grey dynamics

Sanctions and a Military Coup?
: Uncertainty and potential civil war in Venezuela

February 14, 2019

Dylan Ramshaw

  The confrontation on multiple fronts is ramping up in Venezuela with a peaceful solution more in doubt. Opposition protests to the Maduro government are becoming more frequent after Juan Guaidó, President of the National Assembly announced himself to be the legitimate president of the country. He also has received official support from the US, Canada, and most of the EU. There was an indication last week from National Security Advisor John Bolton that the US was considering the escalation…

Egypt and Israel’s Dirty Little Secret

February 7, 2019

Fredrik Hellem

  Just days into 2019 it was reported that Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi had been subject to an interview by the CBS television show 60 Minutes, an interview Egypt’s envoy to the US requested not to be broadcast shortly after it was conducted. The background for the request is quite simple; Firstly, al-Sisi answered sensitive questions about his regime’s methods in countering opposition; Secondly, al-Sisi confirmed an unprecedented level of cooperation with Israel – a cooperation which can both…

3 Cardinal Rules of Social Media Intelligence

February 5, 2019

Giovanni Coletta

  From a simple branch of Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) to an established independent discipline, Social Media Intelligence (SOCMINT) has risen to such a primary importance that no intelligence security company can reasonably disregard the information retrieved from social network platforms without missing portions of the desired intelligence picture. Whether it is Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Tumblr or any other minor platform, SOCMINT provides data, insights and alarm bells that fit the need for timeliness and that fast pace analysts…

The After Action Report

May 5, 2018

Ahmed Hassan

  In the after action report I revisit and analyse intelligence and security news from the previous week.   The increase of public private partnership in the intelligence domain was once again underscored, by an announcement about the United States Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM). INSCOM is granting CACI (an information services company that holds multiple government contracts in the defence, intelligence and healthcare spheres) a task order worth 145 million Dollars. Under this contract, CACI is tasked with…

Ignorance is Bliss
: Trump and the Moral Panic of Videogame Violence

April 10, 2018

Perry Gray

  On the 28th February 2018, two weeks after the Stoneman Douglas High School Shooting, Donald Trump attempted to reignite the argument that common multimedia platforms are in-part responsible for causing violent behaviour. During the inevitable discussions on gun control, he claimed that “the video games, the movies, the internet stuff is so violent”. Thereby he attempted to shift the focus of discussion through a straw man argument of 'media violence'. What can this attempt to straw man the issue…

‘Hybrid threat’?
: Defining Russian Intelligence Strategy

April 4, 2018

Katie Wilson

   The 4th March poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal with a Novichok nerve agent has once again brought Russia, and its foreign affairs strategy, to the fore of Western politics. As such, the ‘Fusion Doctrine’ recently announced by Theresa May, which will allow the UK to utilise a wide spectrum of resources to counter Russian aggression, has reignited interest in the concept of Russian ‘hybrid warfare’ among the intelligence community.    The Russian intelligence services remain notoriously secretive, despite…