About Opentopia
Opentopia Directory Encyclopedia Tools

Intelligence (information gathering)

Encyclopedia : I : IN : INT : Intelligence (information gathering)

Intelligence (abbreviated int. or intel.) is information valued for its currency and relevance rather than its detail or accuracy —in contrast with data which typically refers to precise or particular information, or fact, which typically refers to verified information. Sometimes called "active data" or "active intelligence", these typically regard current plans, decisions, and actions of peoples, as these may have urgency or are otherwise valuable from the point of view of the intelligence-gathering organization. Active intelligence is treated as a constantly mutable component, or variable, within a larger equasion of understanding the secret, covert, or otherwise private "intelligence" of an opponent, or competitor, to answer questions or obtain advance warning of events and movements deemed to be important or otherwise relevant.

As used by intelligence agencies and related services, "intelligence" refers integrally to both active data as well as the process and the result of gathering and analyzing such information, as these together form a cohesive network (cf. "hive mind"). In a sense, this usage of "intelligence" at the national level may be somewhat associated with the concept of a localized social intelligence, as the organization itself may have some limited resemblance to the workings of a virtual or collective mind —albeit one which is tied to nationalist tradition, politics, law, and the enforcement therof.

Contents

Process

Information collected can be difficult to obtain or altogether secret material gained through espionage ("closed sources"), or it can be banal and widely available, such as newspaper articles or Internet postings ("open sources"). Traditionally, intelligence involves all-source collection, storage and indexing of data, usually in multiple languages, in the expectation that some small portion will later prove important. Intelligence findings or "product" and the sources and methods used to obtain them (tradecraft) are often highly classified and sometimes compartmentalized, and intelligence officers need top level security clearance.

Intelligence as used here, when done properly, serves a function for organizations similar to that which intelligence (trait) serves for individual humans and animals. Intelligence collection is often controversial and seen as a threat to privacy. While usually associated with warfare, intelligence can also be used to preserve peace.

Well-known national intelligence organizations

Canada

Germany India Israel Pakistan Russia United Kingdom United States

Major publicly-accessible intelligence sources

Reference

Surveys

World War I

World War II: 1931-1945

Cold War Era: 1945-1991

See also

External Links


Signals Intelligence Agencies
CSE | DSD | FRA | GCHQ | GCSB | NCC | NSA

 

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

Search Titles
0123456789
ABCDEFGHIJ
KLMNOPQRST
UVWXYZ?

E-mail this article to:

Personal Message: