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(U) Collaboration, It's the Bomb
FROM:
Analysis & Production Operations Staff (S2041)
Run Date: 12/01/2004
IC analysts compare notes, swap knowledge to make sense of intelligence (U//FOUO)
(S//SI) Have you ever wanted to contact counterparts in the Intelligence Community (IC) to ask
questions that would enhance your SIGINT analysis? Questions like:
Is this image in my traffic a warhead, or a newfangled blender?
Is this really a beer fermenter, or some sort of dual-use technology?
Do you have any information that would support our theory that this charitable
organization is a front for terrorism?
(S//SI) NSA analysts have long recognized the need to proactively collaborate with Intelligence
Community (IC) partners in order to improve intelligence. These same analysts, who have in the
past found creative and effective ways to partner, are now meeting the challenge of
implementing the Director's Transformation 2.0. With new, easy-to-follow instructions (see
Information Sharing Card --"go infoshare"), partnering through information sharing and analytic
collaboration is now becoming the norm, not the exception. We would like to share a few
"success stories" with you:
(S//SI) Analysts from China and Korea Product Line posted information for counterparts
at Department of Energy (DOE) in a common analytic space. The traffic only had a nondescript title and a curve. Instead of not reporting the traffic or putting out a report that
says, "here's an unidentified curve," the partners, working together, were able to
determine that Chinese nuclear warhead designers were building an anechoic* chamber.
The DOE partner further clarified that "the frequency of interest is 8.15 GHz where the
attenuation is the strongest. The pyramidal reference indicates the 'pyramids' on the wall
of the chamber and the material is some microwave-absorbing material. I have attached
a copy of the famous anechoic chamber for your reference."
Just what you were thinking, right?
(S//SI) A CIA Counterterrorist Center (CTC) analyst was investigating a newly-formed
Iraqi company. Her searches of open source and classified databases yielded no
information. NSA analysts from Counterterrorism (S2I) and Proliferation and Arms
Control (S2G) were aware of "promotional" information about the company. Having the
background info was a tremendous time saver for CIA. The NSA and CIA analysts are
working together now to determine if the company is supporting terrorism in Iraq; when
they come up with an analytic conclusion, they will report.
(S//SI) Recent HUMINT reporting shed light on an entity mentioned in a transcript from
December 2003. Analysts in the Regional Targets Product Line (S2A) thought that the
2003 information could possibly give insight into support to the Taliban from Middle
Eastern countries. NSA and CIA analysts now have an open line of communication and
are working closely to understand the issues related to this important topic.
(U//FOUO) These are impressive examples and a good beginning. We are striving to make
collaboration an integral part of the job for NSA analysts by improving collaborative tools, policy
and processes. We invite you to visit our website at
for to learn more about
collaboration and information sharing. On that page you will find a "collaboration record" that
you can use to easily document your interaction with your counterparts. As you start working
more closely with your IC counterparts, we encourage you to share your experiences with us so
that we can help all NSA analysts see themselves in this new collaborative environment.
*(U) Notes:
An anechoic chamber is an "echo free" chamber with walls made of pyramids that absorb
microwave and radio signals. It is used to test satellites, antennas, etc.
"(U//FOUO) SIDtoday articles may not be republished or reposted outside NSANet
without the consent of S0121 (DL sid_comms)."
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DERIVED FROM: NSA/CSSM 1-52, DATED 08 JAN 2007 DECLASSIFY ON: 20320108