Gopher: gopher.eunet.sk E-mail: sds@slovakia.eu.net Gateway Japan E-mail: gwjapan@hamlet.umd.edu -NetSurfer #include standard.disclaimer
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