Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

NatSecEDGE

Welcome! Log in to stay connected and make the most of your experience.

Input clean

Espionage

Chinese Ghost Machines: The Hidden Risk in Australia's Energy Infrastructure

EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — The recent revelations from Reuters and other U.S. news outlets, detailing the discovery of "rogue" communication devices [...] More
ChinaLiesl JordanCipher Brief Expert ViewEspionage
NatSecEDGE

The Latest

'Lamps are Going Out all over Europe' when it comes to Russian Espionage

OPINION — The day before Britain declared war on Germany in August 1914, the Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey remarked to a friend that “the lamps [...] More
EspionageRussiaNick Fishwick

Chalk Marks: A Review of The Sympathizer

ENTERTAINMENT — “I am a spy, a sleeper, a spook, a man of two faces.”This opening sentence of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s novel The Sympathizer is one of the [...] More
CIAEspionageEntertainmentChalk Marks

Why 'Ronin' is an Espionage Classic

CHALK MARKS / COLUMN — If you craft a list of professionals who by virtue of their job knowingly undertake an effort they expect to go badly, it will [...] More
CIAEspionageEntertainmentChalk Marks

E-Commerce Lessons for Espionage

OPINION — I recently enjoyed an overdue reunion with some college friends, wrongly assuming war stories from this retired CIA officer would wow my [...] More
CIACipher Brief Expert ViewEspionage

Why the Classic Movie 'Spy Game' Gets it Right

OPINION — Many moons ago, when I started my training as an operations officer, the world and country were in a different place. Everyone I knew [...] More
EntertainmentEspionageChalk Marks

Gen Z and CIA is a Relationship in Need of Counseling

OPINION — As a mere “wretched pensioner” in retirement (words taken from my good friend and former CIA colleague Doug Wise), I spend a great deal of [...] More
CIACipher Brief Expert ViewIntelligenceEspionage
NatSecEDGE
The Best Reads of 2023: A Holiday Gift Guide

The Best Reads of 2023: A Holiday Gift Guide

HOLIDAY SPECIAL REPORT - In this season of giving, your friendly neighborhood Cipher Brief “Undercover” team - which spends the bulk of the year [...] More
ReportingAmericasUnited StatesEspionageCIA

702 is the Spy Tool that Americans need now

OPINION — The Intelligence Community (IC), in a recent press release, said it will lose what it has “used every day to protect the nation from [...] More
Fine PrintFine PrintNorth AmericaWalter PincusEspionagenational securityCIA

The Dark Joys of 'Patriot'

OPINION/ENTERTAINMENT — It’s a truth about clandestine operations that you can do everything right, and things will still go wrong. The wise ops [...] More
EntertainmentEspionageChalk Marks

'Lioness' is Entertaining. Is it Realistic?

OPINION — It’s been true for a long time that female intelligence professionals have been giving the CIA and the United States a tremendous advantage [...] More
EntertainmentEspionageChalk Marks

An Entertaining Mission (if you choose to accept it)

OPINION — One of the best things about being a retired CIA ops officer is now that people know I was a “spy,” I am often asked what is the best spy [...] More
EspionageCIAChalk Marks

Defending Against State-Sponsored Espionage Targeting the U.S. Private Sector is a Team Effort

OPINION — Last year, Congress spent 52 billion dollars on the CHIPS Act to advance the semiconductor industry in the United States because [...] More
InternationalEspionageAlternative Perspectives