AFIO Weekly Intelligence Notes #16-16 dated 19 April 2016

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CONTENTS

Section I - INTELLIGENCE HIGHLIGHTS

Section II - CONTEXT & PRECEDENCE

Section III - COMMENTARY

Section IV - OBITUARIES, JOBS AND RESEARCH REQUESTS

Section V - Events

Upcoming AFIO Events

Other Upcoming Events

For Additional AFIO and other Events two+ months or more... Calendar of Events 

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Friday, 20 May 2016 - Tysons, VA
Ambassador Chas W. Freeman, Jr., (USFS, Ret)
discusses "America's Continuing Misadventures in the Middle East."
Professor John D. Woodward, Jr.,
former CIA  Clandestine Service and Directorate of Science and Technology, on
"The Hard Problem of Countering the Use of Biological Weapons."

Ambassador Freeman looks at the skein of bluffs, rivalries, competing interests, promises and betrayals in the Middle East, and the diplomatic cards remaining for the US to play. His new book of the same title as his talk, will be released at event.Unraveling the tangle of wars in which the US is now engaged with or against Arabs, Berbers, Hazaras, Israelis, Kanuris, Kurds, Palestinians, Persians, Pashtuns, Somalis, Syrians, Tajiks, Tuaregs, Turkmen, Turks, and Uzbeks – as well as Alawites, Christians, Druze, secular Muslims, Salafis, Shiites, Sunnis, and Yazidis – will not be easy. In large measure through our involvement, their conflicts have become interwoven. Ending one or another of them might alter the dynamics of the region but would not by itself produce peace. 

His presentation begins at 1 pm.

"The Hard Problem of Countering the Use of Biological Weapons" will be the topic of former CIA DO & DS&T officer John D. Woodward, Jr., in his presentation on the biological weapons threat, which he defines as the intentional or deliberate use of a pathogen to cause harm. Woodward will discuss biological weapons risks as terrorists and others leverage advances in the life sciences and information technologies to ramp up the types of attacks they may seek to launch. Woodward will explain in what ways biological weapons pose a human, economic, and societal threat.

A retired CIA officer who served in the Clandestine Service and the Directorate of Science and Technology, Woodward is currently a Professor of the Practice of International Relations at the Boston University's Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies where he teaches courses in intelligence, homeland security, and national security. His talk will include possible policy approaches which will focus greater attention on intelligence measures the US and global communities can take to prevent or disrupt biological weapons attacks.

John Woodward's talk begins at 11 am. 

Location: Crowne Plaza Hotel Mezzanine, 1960 Chain Bridge Rd, Tysons Corner, VA 22102. Hotel: 703 893-2100. Driving directions here or use this link: http://tinyurl.com/boey9vf No reservations at the hotel.
REGISTER: Early online Registration is here.

Cybersecurity and Cyberlaw Update

Steptoe Cyberlaw Podcast – Interview with Suzanne Spaulding, Under Secretary for the National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD) at the Department of Homeland Security

By Stewart Baker on April 12, 2016

Just how sophisticated are the nations planning and carrying out cyberattacks on electric grids? Very, is the short answer.   Our guest for episode 111, Suzanne Spaulding, DHS's Under Secretary for the National Protection and Programs Directorate, lays out just how much planning and resources went into the attack on Ukraine's grid, what it means for US industry, the information sharing that can mitigate the consequences, and why the incident reinforces the need to stand up the Cyber and Infrastructure Protection Agency at DHS.

Our news roundup concentrates on the draft Senate bill on encryption from Senators Burr and Feinstein.  Not surprisingly, I find the critics to be mostly off point and occasionally unhinged in inimitable tech-sector fashion.  Sen. Wyden condemns the bill, and no one is surprised.  The White House ducks a fight over the legislation, and mostly no one cares any more.  I offer the view that as more Silicon Valley firms adopt easy, universal, unbreakable crypto, the tide will slowly turn against them, as the list of crypto victims keeps getting longer.

Kaitlin Cassel and Alan Cohn unpack the consequences for law firms of the Mossack Fonseca leak, and Suzanne Spaulding weighs in with advice for the legal profession.

The US adds China's Internet controls to its list of trade barriers.  Kaitlin and I muse on the significance of that step (short term: none; long term:  we could see a WTO case against China).

As always, the Cyberlaw Podcast welcomes feedback.  Send e-mail to CyberlawPodcast@steptoe.com or leave a message at +1 202 862 5785.

Download the 111th episode (mp3).

Subscribe to the Cyberlaw Podcast here. We are also on iTunes and Pocket Casts!

Stewart Baker is on AFIO's board of directors. Suzanne Spaulding is a former AFIO board member.

 

Section I - INTELLIGENCE HIGHLIGHTS

Names of Intelligence Officials, Agents, Appear in Panama Papers.  The massive data leak of documents belonging to Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca has revealed the names of intelligence officials and agents form several countries, who employed front companies to conceal their financial activities. According to German newspaper S'ddeutsche Zeitung, which was the initial recipient of the largest data leak in history last summer, the list of names includes intelligence officials from the Middle East, Latin America and Africa, as well as "close intermediaries of the [United States] Central Intelligence Agency".

Referred to as 'the Panama Papers', the massive leak amounts to over 11.5 million internal files from Mossack Fonseca, one of the world's most prolific registrars and administrators of shell companies in offshore locations. Throughout its history, the company has created more than 300,000 shell companies, most of them in offshore tax havens like the British Virgin Islands, Cyprus, or Guernsey. Its clients are offered the ability to incorporate a generic-sounding company and headquarter it in an offshore tax haven. In exchange for an annual fee, Mossack Fonseca provides the company with a sham director and shareholders, thus concealing the true owner and actual beneficiary of the business.

The S'ddeutsche Zeitung said on Monday that senior intelligence officials from Rwanda and Colombia are listed as Mossack Fonseca customers, but did not report the names of the individuals. It did, however, single out the late Sheikh Kamal Adham, who was director of Saudi Arabia's General Intelligence Directorate in the 1960s and 1970s. During his 14-year directorship of the GID, the agency became a leading intermediary between the CIA and Arab intelligence agencies, notably those of Egypt and Iraq. Sheikh Adham was also a personal friend of CIA Director George Bush, who was later elected US president.  [Read more:  Fitsanakis/IntelNews/13April2016]

Former British Intelligence Service Brings Security and Intelligence Program to US.  Mount St. Mary's University partners with the Cambridge Security Initiative (CSi) to bring international security and intelligence experts to campus as part of a program founded at Pembroke College, University of Cambridge, UK.

International Security and Intelligence (ISI): Twenty-First Century Perspectives on Intelligence and Contemporary Threats is being offered for the first time in the United States, exclusively at Mount St. Mary's University in Emmitsburg, Maryland. The program was first developed as an academic experience held at the University of Cambridge and now, though slightly adapted to meet the needs of international student travelers, maintains the same standards of academic rigor as the original program held in Cambridge, England.

"The CSi team brings many years of experience organizing and teaching international programs based out of the UK, with a specific focus on the needs of US students and the schools that sent them," said CSi Program Coordinator Alan Dawson. "Although this is our first US based venture, we are confident that the CSi-Mount St. Mary's University relationship will bring together a range of unique skills and prove both positive and creative to all concerned."

The ISI program aims to provide a unique link between the worlds of business, government and academia. With unmatched expertise in security and intelligence issues, CSi integrates long-term historical trends with the experience of security professionals to deliver prescient analysis of current and future threats to a range of clients.  [Read more:  MountStMarysUniversity/18/April2016]

German Intelligence Agency Disputes Reports Salah Abdeslam Had German Nuclear Files.  Germany's domestic intelligence agency has denied reports that Salah Abdeslam, a prime suspect in the Paris attacks, possessed documents about a nuclear research centre in Germany.

Newspapers in the Redaktions Netzwerk Deutschland (RND) media group said on Thursday that documents were found relating to the Juelich centre near the Belgium-Germany border, which is used for the storage of atomic waste.

The centre said in a statement that there was no indication of any danger and that Juelich was in contact with security authorities and nuclear supervisors.

The RND newspapers cited sources within the parliamentary control committee, whose meetings are confidential, as saying that Hans-Georg Maa'en, the head of the domestic intelligence agency (BfV), told the nine-person committee at the end of March that Abdeslam had the documents.  [Reuters/14April2016]

Brazil Sees Rising Threat From Islamic Militants: Intelligence Agency.  The threat of attack by militant Islamists is on the rise in Brazil as the country prepares to host the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in August, the national intelligence agency said on Thursday.

Brazil has long regarded itself as an unlikely target of extremists thanks to its historical standing as a non-aligned, multicultural nation that is free from enemies.

But Counterterrorism Director Luiz Alberto Sallaberry said in a statement the threat had increased in recent months due to attacks in other countries, and a rise in what he described as the number of Brazilian nationals suspected of sympathizing with Islamic State militants.

Sallaberry also confirmed that a credible threat to state security had been made last year.  [Read more:  Reuters/15April2016]

After 46 Years, Cyprus Intelligence Service Gets Legal Stature.  A government bill regulating the staffing and operation of the Central Intelligence Service, approved in parliament's final plenary session on Thursday, marked the official founding of the intelligence-gathering body, 46 years after it was created and became operational by then-President Archbishop Makarios.

Founded in 1970, the CIS (or KYP) has largely been operating unchecked, on instructions from - and in the service of - the political leadership, which staffed it with members of police and the National Guard, until the government decided to overhaul the system and create some form of accountability mechanism.

According to the bill passed on Thursday, the intelligence agency will report directly to the president, taking its orders from the highest level, much as it has done thus far.

Key changes in the bill, however, include the removal of the police chief's right to appoint the CIS boss, who will now be appointed by the president directly.  [Read more:  Anastasiou/CyprusMail/15April2016]

Obama Administration Weighs Nixing 'Confidential' Classification.  The nation's top intelligence official is considering letting spy agencies drop the lowest level of classification, "confidential," in an effort to shrink the gusher of secret documents flowing out of their offices.

The proposal by James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, comes amid a simmering controversy over classified information that found its way on to the home email system used by Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton when she was secretary of state.

But Clapper's proposal would have little bearing on the Clinton matter, because it would only apply to the intelligence community, not the State Department, said Steven Aftergood, an intelligence expert at the Federation of American Scientists who first called attention to it.

Spy agencies "don't use it much anyway," Aftergood said of the "confidential" label. That's in contrast to the State Department, which frequently applies it to cable traffic containing sensitive foreign government information that isn't intelligence-related.  [Read more:  Dilanian/NBCNews/13April2016]

Georgian Intelligence Arrests Six for Attempted Uranium Sale.  Georgia's State Security Service agency on Monday detained six individuals suspected of trying to sell Uranium-238.

Agency investigator, Savle Motiashvili, announced to the media shortly after the arrest that Georgian intelligence officers had detained three Georgian citizens and three Armenian nationals while the group planned a USD 200 million sale of the nuclear-grade material.

According to Motiashvili, investigators found the nuclear-grade material while it was still housed in a radioactive-proof container and hidden in the home of one of the accused, later identified as 75 year-old Tbilisi resident Mukhtar Tskhitishvili.

According to various Georgian media reports, four of the six detained are over the age of 75. In addition to Tskhitishvili, the authorities have identified the suspects as Armenian citizens Haikas Hovakyan, Ashot Goroyan, Miran Mosesyan and Georgians Tamaz Bichikashvili and Savle Lursmanashvi.  [Read more:  Svanidze/GeorgiaToday/18April2016]

US Ratchets up Cyber Attacks on ISIS.  President Obama confirmed for the first time last week that the US is conducting "cyber operations" against ISIS, in order to disrupt the group's "command-and-control and communications."

But the American military's campaign of cyber attacks against ISIS is far more serious than what the president laid out in his bland description. Three US officials told The Daily Beast that those operations have moved beyond mere disruption and are entering a new, more aggressive phase that is targeted at individuals and is gleaning intelligence that could help capture and kill more ISIS fighters.

As the US ratchets up its online offensive against the terror group, US military hackers are now breaking into the computers of individual ISIS fighters. Once inside the machines, these hackers are implanting viruses and malicious software that allow them to mine their devices for intelligence, such as names of members and their contacts, as well as insights into the group's plans, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity to describe sensitive operations.

One US official told The Daily Beast that intelligence gleaned from hacking ISIS members was an important source for identifying key figures in the organization. In remarks at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, this week, Obama confirmed that cyber operations were underway and noted that recently the US has either captured or killed several key ISIS figures, including Sulayman Dawud al-Bakkar, a leader of its chemical weapons program, and "Haji Iman," the man purported to be ISIS's second in command.  [Read more:  Harris/TheDailyBeast/17April2016]

Long Awaited Military Intelligence Memorial Installed.  A crew swiftly worked on Thursday to install the long-awaited memorial dedicated to the fallen soldiers of the 525th Military Intelligence Brigade.

The team from Brown Memorials in Florence, South Carolina, used a crane to carefully lower the main base, which weighs about seven tons. The men knelt down to use a tape measure to center the additional granite pieces.

"This is going to help connect us with our past," said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Mike Woods, a counterintelligence technician with the brigade.

It's believed to be the first memorial for the 525th Military Intelligence Brigade. The memorial will be covered until its dedication ceremony next month.  [Read more:  Dolasinski/FayettevilleObserver/14April2016]


Section II - CONTEXT & PRECEDENCE

Did Pakistan Secretly Fund an Attack on CIA Officers in 2009? Memo Makes Controversial Claim.  The document, marked "secret" and still heavily redacted, makes a startling claim: The Pakistan government helped fund a suicide bombing in Afghanistan in 2009 that became the bloodiest attack on the CIA in a quarter-century.

"Foreign intelligence service and Haqqani network involvement in the 30 December 2009 suicide attack at [Camp] Chapman," begins the subject line for the State Department cable, written in early 2010 by a US official who was not named.

The memo, made public this week by a nonprofit group, proceeds to challenge the narrative of one of the worst days in the CIA's history. It describes an elaborate plot in which Pakistan's intelligence service allegedly put up $200,000 for the now-infamous bombing, which occurred when a presumed al-Qaeda informant was allowed into a secure US base in Khost, Afghanistan, to meet with a team of American officers and handlers.

Once inside the base, the informant detonated his device, killing seven CIA officers and contractors as well as a Jordanian intelligence officer and an Afghan driver. It was the deadliest attack on CIA personnel since the US embassy bombing in Beirut in 1983, and the document suggests that Pakistani government officials helped engineer it.

But is the claim credible?  [Warrick/WashingtonPost/15April2015]

John Whittingdale Could Be Probed by British intelligence Services Over Claims About His Love Life.  John Whittingdale may be investigated by British intelligence services over a string of claims about his private life.

Spooks could look at the Culture Secretary's links to ex-Soviet states and East European women to rule out a blackmail risk, the Mirror has been told.

It comes as fresh claims about his love life suggest a taste for exotic women and an addiction to danger.

In the years since the Tories came to power his lovers have included a former erotic actress and the daughter of a Soviet military officer as well as a dominatrix he met on Match.com.  [Read more:  Hughes/Glaze&Mcphee/TheMirror/17April2016]

FBI Paid Professional Hackers One-Time Fee to Crack San Bernardino iPhone.  The FBI cracked a San Bernardino terrorist's phone with the help of professional hackers who discovered and brought to the bureau at least one previously unknown software flaw, according to people familiar with the matter.

The new information was then used to create a piece of hardware that helped the FBI to crack the iPhone's four-digit personal identification number without triggering a security feature that would have erased all the data, the individuals said.

The researchers, who typically keep a low profile, specialize in hunting for vulnerabilities in software and then in some cases selling them to the US government. They were paid a one-time flat fee for the solution.

Cracking the four-digit PIN, which the FBI had estimated would take 26 minutes, was not the hard part for the bureau. The challenge from the beginning was disabling a feature on the phone that wipes data stored on the device after 10 incorrect tries at guessing the code. A second feature also steadily increases the time allowed between attempts.  [Read more:  Nakashima/WashingtonPost/12April2016]

US Intelligence Expert Discusses Nuclear Threats.  Ambassador Joseph R. DeTrani - the president of the Daniel Morgan Academy, a new graduate school in Washington, DC focusing on national security issues - spoke at the Citizens for National Security meeting at the Polo Club in Boca Raton on Sunday, March 20.

DeTrani - who previously had a long career in the US intelligence community, including a distinguished stint at the Central Intelligence Agency - spoke about "Nuclear Threats from North Korea and Iran."

Before DeTrani spoke, the Citizens for National Security (CFNS) unveiled its new film, Textbooks and Terrorists, for the very first time in an exclusive screening for CFNS members and guests.

This film shows how biased content in K-12 history and geography textbooks in the United States can indoctrinate and radicalize children, causing some of them to become homegrown terrorists.  [Read more:  Lieberman/SunSentinal/15October2016]

Bay of Pigs, the CIA's Biggest Fiasco, 55 Years Later.  Between April 17 and 19 of 1961, a force of Cuban mercenaries, led by the US Central Intelligence Agency tried to invade the Caribbean nation of Cuba. Within three days the attempt failed disastrously, with over 100 invaders dead and over 1,000 captured. Fifty-five years later, this historical event remains a sore point in hawkish cold war narratives. Cold warriors and right-wing hardliners in the US still see it as an affront and humiliation, which demands retribution and redress. However, for progressives and anti-imperialists all over the world, the mention of the "Bay of Pigs" - known in the Spanish-speaking world as Playa Giron - evokes joy and celebration: The United States, an empire accustomed to imposing itself even in the farthest corners of the world, could not prevail and enforce its will on an island country 90 miles away from its shores. The empire could be defeated after all.

The invasion took place in the first months of the John F. Kennedy administration, but it had been conceived and planned under the previous presidency, that of Dwight Eisenhower. In January 1959, Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista was overthrown by a popular armed revolt led by Fidel Castro, a development that would fundamentally change Latin American politics and US Latin America policy ever after. Before the year ended, the consensus in Washington, DC was that the revolutionary changes taking place in the new Cuba could not be allowed to continue. In March 1960, President Eisenhower approved top-secret operation JMARC to overthrow Castro. [Read more:  Ruiz/teleSUR/17April2016]

Accused Navy Spy Edward Lin Had Friends in Sensitive Places.  Edward Lin, the US Navy officer suspected of spying for China and Taiwan, had scores of friends in sensitive places, if the number of contacts who "endorsed" him for military and security "skills" on LinkedIn, the professional networking site, is any guide.

Among those who endorsed Lin, a Taiwan-born officer assigned to a highly classified naval air reconnaissance unit in Hawaii until his secret arrest last year, are senior Taiwanese military officers and a Beijing-based venture capitalist specializing in "mobile internet applications and mobile games," according to their LinkedIn bios. His American endorsers on the site include the second in command at the US Naval Air Station, Guantanamo; the US Pacific Fleet's senior political-military analyst on Southeast Asia; a Navy congressional liaison officer; and fellow former aviators in his reconnaissance squad, including one now working at the Northrop Grumman Electromagnetic Systems Laboratory in Sacramento, California.

Lin also served as a congressional liaison for the assistant secretary of the Navy for finance management and comptroller from 2012 to 2014, a position that presumably gave him access to highly classified strategic weapons planning and put him in regular contact with senior members of the House and Senate armed services and military appropriations committees.  [Read more:  Stein/Newsweek/14April2016]

Section III - COMMENTARY

Why Poland and the EU will no longer follow America's lead - Gene Poteat

The American media, as well as that of the European Union, are awash in articles critical of the election of Poland's Law and Justice Party (PIS) and the new Polish government formed after that landslide victory, calling the new leaders "right-wing" radicals and dictators that crossed the line with their "disturbing tilt" to the right. In 2015, the PIS won both presidential and parliamentary elections and, for the first time since the Second World War, removed entrenched pro-communist, pro-Russian stooges from power in Poland.
Poland was stunned at America's reaction to their new government. What so traumatized America's sensibilities? First, they removed the pro-Russian officials and judges. Then, they had the audacity to declare, independently, they would not abide by the EU's policy of open borders accepting uncontrolled Muslim immigrants flooding Western Europe - going against American and EU open borders and multi-cultural, one-world policies - which has led to uncontrolled Muslim immigration into already unstable, shifting countries facing their own economic problems. To America, it was: "How dare Poland go behind our back thinking independently and taking actions different from the position of the United States, which, by the way, had been dutifully supporting the previous Polish government." I suspect we were doing so without realizing it was pro-Russian. Interestingly, all these critical articles were alike. They all used the same words and phrases: right-wing, radicals, disturbing tilt to the right, violation of democracy and "Putinization" of Poland. [Read more: Poteat/SmolenskCrashReport/18Apr2016; first published in CharlestonMercury]

Europe, Stop Trying to Make 'Intelligence Sharing' Happen.  It's not hard to understand why the recent arrest of Mohamed Abrini, and the discovery that the March 22 Brussels bombings were originally intended for French soil, are being treated as yet another argument for greater intelligence sharing among European countries.

Abrini - the now infamous "man in the hat" - participated in both the Paris and Brussels attacks as part of a jihadi network that we now know crossed multiple borders on multiple occasions, taking advantage of the Schengen Agreement's removal of passport controls on the continent. The terror group's last-minute decision, after the arrest of Salah Abdeslam, to attack Brussels rather than La D'fense, Paris' business district, showed that anyone with sufficient agility can shift targets among nations as necessary.

And if terrorists can so easily cross international borders, why shouldn't intelligence? That's precisely what Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, French President Francois Hollande, and his interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, among others, have called for in the wake of the Brussels bombings.

In doing so, they have echoed other official proclamations over the past several years. After the January 2015 attacks on Charlie Hebdo and a Jewish market in Paris, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini boasted of EU plans "to share information, intelligence." After Moroccan terrorist Ayoub El-Khazzani tried to gun down a train full of passengers traveling to Paris last August, European ministers huddled to try and make sure such a thing could not happen again. Then, the Islamic State killed 130 civilians in France. "We have been hit together; we will respond together," proclaimed Harlem Desir, France's minister of state for European affairs. Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel called for the creation of a "European CIA."

The problem is "more intelligence sharing" isn't a serious proposal, so much as a well-worn clich'. [Read more:  Simcox/ForeignPolicy/14April2016]

Israel Is Using Social Media to Prevent Terrorist Attacks. After six months of a wave of violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories, Israeli security officials are warily speaking of signs of the attacks abating. Violent protests and rioting in the West Bank have waned, and the rate of stabbing, ramming and shooting attacks by Palestinians on Israeli soldiers and civilians has halved (two months ago there was an average of at least one a day). In the six months from October 2015 to March there were 230 attacks, in which 34 Israelis and foreign tourists and 121 Palestinian attackers were killed. Many have called it a third intifada (uprising), though the Israeli military prefers the term "limited uprising". The bloodshed is unlikely to end completely while the Israeli and Palestinian leaderships are incapable of even sitting down in the same room. But it may at last be ebbing.

For Israel's security services, the killings have posed a unique challenge. Unlike in previous rounds, the Palestinians carrying out the attacks are nearly all acting on their own and unaffiliated with armed groups. "In the second intifada [2000-2005] there was a clear chain from those directing and funding the attacks, and the dispatcher and perpetrator," says an operations officer in the Israel Defence Force (IDF). "You could pinpoint a terror cell and take them out. Now you have to look at every Palestinian as a potential suspect, which is a bad situation. You need to be able to differentiate the perpetrators from the wider Palestinian public."

That is much easier said than done when very few of the attackers had any previous involvement in violent activities, are acting as individuals or at the most in groups of two or three friends, and in some cases are as young as thirteen. The IDF Chief of Staff, Lieutenant-General Gadi Eisenkot, admitted three months ago that Israel's security services hadn't had advance indications of any of the attacks. That has changed, at least in part, due to an unorthodox intelligence operation.

While Israeli ministers accuse Palestinians of incitement to murder on the internet and have tried, unsuccessfully so far, to persuade companies like Facebook to remove such content from their webpages, the intelligence community sees the social media networks as its main opportunity to spot attackers in advance.  [Read more:  TheEconomist/18April2016]

The Situation Report: Removing the Intelligence Community CIO's Extra Hat.  MeriTalk recently broke the news that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence is planning to hire its first chief information officer. Sounds pretty straightforward, but my Langley, Va., listening post has picked up strong signals that there is much more to the story and the timing of this new job search at ODNI.

Keen intelligence community observers will know that the ODNI traces its roots to the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. But only the most sophisticated observers will recall the amendment that the first intelligence community CIO, Dale Meyerrose, succeeded in getting into the 2005 Intelligence Authorization Act. That bill, which became law on Dec. 23, 2004, included the following section:

'(d) PROHIBITION ON SIMULTANEOUS SERVICE AS OTHER CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER- An individual serving in the position of Chief Information Officer may not, while so serving, serve as the chief information officer of any other department or agency, or component thereof, of the United States Government.'

What does that mean? Well, we asked a few of our data scientists to run this through our decryption tools and it sounds like the ODNI - the center of gravity for intelligence policy in the post-9/11 era - has been dual-hatting the intelligence community CIO for the last decade.  [Read more:  Verton/MeriTalk/14April2016]

More Art Than Science: Intelligence and Technical Topics.  In intelligence circles, gaining access to a senior policymaker for a 20-minute "round table" to communicate the finer details of an intelligence product is an incredible luxury. Written intelligence reports today are often meant to be absorbed in a matter of minutes, with little time for a follow-up briefing. Intelligence products add unique value since they are objective and based on sensitive sources. However, from the perspective of a busy policymaker reading a report in between meetings, intelligence products can also come across as simplistic or confusing. Incorporating complex scientific and technical information can complicate intelligence products even more, depending on the experience of the consumer. The contentious 2002 National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) on Iraq's Continuing Programs for Weapons of Mass Destruction is an important example of an intelligence report that relied on conveying scientific information. That report attempted to convey a highly technical assessment of Iraq's suspected weapons programs in the space of a few sentences, while still retaining confidence levels and sourcing.

Scientific and technical intelligence analysts thus face the great challenge of quickly, effectively, and clearly conveying information to policymakers. An example of meeting this challenge is aptly illustrated in the book Most Secret War, one intelligence officer's account of a high-level meeting that occurred over 75 years ago.

In September 1940, the German Luftwaffe began nighttime bombing raids against British cities. The German bomber pilots used a new type of radio navigation that improved their precision and lethality. A young British intelligence officer named R.V. Jones was instrumental in discovering and explaining the scientific technique used by the Luftwaffe.

R.V. Jones realized that if the intelligence consumer does not fundamentally understand the scientific concepts and implications involved in the issue, the policy discussion can flounder without complementary methods of describing the information.  [Read more:  Holmes&Greenlee/WarOnTheRocks/12April2016]

Section IV - OBITUARIES, JOBS AND RESEARCH REQUESTS

Section V - Events

AFIO EDUCATIONAL EVENTS IN COMING TWO MONTHS....

Saturday, 7 May 2016, 11am - 3pm - Orange Park, FL - The North Florida Chapter hosts Don Kabrich, on Operation Iraqi Freedom, Lessons Learned, and Al-Jazeera Desert Intelligence Operations and Collection.

An early reminder that the next North Florida Chapter meeting falls on Saturday, May 7th - the Mother's Day weekend. We are hoping, despite that, you are able to attend and we can get a nice turnout.

Our guest speaker will be retired Army Warrant Officer Don Kabrich, who served from 1991 to 2013 in an Army Special Forces Detachment - Alpha (SFODA) Team Member - from the 5th Special Forces Group, Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He and the group specialized in Middle East Operations, with detachment infiltration and exfiltration as a specialty, plus Amphibious Operations (Special Forces Combat Dive Team).
Topics covered will be: 1) Lessons Learned - Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). 2) Special Forces Detachment Combat Tour in Bayji, Iraq. 3) Al-Jazeera Desert Intelligence Collection, Operations, and Psychological Warfare Impact
Event Location: Orange Park Country Club.
RSVP as soon as possible to Ken Meyer at kemeyer123@att.net or call him at (904) 777-2050. Spouses and guests are cordially invited to attend. The cost remains $24 per person for the luncheon. Hope to see you there.

Saturday, 14 May 2016, 11:30am - 2:30pm - Melbourne, FL - Dr. Joseph Finley, Jr. on "Technical Surveillance and Countermeasures" is theme at this Florida Satellite Chapter Meeting.

Dr. Joseph Finley, Jr., a member of the Florida Satellite Chapter, will speak on Technical Surveillance and Countermeasures. Dr. Finley spent 28 years as a Special Agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and in 1987, was assigned to the Special Operations Group of the FBI (17 years) and while assigned to the New York Division, actively conducted Technical Surveillance Countermeasure Sweeps (TSCM) and surreptitious entries. His talk presents an opportunity for all of us and our guests to meet and hear an expert in this esoteric field.
Location: At East Club, Indian River Colony Club, 1936 Freedom Dr, Melbourne, FL 32940.
Timing: 11:30 AM - 12:15 PM: Social Hour, greet old, new members and guests (cash bar); 12:15 PM: Sit-Down lunch
Menu Choices are: Chef Salad (mixed greens, tomato, cucumber, egg, ham, turkey, American and Swiss cheeses with Ranch and Italian dressings on table (S), or Sliced Pork loin with roasted potatoes and vegetable (P)
Above come with coffee, tea, rolls and butter and Chef's choice of dessert
Cost: $25.00; Student and active duty military: $18.00
TO ATTEND: Prepaid reservations are required and must be received by Thursday, 28 April 2016. To reserve, send check and meal choice to contact FSC Chapter President at afiofsc@afio.com.

Friday, 20 May 2016 - Ambassador Chas W. Freeman, Jr., (USFS, Ret) discusses "America's Continuing Misadventures in the Middle East." Professor John D. Woodward, Jr., former CIA  Clandestine Service and Directorate of Science and Technology, on"The Hard Problem of Countering the Use of Biological Weapons."- AFIO National Luncheon

Ambassador Chas Freeman looks at the skein of bluffs, rivalries, competing interests, promises and betrayals in the Middle East, and the diplomatic cards remaining for the US to play. His new book of the same title as his talk, will be released at event. Unraveling the tangle of wars in which the US is now engaged with or against Arabs, Berbers, Hazaras, Israelis, Kanuris, Kurds, Palestinians, Persians, Pashtuns, Somalis, Syrians, Tajiks, Tuaregs, Turkmen, Turks, and Uzbeks – as well as Alawites, Christians, Druze, secular Muslims, Salafis, Shiites, Sunnis, and Yazidis – will not be easy. In large measure through our involvement, their conflicts have become interwoven. Ending one or another of them might alter the dynamics of the region but would not by itself produce peace. His presentation begins at 1 pm.

"The Hard Problem of Countering the Use of Biological Weapons" will be the topic of former CIA DO & DS&T officer John D. Woodward, Jr., in his presentation on the biological weapons threat, which he defines as the intentional or deliberate use of a pathogen to cause harm. Woodward will discuss biological weapons risks as terrorists and others leverage advances in the life sciences and information technologies to ramp up the types of attacks they may seek to launch. Woodward will explain in what ways biological weapons pose a human, economic, and societal threat.

A retired CIA officer who served in the Clandestine Service and the Directorate of Science and Technology, Woodward is currently a Professor of the Practice of International Relations at the Boston University's Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies where he teaches courses in intelligence, homeland security, and national security. His talk will include possible policy approaches which will focus greater attention on intelligence measures the US and global communities can take to prevent or disrupt biological weapons attacks.

Location: Crowne Plaza Hotel Mezzanine, 1960 Chain Bridge Rd, Tysons Corner, VA 22102. Hotel: 703 893-2100. Driving directions here or use this link: http://tinyurl.com/boey9vf No reservations at the hotel.
REGISTER: Early online Registration is here.

Thursday, 2 June 2016 - San Francisco, CA - The AFIO Andre LeGallo Chapter hosts Dr. Matthew Brazil, Research Fellow, Jamestown Foundation

Mr. Matt Brazil will discuss China's Harder Line Against Foreign Influence - Implications for US Business.
Venue: United Irish Cultural Center, 2700 45th Avenue, San Francisco. 11:30am no host cocktail; meeting and luncheon at noon.
Register here.

Reservation and pre-payment is required before May 26, 2016. The venue cannot accommodate walk-ins.
Please contact Mariko Kawaguchi, Board Secretary at afiosf@aol.com or Mariko Kawaguchi, c/o AFIO, P.O. Box 117578, Burlingame, CA 94011 for questions.

16 June 2016, 12:30 - 2pm - Los Angeles, CA - The AFIO L.A. Chapter hosts Kenneth Daigler on Spies, Patriots, and Traitors

For CIA officer Kenneth Daigler will discuss key aspects of his book Spies, Patriots, and Traitors. The cost of the meeting will be $15 and will include a copy of the book and refreshments served. Please RSVP: afio_la@yahoo.com
Meeting Location: LAPD-ARTC 5651 W. Manchester Ave Los Angeles, CA 90045

BIO: Ken Daigler is a retired career CIA operations officer, previously holding several key operations positions in the agency, and is a recipient of the William Donovan Award & Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal. In addition, he has consulted for the Department of Defense in the area of counterintelligence. He has a BA in history from Centre College of Kentucky and an MA in history from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University and has served in the US Marine Corps.

Wednesday, 22 June 2016, 6pm - New York, NY - Len Predtechenskis, former FBI, discusses "Operating Techniques for Recruiting Foreign Nationals" - at this Metro NY Chapter Meeting.

The next AFIO NY meeting will feature Len Predtechenskis, retired FBI Special Agent after 27 years of distinguished service.
He recruited and directed many Soviet/Russian agents, debriefed and resettled dozens of Russian defectors, operated undercover and has been an instructor at the FBI Academy.

Location: The Society of Illustrators building, 128 East 63rd St, NYC.

To attend or for more information contact chapter president Jerry Goodwin or call 646-717-3776.

Other Upcoming Events

Thursday, 21 April 2016, 5-6 PM - Washington, DC - "The Law and Active Cyber Defense" Conference by the Daniel Morgan Academy and the Office of Senator Mark Kirk

AFIO members are invited to attend a special, invitation-only Capitol Hill event on: The Law and Active Cyber Defense. The event is co-sponsored by the Daniel Morgan Academy and the Office of Senator Mark Kirk.

This event advances thinking on active cyber defense (aka cyber offense). Does US law allow a private sector actor to retaliate for an intrusion by hacking back - committing the same offense? It has long been accepted that the US Government can engage in a robust, active cyber defense, yet the private sector cannot. Accordingly, the question is whether US law can be interpreted to permit retaliation or is a new law needed?

Presenters: Anthony Glosson, Associate, Government & Regulatory Affairs, Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP; Jeremy Rabkin, Professor of Law, George Mason University.
Commentators: Michael Mukasey, Partner, Debevoise & Plimpton, Former Attorney General of the United States; Paul Rosenzweig, Founder of Red Branch Consulting PLLC, and a Senior Advisor to The Chertoff Group, Former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Department of Homeland Security; Abram Shulsky, Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute, former adviser to the undersecretary of Defense for Policy.
Moderator: Kenneth D.M. Jensen, Senior Research Fellow, Daniel Morgan Academy

More information or to RSVP, do so here
or contact Wilson@DanielMorgan.academy or events@DanielMorgan.academy or call 202-759-4988.

NOTE: This conference is at being held at Capitol Hill, 2 Constitution Ave NE, Russell Senate Office Building Room 188, Washington, DC 20002.

Friday, 29 April 2016, 11:15am - 12:45pm - "Congress and National Security" by Michael P. Flanagan, (Former Cong., Il) at the Daniel Morgan Academy

At this Daniel Morgan Academy event, former Illinois Congressman Michael P. Flanagan will discuss "The role of Congress with Respect to National Security." He will explain how Congress makes decisions regarding national security policy and will discuss the balance of power struggle between the Executive and Legislative branches.

Timing: 11:15am: Reception with lunch; 11:45am - 12:45pm: Remarks by Mr. Flanagan.

Event location: Daniel Morgan Academy, 1620 L St NW, 7th Flr, Washington, DC 20036. Near Farragut North and West Metro Stations
RSVP here. Or contact Frank Fletcher, Director of Lectures and Seminars, at events@DanielMorgan.academy or call 202-759-4988
If you are unable to attend, watch the live stream of this event at the following link:  danielmorgan.adobeconnect.com/liveevent.

Friday, 29 April 2016 - Austin, TX - Gala Dinner Honoring Admiral Bobby R. Inman

A Gala Dinner Honoring Admiral Bobby R. Inman has been announced by University of Texas/Austin President Gregory L. Fenves to take place at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, Texas.
Presented by the Clements Center for National Security and the Strauss Center for International Security and Law, a gala dinner for Admiral Bobby R. Inman will feature former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates as the keynote speaker. Mr. Red McCombs will serve as the Honorary Gala Chair. Admiral Inman is on AFIO's Honorary Board.

To attend or for more information, contact the Clements Center at 512-471-2601 or explore this link.

Wednesday, 4 May 2016 - Arlington, VA - CIRA Luncheon features Dawn Eilenberger, Assistant DNI for Policy & Strategy.

CIRA hosts Dawn Eilenberger, Assistant DNI for Policy & Strategy, at their May luncheon. In this role, she oversees the formulation and implementation of IC-wide policy and strategy on the full range of intelligence issues, including collection, analysis, requirements, management and information sharing, and provides leadership for ODNI and IC initiatives on information sharing and the closure and disposition of detainees at the Guantanamo Naval Base.
For registration details and location, consult the back of your copy of the CIRA Quarterly, or view on CIRA's webpage.

Wednesday, 4 May 2016, 6:30 - 9pm - Washington, DC - Star Wars or Spy Wars: Who Needs the Force When You Have Good Intel? at the International Spy Museum

From the moment Leia receives the stolen plans and conceals them within R2-D2 to the surprise intel that Finn provides from his stint in sanitation, the importance of inside and secret information in Star Wars is essential. Is Star Wars the ultimate spy movie series? Spy Museum historian, Dr. Vince Houghton certainly thinks so. Join him for a deep dive into the espionage themes that have run through the series and are the rumored plots of the upcoming films Rogue One and Episode VIII.  Houghton will be joined by Mary S. Henderson, author of Star Wars: The Magic of Myth, who will share how the universal themes of myth play into the spy arc of the series.
Tickets: $15. Visit www.spymuseum.org

Monday, 9 May 2016, 9am- 3pm - Washington, DC - Homeschool Day at SPY at the International Spy Museum

Join the Spy Museum's educators for the first annual Homeschool Day where groups and families are invited to explore the Museum's exciting exhibitions, discover multi and inter disciplinary lesson plans and resources, and participate in hands-on educational workshops with other homeschool families. This event is designed for students in grades 4+. Tickets: $14 and include admission to the Museum. Visit www.spymuseum.org

Tuesday, 10 May 2016, 11am - Washington, DC - Amb. Djerdj Matkovic, Republic of Serbia, discusses "The Balkans: Regional Political and Security Issues" at the Daniel Morgan Academy

The Daniel Morgan Academy invites AFIO members and guests to an invitation-only national security lecture on "The Balkans: Regional Political and Security Issues" by His Excellency Djerdj Matkovic, Ambassador of the Republic of Serbia to the United States

A Q & A and reception will follow the Ambassador's comments.
LOCATION: Daniel Morgan Academy, 1620 L St NW, Seventh Floor, Washington, DC 20036; Near Farragut North and West Metro Stations

Event location: Daniel Morgan Academy, 1620 L St NW, 7th Flr, Washington, DC 20036. Near Farragut North and West Metro Stations
RSVP here. Or contact Frank Fletcher, Director of Lectures and Seminars, at events@DanielMorgan.academy or call 202-759-4988
If you are unable to attend, watch the live stream of this event at the following link:  danielmorgan.adobeconnect.com/liveevent.

Wednesday, 11 May 2016, 6:30pm - Washington, DC - The Winter Fortress, The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler's Atomic Bomb: An Evening with Neal Bascomb at the International Spy Museum

In 1942, the Nazis were racing to build an atomic bomb. They had the physicists. They had the will. What they didn't have was enough "heavy water," an essential ingredient for their nuclear designs. That changed when they occupied Norway and took control of Vemork hydroelectric plant, the world's sole supplier of heavy water. Join best-selling author Neal Bascomb as he shares highlights from his extensively researched new book, The Winter Fortress, about the daring and successful commando raid on Vemork. During the program, Bascomb will show never-before-seen photos, and the Museum will feature an unusual artifact related to the mission for this one night only. Tickets: $10 per person. Visit www.spymuseum.org

Wednesday, 11 May 2016 - Washington, DC - Night of Heroes Gala - The PenFed Foundation 2016 Gala

PUT THIS DATE ON YOUR CALENDAR and then Join the PenFed Foundation, our partners and friends, Wednesday, 11 May 2016, as we honor those who lead the way in supporting our military and veterans. All proceeds benefit the PenFed Foundation, helping members of the military secure the financial future they deserve.
DINNER ★ HERO AWARDS PRESENTATION ★ LIVE AUCTION
Consider having your corporation or foundation be a sponsor for this worthwhile event. SPONSORSHIP LEVELS are as follows:
$100,000 Circle of Honor; $50,000 Legendary Hero; $25,000 Distinguished Hero; $10,000 Inspirational Hero; $5,000 Patriotic Hero; $1,000 Individual Sponsor
More details coming soon. More info here.
Location: Ronald Reagan Building & International Trade Center, Washington, DC.

15 - 18 May 2016 - Orlando, FL - 2016 USGIF GEOINT Symposium - "The GEOINT Revolution"

The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation's (USGIF) GEOINT 2016 Symposium takes place May 15-18 at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Orlando, FL. The GEOINT 2016 theme is "The GEOINT Revolution" ― in recognition of the advent and confluence of multiple technologies advancing geospatial intelligence and promoting its ubiquity.

Options include GEOINT Foreword, the pre-symposium science and technology-focused day, and some 60 hours of training and education sessions! To explore the main program and the options, visit here.

Thursday, 19 May 2016, 6:30pm - Washington, DC - Anatomy of Malice: The Enigma of the Nazi War Criminals at the International Spy Museum

In 1945, when the Allies convened the Nuremberg trials, a psychiatrist, Douglas Kelley, and a psychologist, Gustave Gilbert, tried to understand the psychology of the Nazi leaders, using extensive psychiatric interviews, IQ tests, and Rorschach tests.  Their findings were so disconcerting that portions of the data were hidden and the research was bitterly disputed. Drawing on decades of experience, Joel E. Dimsdale, distinguished professor emeritus and research professor in psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego, takes a fresh look at the findings and will discuss his complex and troubling quest to make sense of the most extreme evil in his new book Anatomy of Malice. Tickets: $10 per person. Visit www.spymuseum.org

Monday, 27 June 2016, 6:30-9pm - Washington, DC - Lockpicking 101 - International Spy Museum Spy School Workshop

Spying today may seem dominated by the digital realm of hackers, cryptography, and eavesdropping, but the field operative will never go away. In the physical world, where secrets are under lock and key, sometimes the only way in is to pick the lock.
In this workshop, led by Preston Thomas, president of the DC Chapter of The Open Organization Of Lockpickers, you'll learn the art and science of how locks work-and how to open them. From classical picking to field expedient methods, we will survey the tools and techniques necessary to attack many common locks. Try your hand at getting out of handcuffs and zip ties. Discover if you really can escape with just your wits and a bobby pin. Participants will work in small groups getting hands-on practice with lockpicking experts, and once you've got "the touch," you can put your skills to the test against other students.
Location: City Tap House, 901 9th St NW, Washington, DC - Gallery Place/Chinatown Metrorail Station
High-quality lock picking kits will be available to take home after the class for $25 (cash or check). Please email soltmans@spymusem.org if you would like one.
Food and drink will be available for purchase throughout the event.
TICKETS: $35. Space limited to 30 - advance registration required. No tickets available at event. To register contact aabrell@spymuseum.org

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