Intro

I'm stuck hallway through a masters program in Intelligence Studies (spy, not IQ). I'm sharing some of that work.

The elephant in the room - Copypasta for this series

I doubt there is anybody left in the country that has any trust at all in the IC. I certainly don't, and that sometimes show up in my work.

I do think there is still value to you the reader here. Espionage is like informationwar or a gun. it is a tool to use when necessary. While the everyday Hiver doesn't have a taxpayer-filled bag of money to support their own agency, there is a lot of education that is valuable to me (and I think to you). Part that is if you can explain where the IC has fallen from where it should be, your arguments against it, or for its reform. or for its disbandment will carry more weight.

And on to the show

GEOINT

Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) provides a wide array of intelligence products that support a variety of activities. It is also critical to developing foundational intelligence. Categorize the challenges facing the GEOINT community and analyze some of the implications of these challenges for the future. Make sure you place your discussion within the context of the literature.

There are several ways we could define GEOINT. One way is legally, by USG statute:
The term “geospatial intelligence” means- “ the exploitation and analysis of imagery and geospatial
information to describe, assess, and visually depict physical features and geographically referenced
activities on the Earth. GEOINT consists of imagery, imagery intelligence, and geospatial information.”
Title 10 U.S. Code §467 (National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, 2006).

Or we could look at GEOINT as a discipline, as Bacastow and Bellafiore (2009) do:
“Geospatial Intelligence is a field of knowledge, a process, and a profession. As knowledge, it is information integrated in a coherent space-time context that supports descriptions, explanations, or forecasts of human activities with which decision makers take action. As a process, it is the means by which data and information are collected, manipulated, geospatially reasoned, and disseminated to decision-makers. The geospatial intelligence profession establishes the scope of activities, interdisciplinary associations, competencies, and standards in academe, government, and the private sectors.”

GEOINT can be simply explained as linking events to place (“Discovering the Unknowns,” 2014). Mugavero et al (2015) go into detail in explaining this concept.

GEOINT, in addition, has a wide range of application outside of intelligence collection...or perhaps I should say instead that the intelligence collection and analysis capabilities of GEOINT go far beyond national security. Allen (2015) points to the use of GEOINT through GIS for tracking Ebola contagion and the recovery of space shuttle debris, while Leipnik and Albert (2003) discuss LE applications.

GIS software allows management, analysis, and distribution of GEOINT in conjunction with other collection sources, returning us to the simple summary of it’s purpose, linking event to place. By integrating analysis and collection, GEOINT is the discipline that most accurately represents the intelligence cycle in operation, as a simultaneous, self-reinforcing process, rather than a series of steps. Mugavero et al (2015) put this in terms of automation capabilities, but more importantly, as the concept that because of “multiple sources information fusion, GEOINT facilitates a close collaboration between the intelligence community users.” Put another way, GEOINT allows for the synthesis of all source collection more efficiently than other disciplines. Mugavero et al (2015) also note the similarity to MASINT in GEOINT’s fundamental approach to collection; “it appears clear that the investigative methods require thorough scientific support if they are to be a tool for investigation as well as for decision-making.” Weber and O’Connell (2011) discuss GEOINT under the framework of SIGINT satellite collection.

Mugavero et al (2015) demonstrate how GEOINT can mesh with HUMINT to strengthen collection efforts, while Cozine (2013) notes that in the capture of Bin Laden, “GEOINT collected from the sky was combined with HUMINT collected on the ground to determine the best method to launch such an assault.” Social Networking Analysis (SNA) software is another example of how GEOINT and HUMINT can benefit from both automation and mutual employment.

However, GEOINT faces multiple challenges. The first challenge is the basic civil rights issues that all Constitutionally oriented intelligence disciplines face in the American national security context. The following quote should either have you licking your chops or trembling in fear, depending on whether you see yourself as a producer of, or a target of, intelligence.

“In addition to imagery, consider the wide variety of other location-based data being generated every day by human and machine activity. Reflect on the activities and interactions of people revealed in social media. Factor in the location information intrinsic to telecommunications traffic—particularly mobile. Add the measurements and actions of infrastructure elements managed with Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition systems. Couple that with the engineering information contained within infrastructure asset inventories. Add geo-tagged banking and point-of-sale transactions. Finally, at a high level, integrate the economic and social information contained within census data.”
(The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation, 2017)

This level of pervasive capability is also noted by Mugavero et al (2015); “GIS systems are now able to identify the daily relations between one or more specific issues and the related environment. Consequently, the ability exists to monitor personal relationships with family and friends as well as most frequented locations and specific habits of individual people. Such data, supported by relevant geospatial coordinates, could be able to provide required information to predict both individual and group behavior”

These capabilities are powerful, and present a huge challenge to use them correctly. Other challenges include the types of funding issues discussed by Weber and O’Connell (2011), the adaptive nature of technology as discussed by McCreight et al in the The state and future of GEOINT 2019 report, and the common issue of being subject to error and OPFOR disinofrmation efforts.

GEOINT presents one of the more powerful collection disciplines in terms of ease of use, automative capability, synthesis with other disciplines, simultaneous analytic function, and dissemination ability. Professionals must be careful in using this power to remain within the mission of the Constitution.

References:
Allen, D. (2015, May).Geographic information systems mapping: Response, availability, and training. Presented at the Texas 2015 Emergency Management Conference. San Antonio, Texas.

Bacastow, T.S, and Bellafiore, D.J. (Fall 2009). Redefining geospatial intelligence; American Intelligence Journal,

Cozine, K. (2013). Teaching the intelligence process: The killing of Bin Laden as a case study. Journal of Strategic Security; San Jose, 6(5), 80–87. http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy2.apus.edu/10.5038/1944-0472.6.3S.9

Discovering the unknowns: The importance of geospatial intelligence. (2014, February 12). Retrieved October 21, 2019, from GovLoop website: https://www.govloop.com/discovering-the-unknowns-the-importance-of-geospatial-intelligence/

Leipnik, M. R., & Albert, D. P. (2003). GIS in Law Enforcement: Implementation Issues and Case Studies. CRC Press.

Mugavero, R., Benolli, F., & Sabato, V. (2015). Geospatial Intelligence, Technological Development, and Human Interaction. Journal of Information Privacy and Security, 11(4), 243–261. https://doi.org/10.1080/15536548.2015.1105652

National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. (2006). Geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) basic doctrine. Retrieved from https://fas.org/irp/agency/nga/doctrine.pdf

The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation. (2017). The state and future of GEOINT 2017. Retrieved from https://usgif.org/system/uploads/4897/original/2017_SoG.pdf

The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation. (2019). The state and future of GEOINT 2019. Retrieved from https://usgif.org/education/StateofGEOINT

Weber, R. A., & O’Connell, K. M. (2011). Alternative futures: United States commercial satellite imagery in 2020 (p. 111). Washington, D. C.: Innovative Analytics and Training, LLC.