Counterintelligence

A few days ago, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) complained that it had been hacked, presumably by the evil North Koreans. Other institutions in India also complained about similar attacks. It is possible that North Korea has been trying to gather some information on Indian nuclear technology in order to deal with its own energy problems. That's a strange thing with India and North Korea ... It's not fair that ISRO should be targeted by Pyongyang! After all, both states cultivate the very best of cooperation - even in the field of space research! For example, there is - and the following is absolutely nothing new, but maybe one should be reminded on that - the CENTER FOR SPACE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION IN ASIA AND THE PACIFIC (CSSTEAP), which advertises: "Affiliated to the United Nations". Therefore the CSSTEAP homepage shows - next to the flag of the United Nations - also the flag of the workers' paradise: For example, for the Academ...

Interesting stories to read and watch about  Wang “William” Liqiang or Nick Zhao . But this seems to be a funny coincidence: After all, it is in Australia - obviously a paradise for the Chinese intelligence agencies.

The UN Panel of Experts on North Korea (Security Council Resolution 1874 (2009)) writes in his report (S /2019/691): A Mercedes-Maybach S-class limousine was observed first in Pyongyang and then  in  Hanoi  during  the  United  States-Democratic  People’s  Republic  of  Korea summit in February 2019 (p. 22) During my extensive research on this case - which I conducted together with a good friend - I remembered an analysis on North Korean networks in Germany, which I didn't write for the public already in 2014. Beside other details I took a screenshot from a North Korean propaganda video, which showed the following: I'm not an expert on cars, but even the experts who are familiar with it are not completely sure, if one can see one or two Maybachs in the background. On the left side it might be an older Mercedes S-class. I am pretty sure that sanctions doesn't work - and the more people will pay for luxury goods the more t...

... and a lot of other countries in this great anthology, coming very soon: Intelligence Communities and Cultures in Asia and the Middle East: A Comprehensive Reference About the content and the authors: Intelligence Communities in Asia— B. de Graaff. Afghanistan— D. Patang . Bangladesh— A.S.M. Ali Ashraf . China— X. Guo . India— P. Mahadevan . Iran— C.A. Wege . Iraq— I. al-Marashi . Israel— E. Kahana . Japan— Y. Kobayashi. Jordan— H. Al Jbour Kazakhstan— F. Kovacevic . Myanmar— A. Selth . North Korea— S. Blancke . Pakistan— K. Mukherjee . Palestine— A. Tartir . Russia— A. Kozovoï . Saudi Arabia— C.M. Davidson . South Korea— D.-A. Neuhaus . Sri Lanka— V.K. Shashikumar . Syria— F. Peil . Taiwan— J. Rosenke . Tajikistan— A. Matveeva . Turkey— I. Yilmaz . Yemen— A. Chimente . Elements of an Asian Intelligence Culture— B. de Graaff .

...könnte - sollte man einem Bericht des Focus Glauben schenken - an einen ausländischen Käufer gehen. Der Artikel mit dem Titel "BND prüft möglichen Verkauf von Heckler & Koch an Offshore-Firmen auf Barbados" nennt ein paar Namen. U.a. heisst es: " Konkret geht es um den auf Barbados ansässigen französischen Rechtsanwalt Gerard Lussan." Man kann nur hoffen, dass dieser Kauf gründlich geprüft wird. Das Netzwerk der Personen und Firmen, die dahinter stehen (stecken?), also das ganze Netzwerk, bringt einen aussenstehenden Beobachter doch zum Nachdenken. Bemerkenswert finde ich beispielsweise die Zahlen zu einer der Firmen von Gerard Lussan: Thurloe Finance Ltd.: Am 31. August 2018 präsentierte sie stolz folgende Bilanz: Das sah einmal bedeutend anders aus! Und zwar am 31. August 2017:   Man darf also gespannt sein, wie diese Geschichte weitergehen wird.

My last research was definitely the most disturbing one - when it comes to me. I asked myself again: How much can the human mind actually erode and turn into its perverse opposite? My last paper for Jane's Intelligence Review is about "Incels escalate misogyny and far-right extremism online". The keypoints are:   The online ‘Incel’ scene has connections to far-right extremism, which itself is often characterised by extreme misogyny. Mass shootings can frequently be tracked back to the Incel milieu, with perpetrators glorified as heroes and revolutionaries in Incel forums. The Incel culture itself is typified by a virulent mix of adolescent and far-right ideology, and in parts espouses terrorist tactics such as the use of assault rifles, knives, explosives, and vans.  Right-wing extremist Stephan Balliet on 9 October 2019 violently tried to gain access to a synagogue in the eastern German city of Halle, intending to shoot as many Jewish...