78 Spy Terms and Spying Jargon

Spy Jargon and Terminology

Spy novels often use language unfamiliar to those new to the reading this genre. Some terms are colorful, imaginative, but all have an intended meaning known to those in the field. I use them a lot in my stories to add that certain flavor, to add authenticity, build suspense, and increase the level of intrigue so the reader identifies with the players.

In my latest novel, The Carrington Prophecy, published in November 2015, I use spy terms liberally.

Here is a  glossary of some spy jargon and after that is an excerpt from The Carrington Prophecy showing that terminology in action.

• Agent/Asset– Person obtaining secrets (intelligence) for a case officer of a clandestine service.
• Birdwatcher– UK term for spy
• Black bag op– Break-in to install eavesdropping equipment
• Black site– Classified interrogation center. (Governments deny its secret existence.)
• Black vault– Intel agency funds unknown to government or outside scrutiny (For example: Laundered, stolen, etc.)
• Blown– Exposed as spy
• Brush pass– Brief contact to exchange physical intel info or documents
• Bug– Covert listening or recording device
• Burnt– Exposed operative
• C31- Command, Control, Communications and Intelligence. This is the military infrastructure for intel service, the heart of the operation.
• Canary trap – Classic method for exposing an information leak. Different versions of intel are distributed to suspects to identify which version gets leaked
• Case officer– Handler or operation officer or controller of an agent or asset
• Christians in action– Slang for CIA
• Center– Moscow headquarters of the KGB
• Cobbler – Passport forger
• Compartmentalization- SCIF (Sensitive Compartmentalized Information Facility) – Soundproof room to exchange secrets on a need to know basis
• Cooked – Intel disinformation passed to a double agent, which contains some verifiable truth to get them to take the bait
• Cousins– Slang for CIA operatives or agents
• Covert – Actions the government will deny knowledge of or responsibility for. (The CIA strives for “Plausible deniability”.)
• CT– Counterterrorism
• Cut-out– Courier or mechanism used to pass info or device in a hostile or ‘denied’ area
• Dangle– A fake defector dispensing disinformation, or spy posing as an informant
• Dead drop– Designated location for dropping of secrets or receiving instructions or money
• Decoy– Person used to distract an adversary
• DEFCON – Defense condition
• DGSE– French intelligence agency
• DIPSEC- Diplomatic security
• Disinformation –  Deliberately releasing false information to mislead the enemy or public
• Doublespeak– Language used to disguise actual meaning. For example, “physical persuasion” instead of torture, “neutralize” instead of kill
• Dry clean – Evade surveillance
• Echelon– A global network of SIGINT agencies specializing in intercepts
• Extraordinary Rendition– Torture by other regimes on the US’s behalf
• False Flag – Diversion tactic. For example, a terror attack actually perpetrated by someone else posing a terrorist, or a recruiting officer deceives you by posing a friendly when in fact working for the enemy
• Floater– Person used sporadically for intelligence operation
• Floating Box– Team surveillance of target from all angles
• Forced disappearance – A person vanishes- murdered, kidnapped, or sequestered
• Got your Six – Got your back
• Gray Mail – Person in position to divulge an intel operation, such as when they are arrested or on trial
• GRU– Main Intelligence Directorate, Russia
• Hard Target-  Person maintaining low profile, secrecy, difficult for surveillance
• Honey Trap – Using sexual settings to lure enemy agent into trap or compromising positions
• Hunting Pack–  Surveillance team
• Infiltration – Penetration or placement of an agent or operative inside adversary’s organization
• Joe – Deep cover agent or operative
• KATSA– Case officer in Mossad
• Legend – Life story created for a covert agent or operative
• Letterbox – Go-between
• MI5– British Security Service (Domestic)
• MI6 – British Secret Intelligence Service (External)
• Mole – Agent who has penetrated organization or group
• Mossad– Israel’s spy agency
• Kidon – Israel’s CT unit
• Naked– Spy without cover
• Nightcrawler – Talent scout looking to recruit assets to spy
• No-Such-Agency– Slang for NSA
• OGA– Other govt agency, which is military slang for the CIA
• One Time Pad – Unbreakable randomly generated code only used once and discarded
• Parole– Password used to confirm ID between agents
• PSYOPS– Psychological operations
• R21– Resistance to interrogation techniques employed after capture
• Semtex -Czech made plastic explosive like C-4
• SERE– Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (Training for Special Forces)
• Shin Bet – Israel’s internal security
• Shoe – False passport
• SIGINT – Signals intelligence/ intercepts (NSA)
• SitRep- Situation report
• Sleeper– Deep cover agent with mission to penetrate highest reaches of target nation or organization- long term project
• Soft Target– Someone not trained to evade surveillance
• Spook – Spy, intelligence officer or operative
• Station– The place a spy operates from, like an Embassy conferring diplomatic immunity if caught
• Stockholm Syndrome– Psychological response where hostage exhibits loyalty to abductor despite danger
• Tango – Target or terrorist
• Terminated– Assassinated
• Traffic Analysis – Communication pattern
• Trade Craft – Proficiency/ experience in espionage
• UAV – Unmanned aerial vehicle / drone
• Wet Job – Murder/ assassination

To show some of this terminology in action, here is an excerpt from The Carrington Prophecy.

CHAPTER 36

CANARY TRAP

NIS-3 – One week later

“It’s difficult to believe it’s her,” Nam said. “Minsuh has been with us fifteen years. There must be some mistake, Kim. She has a top-secret clearance, has been exceedingly well vetted. I’ve never questioned her loyalty.”

Kim wasn’t surprised to see that Nam was clearly shaken by the revelation that his private secretary was the mole inside NIS. Kim had been just as shocked when he’d first realized it was Minsuh.

“Are you certain of this?” Nam added. “Possess ironclad evidence of her treachery? This is a very serious charge.”

“I know it’s difficult to accept, Director. Lee Minsuh would be last on my list of suspects, but we set traps for those with access to knowledge that Biff Roberts was here last May, someone in a position to tip off Jin-Ju, enabling him to set up the hit job on the CIA director. We narrowed the suspects to six, and we’ve been closely monitoring them in a sting operation, a canary trap.”

Nam frowned, clearly not wanting to believe the news. “How did you conclude she was the mole?”

“She was in the office when Roberts and his staff first arrived, had the most exposure to him, and overheard our conversation before we went into the sensitive compartmental information facility to discuss highly classified intelligence.” Kim paused. “Since she and the others were not allowed in the SCIF, I am certain that our detailed discussion of the North Korean EMP threat remains secure.”

“I certainly hope so,” Director Nam commented. “If not, we’re in for a huge disappointment, to put it mildly. But, get back to my question.”

“I understand the dire implications of a leak of that nature, sir. Let me explain the situation further, and you’ll follow my line of reasoning in bagging her. Over three months ago, we set traps for her and the five others, but nothing happened to implicate anyone during that time period. So we set up another deception to snare anyone privy to Roberts’ planned arrival on this trip, figuring they wouldn’t miss the opportunity to pass on that bit of private information. We gave different versions of sensitive details of his trip to each suspected leaker to see which version got leaked.”

Nam nodded approvingly. “A classic canary trap, MI6 would be proud of your plan.” It was an old bit of spy craft, popularized in Clancy novels, but highly effective. His deputy was on the ball.

“Thank you, sir. The other five were cleared, not her. She’s clever, but we nabbed her this time. She obviously leaks information sparingly, not even on a monthly basis. Only divulges information when something big is brewing, like the CIA’s CT Director’s present visit.”

“And?”

“Look at this, Director,” Kim said, handing him a transcript.

<JOE-HE’S BACK>

“You got this off her computer? An intercept?’’

“Yes, we hacked the message she emailed to a deep cover agent. I suspect ‘Joe’ is code for Jin-Ju, the block cutout for the North Korean spy network operating in ROK. She’s the letterbox, a chain cutout, merely a courier to pass information—a mole, not an operative. That’s my theory at this point. She sent the message to a Dropbox address.”

“Dropbox?”

“A computer site on the cloud to maintain privacy, store data, park information, you know, a cyberspace location, suited for modern spy stuff not requiring cryptography.”

“I don’t know,” Nam admitted, “but go on.”

“The method does not necessarily provide high security to prevent tracing, however it acts as an effective interface. She posts the message there. Joe picks it up. It’s a simple, convenient form of communication between them. The transaction is not shrouded in secrecy, so it’s counterintuitive that someone would suspect a nefarious motive, think to look for it there.”

“Interesting concept, perhaps that’s the case. I agree, she’s just an asset, not an agent, so she keeps it simple, no cryptograms. So you’re telling me you’ve tapped into her computer?’’

“Yes, hers and the other five suspects are hacked, being monitored.”

“Think she’s wise to this maneuver? Suspect we’re watching her?’’

“Doubt it. Shall I arrest her for treason before she does any more damage?’’

Nam contemplated Kim’s question at length. Which course of action should he pursue? He considered the risks and benefits involved in managing her case. This dilemma was sticky, personal. He decided to take a pragmatic approach.

“I think we have other options, solutions more practical in nature, Kim. If we arrest her and put her on trial for treason, we risk a graymail defense exposing our sources and methods. And, we’d be subjected to bad publicity, worst case scenario, alerting our adversaries we’re on to them, sending them to ground.” Nam paused. “After consideration, I favor either a forced disappearance—have her simply vanish from public view without a trace—or confronting her with the incriminating evidence and convince her to participate in a honeypot operation rather than face elimination. That should be an easy choice.”

“She’s an attractive woman,” Kim said, nodding. “I’m sure she’d choose to cooperate in trying to lure Jin-Ju, her Joe, to a meeting, enabling us to capture him. After working here fifteen years, she understands the implications of a forced disappearance, Director. Doubt she’d go that route.”

“Surely she’ll recognize we’ve caught her red-handed and will seek a way out. We’ll offer her one she can’t refuse. When confronted, I’m certain she’ll cooperate. She’s a one-dimensional asset, not an operative willing to die spying for North Korea. I assume she has limited knowledge of their network, so nothing would be gained by enhanced interrogation. You said she just passes snippets of information right under our nose to some cyberspace dead drop in coded, ambiguous language?”

“Yes, she’s a birdwatcher.”

“I imagine she could summon him to a personal get together, hinting that NIS is searching for a mole, and they need to change their method of communication. Suggest rotating the site on a prearranged pattern. Request a personal discussion, then have her show up in a sexy outfit. Like you said, she’s just a letterbox, a go-between, but she’d be attractive bait. I’m still curious she never used cryptograms.”

“She’d established credibility here. The cloud has worked well for years probably. No reason to change the game plan. When Roberts’ NSA cipher expert, Rokman, breaks the encryption on Hwan’s hard drive, we’ll have a better insight into their network’s communication scheme. Minsuh probably didn’t want to risk arousing our suspicions by sending cryptograms directly to Jin-Ju. She definitely worked off the cloud drop box and he retrieved it from there. Forensics is tracing the address of her last communication. We’re all over it.”

“Okay. We’ll convince her to set up a rendezvous with Jin-Ju. Train her to memorize a convincing script. Let’s go with the honeypot scheme, Kim.”

“Consider it done.”