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Cyberattacks and “Dirty Hands”: Cyberwar, Cybercrime, or Covert Political Action?

Seumas Miller

in Binary Bullets: The Ethics of Cyberwarfare

Cyberwar is a new form of conflict. Contemporary nation-states and, for that matter, nonstate actors such as corporations, now suffer and inflict ongoing cyberattacks on a large scale. Whether these ... More

Cyberwar is a new form of conflict. Contemporary nation-states and, for that matter, nonstate actors such as corporations, now suffer and inflict ongoing cyberattacks on a large scale. Whether these attacks constitute war rather than conflict short of war or mere breaches of security (criminal or otherwise) is not always entirely clear. This chapter distinguishes between cyberwar, cyberterrorism, cybercrime, cyberespionage, and what the chapter refers to as “covert political cyberaction”—a species of covert political action. The chapter argues that many, if not most, cyberattacks perpetrated by nation-states on other nation-states for political reasons are best understood neither as acts of war nor as crimes but rather as a new form of covert political action—that of covert political cyberaction. The chapter argues that much covert political cyberaction is best understood as a species of dirty hands action; harmful and unlawful action undertaken to achieve an (alleged) greater good.Less

Behind the Scenes

William J. Rust

in Before the Quagmire: American Intervention in Laos, 1954-1961

Following the November 1957 Vientiane agreement between the RLG and Pathet Lao, Prime Minister Souvanna Phouma traveled to Washington, D.C., to defend his coalition government before skeptical ... More

Following the November 1957 Vientiane agreement between the RLG and Pathet Lao, Prime Minister Souvanna Phouma traveled to Washington, D.C., to defend his coalition government before skeptical Eisenhower administration officials. To assist conservative Lao candidates in the May 1958 elections, U.S. policymakers put the CIA in charge of a village-aid program called Booster Shot. Like the agency's civic action program, a counter-subversion initiative with an ostensibly humanitarian purpose, Booster Shot is hampered by misunderstandings and poor coordination among U.S. and Lao officials. Central Intelligence Director Allen W. Dulles is profiled, and his emphasis on covert action is discussed. Another focus of the chapter is the toxic relationship between U.S. and French officials, who disagreed sharply over Lao political leadership, military assistance to the kingdom, and other issues.Less

“Talking about Capturing bin Laden”: The Clinton Administration and the Legal Architecture of Lethal Force in Counterterrorism, 1993–2000

Christopher J. Fuller

in See It/Shoot It: The Secret History of the CIA's Lethal Drone Program

This chapter addresses the notion that the CIA's drone campaign lacks appropriate congressional oversight and domestic legal authorization, instead revealing that the agency sought extensive legal ... More

This chapter addresses the notion that the CIA's drone campaign lacks appropriate congressional oversight and domestic legal authorization, instead revealing that the agency sought extensive legal cover from both the executive branch and Congress before undertaking its role as aerial executioner. Introducing the concept of the covert action pendulum, the chapter argues that a historic cycle of agency excess followed by a backlash of congressional investigation and subsequently increased oversight became established. It also examines how the hard-learned lessons from these pendulum swings prompted Langley's cautious managers to insist upon the creation of the complex legal architecture that now underwrites the United States' drone campaign.Less

Covert Warriors for Hire

Kyle Burke

in Revolutionaries for the Right: Anticommunist Internationalism and Paramilitary Warfare in the Cold War

In the late 1970s, a new set of Americans took up the dream of a global anticommunist revolution. Many were high-ranking CIA and military officers who had been forced from their jobs by the Ford and ... More

In the late 1970s, a new set of Americans took up the dream of a global anticommunist revolution. Many were high-ranking CIA and military officers who had been forced from their jobs by the Ford and Carter administrations in the wake of the Vietnam War. As Congress passed new laws constraining the United States’ clandestine services, these ex-soldiers and spies argued that the state’s deteriorating covert war-making abilities signaled a broader decline in U.S. power. To remedy that, retired covert warriors such as U.S. Army General John Singlaub, a thirty-year veteran of special operations, entered the world of conservative activism, which promised both steady pay and power in retirement. Working in the shadow of the state, they sought to revitalize a form of combat to which they had dedicated their lives. Some even started private military firms to fill in for the U.S. government. Meanwhile, hundreds of American men, mostly disgruntled Vietnam veterans, sought new lives as mercenaries, first in Southeast Asia and then in Rhodesia and Angola. In the late 1970s, these two camps of revanchist Americans—retired covert warriors and aspiring mercenaries—established patterns of paramilitarism that would transform the anticommunist international in the Reagan era.Less

Introduction

Michael Poznansky

in In the Shadow of International Law: Secrecy and Regime Change in the Postwar World

This chapter introduces the central question at the heart of this book, namely why leaders sometimes opt for covert action when pursuing regime change rather than pursuing overt alternatives. It ... More

This chapter introduces the central question at the heart of this book, namely why leaders sometimes opt for covert action when pursuing regime change rather than pursuing overt alternatives. It begins with several empirical puzzles. For example, why did the United States openly help overthrow Muammar Gaddafi in Libya in 2011 but opt for covert action in the quest to topple Bashar al-Assad in Syria a year later despite the fact that both episodes involved humanitarian catastrophes spurred on by brutal dictators with a history of acrimonious relations with the West? The remainder of the chapter summarizes the book’s central theoretical argument, defines key terms, explains the importance of studying the phenomenon under investigation, and highlights the primary scholarly contributions. It also provides a roadmap for each of the subsequent chapters contained in the rest of the book.Less

Overt and Covert American Actions In the German Fine Arts

in Capturing the German Eye: American Visual Propaganda in Occupied Germany

This chapter describes overt and covert American actions in the German fine arts. The discreet and understated combination of overt and covert measures provided a model of intellectual warfare and ... More

This chapter describes overt and covert American actions in the German fine arts. The discreet and understated combination of overt and covert measures provided a model of intellectual warfare and cultural control that later became—greatly developed and lavishly funded—the modus operandi of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in the cultural field. Prolog is a prototypical “private” operation in the cultural field. The Cold War developed a space for Germans to negotiate with their military occupiers. The covert manipulation of individuals and groups in order to transform them into political assets became the standard American strategy in the cultural field. The Blevins Davis Prize was a cultural turning point for Western Germany. Kultur could be a source of pride and national identity for Germans seeking a cultural patrimony free from the scourge of National Socialism. The reemergence of modern art in West Germany was fraught with difficulties.Less

Intelligence Communities and International Law: A Comparative Approach

Ashley S. Deeks

in Comparative International Law

The lack of certainty about the precise status of various intelligence activities in international law fosters conditions under which states can choose—and have chosen—different paths through the ... More

The lack of certainty about the precise status of various intelligence activities in international law fosters conditions under which states can choose—and have chosen—different paths through the thicket. This chapter compares how certain states’ intelligence communities (ICs) approach their international law obligations. The United Kingdom asserts that its IC’s activities comply with international law. The United States, in contrast, implies that certain IC actions may violate international law, though it avoids specific public statements about such deviations. This chapter identifies and analyzes the problems and benefits posed by the competing approaches and offers lessons about the capacity of international law to constrain core national security activities.Less

A Second Retreat

Loch K. Johnson

in The Threat on the Horizon: An Inside Account of America's Search for Security after the Cold War

This chapter focuses on the Aspin-Brown Commission's retreat in Leesburg, its second after a similar retreat at Camp Peary near Williamsburg; both venues are in Virginia. The chapter first considers ... More

This chapter focuses on the Aspin-Brown Commission's retreat in Leesburg, its second after a similar retreat at Camp Peary near Williamsburg; both venues are in Virginia. The chapter first considers the commission's preparation of its options papers, including “The Consumer-Producer Relationship,” before turning to a discussion of its sessions with expert witnesses. It then looks at the topics tackled by the commission during the retreat, from economic intelligence to covert action and National Intelligence Estimates. It also discusses the reform agenda of Central Intelligence Agency director John Mark Deutch before concluding with an assessment of the approaches proposed by lawmakers with regards to intelligence oversight.Less

The Dark Side of Neverland

Deborah Shnookal

in Operation Pedro Pan and the Exodus of Cuba's Children

Operation Pedro Pan is shown in this chapter to be both the result of and an integral part of the CIA’s covert action program to undermine and overthrow the revolutionary government in Cuba, ... More

Operation Pedro Pan is shown in this chapter to be both the result of and an integral part of the CIA’s covert action program to undermine and overthrow the revolutionary government in Cuba, beginning with the attempted invasion at the Bay of Pigs and later with Operation Mongoose. The author describes how the children’s departures were dependent on the anti-Castro movement networks run by Ramon Grau and others closely linked to the CIA. She also shows how the Pedro Pan children were used in Washington’s international propaganda war against the Cuban revolution and in the United States as a response to domestic resentment against Cuban refugees, as well as how the young Cubans were even regarded as potential “freedom fighters” or spies against Castro.Less

Introduction

Javier Auyero and Katherine Sobering

in The Ambivalent State: Police-Criminal Collusion at the Urban Margins

The introduction begins with the story of Carolina, a mother who struggles with her son’s addiction to paco, a cheap and pernicious drug that is increasingly common in the poor neighborhood where she ... More

The introduction begins with the story of Carolina, a mother who struggles with her son’s addiction to paco, a cheap and pernicious drug that is increasingly common in the poor neighborhood where she lives. In describing her plight, Carolina articulates what constitutes the empirical object of this book: the illicit collaboration between police and drug dealers. The remainder of this chapter sets up the focus on not only overt and visible state interventions, but also the clandestine, hidden relations that structure life at the urban margins. To do so, it introduces the book’s unique combination of data: ethnographic evidence in a poor neighborhood combined with an original legal archive of court cases and, in particular, highly revealing wiretapped phone conversations between drug market actors and agents of the state. It concludes with an overview of the book and a note on the ethics of studying poverty and violence.Less