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(U) A Horse Is a Horse, Of Course, Of Course...?
FROM:
Chief, Intelligence Security Issues (S02L3)
and SIGINT Communications
Run Date: 12/16/2005
(U//FOUO) NSA is working to counter denial and deception by our adversaries...
(S) "What we see and hear in SIGINT is straight from the horse's mouth!"
While this statement is undoubtedly true, have you ever considered that the
"horse" might be lying? Targets sometimes try to use Denial and Deception
(D&D) to throw us off track... and for SIGINT to be credible, we must be able to tell the "good"
information from the "bad." Training SIGINT analysts to be on the lookout for potential D&D is
part of the solution, but there is much more to consider! For example:
If you are a SIGINT reporter who believes that your target is using denial and deception,
should you make a comment to that effect in the report? If so, what's the current policy
on how that should be done?
A given collection source is known by NSA to be used for D&D purposes. How will a
linguist or reporter who is looking at intercept from that source know that's the case? Is
a mechanism in place for flagging certain intercept as suspect?
...These are the types of questions that counter-D&D representatives here at NSA are currently
working to address; and as you can see, it touches on most of what we do - collection,
processing, reporting, and more.
(U//FOUO) Indeed, it should be pointed out that countering D&D isn't the responsibility of any
one person or office - it's the responsibility of all of us! D&D isn't a stand-alone discipline.
Rather, it is a "thread intricately woven through the tapestry of our mission."
(S) OK, but someone must be coordinating the "anti-D&D" program, correct? Yes. At the IC
level, a body called the Foreign Denial and Deception Committee (FDDC) is leading the
way. NSA's representative at FDDC is
, the Chief of SID's Policy, Congressional Issues
and Intelligence Security office (S02L). There are also NSA representatives for the five
subordinate "pillar areas," as follows:
(U//FOUO) Collection :
(U//FOUO) Analysis :
(U//FOUO) Training :
,
(U//FOUO) Research and Development :
(U//FOUO) Counterintelligence and Security :
(U//FOUO) Within NSA, the D&D Program is administered by SID's Intelligence Security Issues
Office (S02L3). Our job is to push forward NSA's "Countering Foreign Denial and Deception
Implementation Plan" of November 2004, and NSA's new (Sep 05) Policy 2-20 on D&D.
Additionally, S02L3 facilitates a working group composed of representatives from NSA's D&D
community.
(U//FOUO) In addition,
serves as the SINIO for Counterintelligence and D&D.
Finally, SID's Office of Information Operations ( S2K ) plays a major role.
(U//FOUO) If you have a question about D&D and don't know where to begin, start with S02L3
at e-mail ISIS_DD or phone
(U) This is the first of a series of articles that will tell you more about what the IC and NSA are
doing to counter D&D, with contributions from each of the pillar area representatives listed
above. Stay tuned!
"(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