When people say ‘they are watching’ who exactly do they mean?
Signals intelligence gets a bad rap. From 1984 to Edward Snowden, fear of surveillance characterizes how average citizens all over the globe consider the work of intelligence agencies. A big monolith that has the power to peer into the lives of anyone it chooses.
Since I think the work of signals intelligence is pretty useful and necessary for maintaining our sovereignty, I thought I’d debunk the Big Brother myth.
The first thing to remember is that signals intelligence agencies are populated by citizens of the country they work for. Here in Canada, they mostly live in Ottawa and do things like drive their kids to hockey practice, buy groceries on the way home, or bike at the weekends. Spies are just as affected by inflation and weather and the availability of public transportation.
The next important aspect of signals intelligence (SIGINT) is understanding the diversity of skills and knowledge that’s needed to perform it effectively.
First, you have to collect the data. That’s done by machines and programs that are designed by engineers. Most data these days is encrypted, so then you have to decrypt the data. That’s done by mathematicians. Then you have to process the data – more engineers, but also policy people to make sure privacy and targeting rules are embedded into the systems. In Canada, it’s illegal for SIGINT systems to target Canadians. And why would they anyway? Who wants to target themselves?
Next comes translation, so you’ve got to have people who speak the language of the targets. That bleeds into analysis – lots of different backgrounds here, but usually people who are good at puzzles. Once reports are created they have to get to agencies who can use the information. For that you have people who are good at relationships and communication.
Beyond the SIGINT process itself, there are loads of support structures that keep the business running. Legal, compliance, HR, security, cleaners. It’s a complicated machine, signals intelligence.
So to answer the question, who spies? Well, in signals intelligence, it depends on what part of the process you’re looking in on. But no matter where you peek in, it’s pretty obvious that no one person has total power, and the sheer diversity of people involved means it’s next to impossible for any single person to control the system. Which is good news for everyone. Even spies.
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Read This: One Day in August by David O’Keefe. Many Canadians know the tragedy that was the attempted invasion at Dieppe on the shores of France in 1942. Why did we go there? It was so heavily fortified, what did we hope to achieve? Was it just the senseless sacrifice of Canadian lives to test German defences? I’ve been to the Canadian cemetery at Dieppe and the experience still brings tears to my eyes.
O’Keefe’s book argues that Dieppe was a signals intelligence mission. It’s a genuinely fascinating perspective, showcasing the role of intelligence in war and giving food for thought on how valuable good information really is.
Thanks for giving me the gift of your time.
Rhiannon