Intelligence Collection Disciplines
The government of the United States has since past years relied on intelligence to discover and abort terrorists’ mission. In particular, the Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) has shown success in tracking down terrorists. For instance, the 2009 plots to bomb the New York City subway and the Danish news publisher were aborted through the use of Signals Intelligence which collects information (“Director James R. Clapper Interview with Andrea Mitchell,”2013). Various departments of the Intelligence Community (IC) have access to the Intelligence Collection Disciplines (INTs). These tools are available in the U.S to aid government in accomplishing the objective of eliminating terrorism within and outside the country.
Some of these capabilities which would have been effective in collecting information during the two events include Human Intelligence (HUMINT), Measurement and Signatures Intelligence (MASINT), and Open Source Intelligence (OSINT). Human intelligence is mainly used by diplomats and military officers who have been appointed or volunteered to collect information in foreign countries (“LibGuides: Intelligence Studies: Types of Intelligence Collection,” 2019). They have the capabilities of reaching out to many people thus collecting much information without necessarily being discovered. The HUMINT collectors can be able to verify the information they access thus making it a reliable method. This could be effective in the case of the Danish Newspaper publisher plot.
Furthermore, MASINT collection could be used to collect information about the New York City subway bombing. The discipline is used to define the capabilities of weapons and their distinctive features. It collects information through qualitative and quantitative analysis of primary data(“LibGuides: Intelligence Studies: Types of Intelligence Collection,” 2019). It has the ability to process data that has been collected by other intelligence disciplines such as the SIGINT. The bombs which were planted on the subway could have been recognized early and actions are taken without causing tension to the public.
The OSINT could have helped in confirming the plans of the terrorists of bombing the New York City subway. Since the main suspect had lived in America for some time, he might have exposed some details of his plot to a public source. OSINT collects information from materials that are available and accessible by the public (“Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin”). The discipline mostly uses electronic databases since people nowadays communicate through the web. Additionally, it has the ability to provide the most confidential information of an organization.
Various types of information are likely to be collected by intelligence. The HUMINT collects information from human sources about the activities of a foreign power (“Members of the IC”). It digs deep into the operations of the military and the activities of the high-level officials of the government. The MASINT collects systematic and technical information from scientific sensors so that they can identify the specific factors associated with the source emitter. The OSINT collects specific information about the organization’s operations, technical activities, and research actions which are unavailable in any other outline.
Although the disciplines have potential success in providing information, they are affected by several limitations. Since HUMINT collects information from a foreign country, the information is often difficult to verify. Also, it cannot be expected to collect information about local people since it involves people of higher ranks. The MASINT cannot collect the precise location of the sensors or the person handling it and thus, the terrorists are untraceable (“Sources of Intelligence – USAF Intelligence Targeting Guide,”). Besides, the information generated might be difficult to apply since it is technical. The OSINT is restricted to collect information about the military since the public materials available do not give real information. Therefore, it might provide deceptive and incredible information.
Analysis of the information from the INTs follows five basic steps. First, there is the planning and direction. The concerned department of IC defines what is to be done and how it will be done. A specific path is then taken to accomplish the task. The team determines what is available and the required information and concludes on the INT to use. Secondly, there is a collection of information openly and covertly (“Sources of Intelligence – USAF Intelligence Targeting Guide”). This is done from public sources, images, and scientific sources. The third step is processing the information that has been composed. The fourth step involves analyzing and producing information. A thorough Assessment is done and determination of how the information fits the task. The final step is the dissemination of the analysis to the person who initiated the process. If the policy is good, it is implemented but if the policymakers find it ineffective, they may request a repeat of the procedure.
The gap between the collection and analysis capabilities of the Intelligence Community occurs due to the time of reporting information and the sources used to collect it. Some of the sources are unreliable thus their information cannot be used to solve present-day issues. The time of reporting also matters in the analysis process since the effect of the final policy defines the success of the whole mission (“Issues for the US Intelligence Community — Central Intelligence Agency,” 2019). The Intelligence Community has consistently not been able to close this gap because it does not have enough resources to facilitate the immediate reporting of information. Additionally, the systems do not support large volumes of information thus the collected information is not analyzed in time. This has exposed the United States to the threat of terrorism thus compromising its national security.
To conclude, the Intelligence Community has made efforts in discovering and disrupting the terrorists’ plans. Application of the Intelligence Collection Disciplines has prevented several attacks within and outside the U.S. However, more improvement is required for these tactics to be fully effective in information collection.
References
Director James R. Clapper Interview with Andrea Mitchell. (2013). Retrieved from https://www.dni.gov/index.php/newsroom/speeches-interviews/speeches-interviews-2013/item/874-director-james-r-clapper-interview-with-andrea-mitchell
Issues for the US Intelligence Community — Central Intelligence Agency. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol49no3/html_files/Collection_Analysis_Iraq_5.htm
LibGuides: Intelligence Studies: Types of Intelligence Collection. (2019, October 8). Retrieved from https://usnwc.libguides.com/c.php?g=494120&p=3381426
Members of the IC. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.dni.gov/index.php/what-we-do/members-of-the-ic
Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://fas.org/irp/agency/army/mipb/
Sources of Intelligence – USAF Intelligence Targeting Guide. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://fas.org/irp/doddir/usaf/afpam14-210/part16.htm#page142
