Info 202 Fall 2011

FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation), the 3 letters which easily symbolizes
Integrity, Security and Power forms one of the important organizations of the
US Intelligence System. Peace and Order being the implicit goals of such
organizations, ever wondered what drives their Intelligence networks? What
really happens in the backend to successfully solve those tough cases? Who are
those groups/people whom they depend on for their Information?

Informants are those hidden entities which can make or break an intelligence
network. They are those magicians who generally help to solve the missing
blocks of a conundrum. “Informants” being the main point of discussion, this
article also explains how informants are recruited and put to action. The most interesting
concept with regard to the ‘202ness of this article’ is how these Informants
are managed and how information is retrieved from them. Informants participate
as nodes in the intelligence network either for ego, patriotism, money or by coercion.
These Informants can be anyone ranging from doctors, clerks to imams. Once
these clusters are formed, they report to their handlers who sympathize
themselves with any of the terrorist activities. The Agents are then apprised
of this information which they cross-reference with their existing intelligence
data.

Post 9/11, the managing aspect of Informants underwent a significant
change. The FBI pitched in a CIA agent Phiil Mudd who had a different approach
to organize and recruit the Informants. He used a data mining system using
commercially available information coupled with the intelligence data of
government to pinpoint the demographics of specific religious and ethnic communities.
This Organized system of Domain Management then became a foundation for
managing the Informants. Information was then retrieved depending upon the
group as per as the demographics information.

To summarize and to get a clearer picture of the Organization System, I
would present a few FAQs.

What is being organized?

 The Informants who are viable source of
Information for Agents are being organized on a global scale. The collections are
however not stable and are subject to change with respect to time.

Why is being organized?

A better organization of the Informants would help the FBI agents to target the
appropriate cluster of Informants to get their Intelligence Information even
more efficiently. This would aid in solving the case even faster.

How much is it being organized?

The Organization standards employed in selecting a cluster is not too explicitly
mentioned in this article. As it clearly states, for every one legal Informant
there exists 3 other Informants who are not legally Informants as per as the
FBI record. But to methods employed post 9/11, Informants were classified on a
demographic scale.

When is it being organized?

It is basically organized on an ad hoc basis. But the article suggests that a more
careful analysis or organization of Informants was basically done after major
attacks or threats which endangered the public systems or civilian safety.

How or by whom is it being organized?

The Informants are organized by blending commercially available information
with the intelligence data of government to pinpoint the demographics of
certain ethnic communities. The Agents are the organizers who need employ this
Domain Management sort of a system.