David Kahn is the author of the classic book The Codebreakers. When it was first published in 1967, the National Security Agency was concerned that the book might reveal sensitive secrets. Over the years, however, NSA changed from perceiving Kahn as “an enemy of the people” to depending on him as a popularizer of codebreaking. Join Peter and David Kahn as they discuss Kahn’s career, some of the greatest triumphs of American signals intelligence history, and the challenges facing today’s codebrea...
Dec 06, 2010•22 min•Ep. 61
Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service, better known as MI6, is James Bond’s home agency and one of the world’s most secretive organizations. The British government did not even admit that it existed until the 1990s. Yet, in connection with its centennial year, the service has commissioned an outside scholar to write an official history of its first forty years. Peter chats with Professor Keith Jeffery, the only outsider who has ever seen the MI6 archives and given their penchant for secrecy perh...
Nov 01, 2010•32 min•Ep. 60
American diplomats Mark and Cora Lijek were hiding at the home of a Canadian diplomat as the Iranian Revolution swirled around them. Peter continues his discussion with the Lijeks and also welcomes Tony Mendez, the CIA officer who led the daring operation to bring them home. Hear how they escaped the country posing as Hollywood filmmakers and the joy they felt as they finally left Iranian airspace. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 14, 2010•26 min•Ep. 59
When Iranian militants stormed the US Embassy in Tehran, Mark and Cora Lijek and four other American diplomats slipped out a side exit and found themselves on the run in a hostile country. Before long, Canadian diplomats gave them shelter but now they had to avoid discovery while Washington hatched an audacious plan to rescue them. The Lijeks discuss with Peter their ordeal and how they prepared to escape. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 28, 2010•28 min•Ep. 58
Today Peter converses with Dino Brugioni, a pioneer of the art of photo interpretation and a living legend of the US Intelligence Community. Dino shares his personal experiences briefing Presidents and describes the role that he and overhead photography played in such seminal Cold War events as the “missile gap” and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Dino Brugioni has looked inside the most secret places on earth…from above.. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Aug 16, 2010•38 min•Ep. 57
A young student in the US when the Iranian Revolution happened in 1979, Reza Kahlili rejoiced and hurried back to his native country, but he soon found that "every promise that Khomeini had made was vividly a lie." In the early 1980s, he made contact with the CIA, agreeing to risk his life and his family's wellbeing as a spy within Iran. He discusses with Peter how he burrowed inside the regime's elite Revolutionary Guard to report what he found, balancing his constant fear against his Persian p...
Jul 21, 2010•31 min•Ep. 56
Two weeks ago on 27 June, the FBI arrested a network of 10 Russian "deep cover" spies. Peter sits down with former KGB Major General Oleg Kalugin to discuss this remarkable case and the historic spy swap which took place last Friday. Kalugin, who once ran agents in the United States, is forthright in expressing his views about what this case says about the state of Russian intelligence today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jul 12, 2010•30 min•Ep. 55
Mosab Hassan Yousef was the nearest thing to royalty in the terrorist group Hamas: the son of one of its founding members. He was also a spy for Shin Bet, Israel's internal security agency, which dubbed him the "Green Prince." Today Mosab and his Shin Bet handler sit down with Peter to discuss their dangerous game and his book Son of Hamas. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jul 02, 2010•50 min•Ep. 54
Martha Peterson, a 32 year CIA veteran, was the first female case officer assigned to Moscow. Today she talks with Peter about her sudden capture by the Soviet KGB while executing a covert operation in Moscow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jun 04, 2010•33 min•Ep. 53
In 1973 Captain Gail Harris became the first woman to hold a combat intelligence job in the U.S. Navy. Her 28 year career included hands-on leadership in the intelligence community during every major conflict from the Cold War to Desert Storm to Kosovo. Today, she discusses with Peter her unique experience providing intelligence support to military operations and the challenges of developing policies for defense against cyber warfare. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoice...
May 07, 2010•24 min•Ep. 52
Shane Harris is a staff correspondent for National Journal and the former technology editor of Government Executive magazine. In his new book, The Watchers, he chronicles the government’s efforts to create a computer system capable of analyzing data and identifying terrorist activity. Harris contends that while pinpointing threats remains difficult, the governments can now spy on U.S. citizens with ease. He joins Peter today to discuss the evolution of surveillance, America’s changing views on p...
Apr 19, 2010•27 min•Ep. 51
Elizabeth Macintosh continues to offer her insights into OSS. This time, she talks about the many fascinating and colorful people she met at OSS, including Director William “Wild Bill” Donovan and Virginia Hall. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 01, 2010•25 min•Ep. 50
Dr. Herbert Lin is chief scientist at the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board, National Research Council of the National Academies. An expert on cyber security, Herb discusses various aspects of cyber attacks, including ways in which cyber weapons can be used for covert action. To view his co-edited report on this subject, visit: http://www.anagram.com/berson/nrcoiw.pdf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 17, 2010•26 min•Ep. 49
Melissa Mahle served from 1988-2002 at the CIA, much of the time as a case officer dealing with terrorist issues in the Middle East, running agents and gathering intelligence. Today, she discusses with Peter her perspective on the recent suicide bombing of a CIA base in Afghanistan, the perils of collecting intelligence in a war zone, as well as the terrorist challenge. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jan 20, 2010•30 min•Ep. 48
The U.S. authorities' failure to prevent a Nigerian suicide bomber from boarding a Detroit-bound plane on Christmas Day, and the suicide bombing at a CIA base in Afghanistan have roiled the intelligence community. International Spy Museum historian Dr. Thomas Boghardt discusses with SpyCast host and CIA veteran Peter Earnest how these incidents unfolded and their implications for intelligence reform. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jan 08, 2010•19 min•Ep. 47
Elizabeth Macintosh served in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during World War II. Today, she discusses her personal experience working for OSS, the role of women in it, as well as some of the agency’s most exciting operations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jan 01, 2010•25 min•Ep. 46
This year, Britain’s domestic security service, MI5, celebrates its 100th anniversary. Cambridge University professor Christopher Andrew, the author of MI5’s official history, Defend the Realm, reveals the agency’s strengths and weaknesses, and relates some of the most intriguing stories involving Britain’s spy catchers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Dec 01, 2009•28 min•Ep. 45
Melissa Hathaway served as acting senior director for cyberspace for the National Security Council, heading a 60-Day Cyberspace Policy Review for President Obama that resulted in a comprehensive report with recommendations for action. Today, she discusses the massive and growing challenges of cyberspace—such as identity theft, cyber espionage, and cyber wars—and what needs to be done to deal with this threat. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nov 01, 2009•31 min•Ep. 44
How has the sustained U.S. effort to destroy Al Qaeda affected the terrorist organization, and how important is the current struggle against the Taliban in Afghanistan for the future of Al Qaeda? A former Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Combating Terrorism, Juan C. Zarate discusses America’s struggle with Al Qaeda and comments on the organization’s current state. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 01, 2009•27 min•Ep. 43
Could intelligence have prevented the terrorist attacks of 9/11, and has the Intelligence Community been sufficiently reformed to deal with current and future threats? These are the questions that Amy Zegart discusses on the eighth anniversary of 9/11. An intelligence scholar, Amy has worked on President Clinton’s National Security Council and is currently teaching intelligence and national security at UCLA. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 11, 2009•24 min•Ep. 42
Since biblical times, spies and intelligence services have used sexual entrapment and emotional blackmail to recruit agents and gather secret information. International Spy Museum advisory board member and espionage author H. Keith Melton discusses the means, methods, and effectiveness of “sexpionage,” and elaborates on specific examples, such as the Russian honeytrap and the East German Romeo agent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 01, 2009•25 min•Ep. 41
In the 1930s, five young Cambridge University students were recruited by Soviet intelligence to penetrate the British intelligence community. In the course of their decade-long espionage career, the Five did enormous damage to Western security. British intelligence author Nigel West examines their motivations and activities, and reveals new evidence he has unearthed in Soviet intelligence archives. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Aug 15, 2009•26 min•Ep. 40
Richard H. Cummings served for fifteen years as Director of Security for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). He reviews the propaganda activities of RFE/RL during the Cold War and describes Soviet bloc operations against the stations, including the 1978 murder of RFE scriptwriter Georgi Markov in London, and the 1981 bombing of RFE/RL headquarters in Munich by the terrorist Carlos the Jackal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Aug 01, 2009•28 min•Ep. 39
"Pakistan is the most dangerous country in the world today," asserts Bruce Riedel, a 30-year CIA veteran and currently a senior fellow at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution. Bruce discusses the various threats emanating from Pakistan, including the rise of the Taliban, the security of the country’s nuclear weapons, the murky role of its Inter-Services Intelligence agency (ISI), and the precarious relationship with neighboring India. Learn more about your ad choi...
Jul 01, 2009•28 min•Ep. 38
Cyber threats, information warfare, and internet espionage are growing challenges for business companies, private individuals, and the intelligence community alike. A former CIA operations officer and current president of the cyber intelligence company Cyveillance, Dr. Terry Gudaitis discusses specific examples of cyber threats as well as techniques to counter them. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jun 15, 2009•27 min•Ep. 37
The National Security Agency (NSA), America’s premier cryptanalytic organization, is the largest and most secretive member of the American intelligence community. Discussing NSA’s mission, capabilities, and past exploits, former NSA Chief of Information Policy Mike Levin reveals some of the mysterious agency’s secrets. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jun 01, 2009•22 min•Ep. 36
A West Point graduate, Brian G. Shellum was U.S. Army attaché in Germany, served in the armed forces during the first Gulf War, and worked for over a decade as historian for the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). Today, Brian discusses the history and purpose of American military intelligence, describing the DIA and the role of the military attachés posted abroad. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
May 01, 2009•27 min•Ep. 35
Rear-Admiral Donald Mac Showers joined the U.S. Navy’s codebreakers at Pearl Harbor in 1942 and went on to serve three decades in the American intelligence community. Today, he talks about the contribution of codebreaking to the defeat of Japanese naval forces at Midway in 1942, and he reveals how cryptanalysts helped U.S. forces locate and kill Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the mastermind of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Apr 14, 2009•31 min•Ep. 34
During the Cold War, Soviet intelligence used disinformation to malign the United States, for example, by spreading the rumor that AIDS resulted from U.S. Army bacteriological warfare experiments. U.S. State Department Counter-Misinformation officer Todd Leventhal discusses some of the most notorious Soviet-inspired conspiracy theories and explains how the United States sought to counter them. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Apr 01, 2009•31 min•Ep. 33
What makes conspiracy theories so appealing, and why have they become so prevalent in this day and age? Do some of them contain a grain of truth? And who stands to gain from spreading these ideas? To answer these questions, Peter interviews Professor Robert Alan Goldberg, author of Enemies Within, and a leading authority on conspiracy thinking. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 04, 2009•27 min•Ep. 32
