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Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

npr.org

11–20 of 159 posts

Re: Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

#11

I wonder if they give a class in juggalo paint at the farm, and other means of bypassing facial recognition programs. The tenure of a field operative these days must be incredibly short

They've certainly gone to similar lengths in the past: see https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/meet-the-cias-disguise-art..., for instance.

Re: Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

#12
to "the Farm," a secret CIA facility in Virginia where their grueling training included all the obligatory skills of what Fox refers to as "the Bond business": how to flip or crash a car; how to use a Glock; how to parachute; how to use a speedboat; how to withstand torture; how to use a grocery bag and duct tape to bandage a punctured chest; and how to commit suicide

This is over-egging the pudding a bit.

Re: Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

#13

>and how to commit suicide. And that's when I'd come to my senses, realize all the sweet talk they lured me in with was rubbish, and hand in my 2 second resignation notice, if an employer is going to train me on how to end my own life I'm out.

Some things are worse than suicide.

Re: Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

#14

to "the Farm," a secret CIA facility in Virginia where their grueling training included all the obligatory skills of what Fox refers to as "the Bond business": how to flip or crash a car; how to use a Glock; how to parachute; how to use a speedboat; how to withstand torture; how to use a grocery bag and duct tape to bandage a punctured chest; and how to commit suicide This is over-egging the pudding a bit.

You'd think the "commit suicide" lesson would just be "perform any of the prior taught skills not well enough."

Re: Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

#16
post #14

to "the Farm," a secret CIA facility in Virginia where their grueling training included all the obligatory skills of what Fox refers to as "the Bond business": how to flip or crash a car; how to use a Glock; how to parachute; how to use a speedboat; how to withstand torture; how to use a grocery bag and duct tape to bandage a punctured chest; and how to commit suicide This is over-egging the pudding a bit.

You'd think the "commit suicide" lesson would just be "perform any of the prior taught skills not well enough."

You laugh, but this story from a few months ago is crazy https://nypost.com/2019/07/24/fbi-agent-brother-to-cop-accus...

Some redditors who were at the bar posted on how he was with agents that were bartenders

Re: Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

#17

This is well known but often ignored for convenience. Go to any restaurant in the DC area around lunchtime and you'd be amazed at what you can learn from the table next to you.

https://thefederalist.com/2018/11/07/incoming-democrat-chair...

Overheard on Amtrak in some cases (strange since Amtrak does offer roomettes).

Re: Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

#18
post #8

I wonder what criteria is used to determine "the most operationally optimal seat in the restaurant". If it's a standard formula that most agents use because it's tried and true, then it could be viable to bug one or two tables in select restaurants in the DC area. Basically, cast a wide net and see what information you get. Same could apply at restaurants where business deals are discussed in order to perform insider…

por que no los dos?

Re: Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

#19

This is well known but often ignored for convenience. Go to any restaurant in the DC area around lunchtime and you'd be amazed at what you can learn from the table next to you.

This is very much in the security training government and military have to take annually as well.

Re: Eat, Drink and Be Wary: Ex-CIA Officer Reveals How Eateries Are Key to Spycraft

#20
post #8

I wonder what criteria is used to determine "the most operationally optimal seat in the restaurant". If it's a standard formula that most agents use because it's tried and true, then it could be viable to bug one or two tables in select restaurants in the DC area. Basically, cast a wide net and see what information you get. Same could apply at restaurants where business deals are discussed in order to perform insider…

Moore's Law says you now bug every restaurant table in DC.
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