At best, the FBI does not have a history of respect for civil rights. Whether you are guilty or innocent doesn't matter. You are always treated the same way during an FBI investigation – unfairly. Especially if surveillance is involved.
If you snooze, you lose. It's that simple. Many of us are sleepwalking through life. And if you don't pay attention, then you're gonna pay – especially if you engage in behavior that attracts the attention of the FBI.
Make no mistake about it, FBI surveillance teams are lethal. They are very effective at what they do. They have had lots of experience. They've got massive resources. In a major investigation, 30 agents watching one person is commonplace. You never see the same agent twice. You never see the same vehicle twice.
The FBI's triple-threat surveillance strategy of multi-layered teams, rapid response, and managed aggression must be taken seriously.
Threat #1 – A multi-layered team can fool you into thinking that the surveillance has ended. This is an extremely dangerous situation. They're still lurking nearby, of course, waiting for you to say or do something incriminating.
Threat #2 – A same-day response by the FBI means that surveillance might begin before you're ready for it. They'll catch you unprepared. The FBI surveillance team may end up watching you trying to hide the very material that you're hoping to conceal from them.
Threat #3 – The FBI's policy of managed aggression can easily provoke you into losing your temper, or your nerve, or both. It is a wicked strategy. That's why they use it.
It's easy to see why most people are easy prey for the FBI's surveillance machine. But it doesn't need to be that way.
Beating the FBI. There are people who routinely thwart the FBI. They know how to recognize the telltale signature of an FBI surveillance team. When they find themselves under surveillance, they use tactics that inhibit the FBI's ability to find out what they're really doing. They mislead the FBI.
These individuals make it difficult for the FBI to build a legitimate case against them. Perhaps even more important, they make it difficult for the FBI to build a phony case against them.
An individual like this is called a hard target. That's spy-talk for a surveillance target who knows what he's doing.
The methods and techniques that these individuals use are called countersurveillance. This article reveals some of those methods and techniques. Simply put, the article you are reading is about countersurveillance methods that will beat the FBI.
What you'll learn in this article. The article is comprised of two parts. The first section deals with FBI general strategy. You'll learn about the structure and underlying principles of FBI surveillance. They've been at this game for many years and they've learned many lessons. The second section of this article deals with specific tactics of FBI surveillance teams. A case study is utilized to explain and illustrate FBI behavior. It is based on direct experience and on information from confidential sources.
What you need to know about the FBI...
They are masters of the game. If you have something to hide, FBI surveillance could be the beginning of the end for you. Do not make the mistake of underestimating the capabilities of an FBI surveillance team. They are persistent. They are methodical. They are thorough. And they are fanatical about their work.
Drawing from decades of experience, FBI surveillance strategy has evolved into an advanced system that exploits the classic military principles of space, time, and force. This strategic foundation is present in every major surveillance operation run by the FBI. This foundation relies on the three pillars of rapid response, multi-layered teams, and managed aggression. While each of these is a serious threat to the target of a surveillance operation, the most deadly of the three is the multi-layered team.
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NOTE – There is more to
multi-layered teams than
we cover in this article.
The FBI often uses
surveillance as an end in
itself. As a method
for suppressing dissent,
criticism, and activism,
nothing is more effective
than letting the target know
that he's under surveillance.
Fear is a powerful tool.
To get the big picture on
surveillance – and to
learn more about the
mind-games the FBI plays –
return to our home page
and click on
Learning the basics.
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Multi-layered teams...
The FBI's deployment strategy is insidious and conniving, yet brilliant. Because of the manner in which FBI agents are deployed, it is almost impossible to catch the FBI unawares during a surveillance operation. They always have a fall-back position. This is called the strategy of surveillance-in-depth.
Here's how it works. For most surveillance operations, the FBI actually puts two teams in the field. That's right. Two teams.
The first team is expendable. That means if it is blown (that's spy-talk for detected), the surveillance operation will still survive and reach its objective. This first team is called the Decoy and Diversion Team. In this article we will refer to it simply as the Decoy Team.
In surveillance operations involving hard targets, the Decoy Team expects to get caught. In surveillance operations involving soft targets, they expect to remain undetected in 75% of all cases. (A soft target is a person who has no countersurveillance skills or training, and is not on the lookout for surveillance.)
Any target who is alert – and on the lookout for surveillance – will eventually detect a pavement artist of the Decoy Team. Pavement artist is spy-talk for a member of a surveillance team that is watching you in public places. They are on foot and they are in vehicles.
At the same time that the Decoy Team enters the situation and begins surveillance on you, a second team also enters the game. This second team quietly slips into the environment, where it does its best to blend in with the background. This second team is called the Stealth Team. At the beginning of the operation, the Stealth Team makes no effort to watch you. Its only objective is to establish its presence – and to remain undetected.
This deployment strategy is incredibly effective. Here's why. The first team provides cover for the second team's arrival. Even a hard target is likely to be too busy watching the first team to notice the arrival of the second team. And when both teams are in place, you usually only notice the first team.
The top priority of the first team (the Decoy Team) is to see everything you do. They want to learn your habits and your daily routine. They don't want to be detected, of course, but they are prepared to pay that price if that is what's required in order to make sure they see absolutely everything you are doing. Their first priority is to acquire as much data about you as possible.
If you do detect the Decoy Team – and if they realize you've spotted them – the Decoy Team simply suspends its operations. They realize that you'll notice their departure. In fact, they're counting on it. They also realize that very few people will realize that a second team has blended into the background.
This second team – the Stealth Team – doesn't need to see everything you do. They have been briefed by the first team. The Stealth Team only needs to watch you during certain times and at certain locations where they think you might be up to something. The top priority of the Stealth Team is to remain undetected. And they are prepared to leave you unwatched for brief periods in order to retain their invisibility. This is called picket surveillance by the FBI, named after the gaps in a picket fence.
This two-stage approach to major surveillance operations is brutally effective. It has led to the ruin of many people who thought they could outfox the FBI.
Tradecraft. The undercover agents of the Stealth Team use methods that are more sophisticated than those used by the Decoy Team. These methods are called tradecraft.
The Stealth Team is much more difficult to catch than the Decoy Team. You need to know what you're doing. It is vital that you do not let the Stealth Team realize that you've spotted them. That's because the best way to beat them is by feeding them misinformation.
The difference in methods used by the two teams is best explained by example. Numerous situations are described in the case study later in this article.
Layered surveillance. This concept of multi-layered surveillance teams is the backbone of the FBI's surveillance strategy. They almost never lead with their best team. They always hold something back so that they have a fallback position. This strategy is also carried over into other FBI operations.
When the FBI is trying to infiltrate an agent into your circle of friends, associates, coworkers, and acquaintances, they'll often use an expendable agent first. This first agent is a Decoy Agent, meant to provide cover for the infiltration by the second agent (the Stealth Agent).
If the first agent manages to penetrate your organization undetected, the FBI is delighted. But if he runs into difficulty, he is withdrawn. The second agent – who has blended into the background – is brought into play.
Why the FBI loves your lawyer. It is important for you to realize that most lawyers have no training in countersurveillance. This is unfortunate. When the subject of an investigation first realizes he is being "followed", he is angry – and outraged at the invasion of his privacy. In many instances, one of the things he'll do is complain to his lawyer about being "followed". Many lawyers advise their clients to "confront" the person who is "following" them.
They don't realize that this is a game for foxes, not pit bulls.
The lawyer's advice plays right into the FBI's hand. When the subject attempts to confront the surveillance team, the FBI simply drops back into stealth mode. The Decoy Team suspends its surveillance activity.
Because members of the Decoy Team are relatively easy to detect, their absence is easily noticed. The subject assumes that his lawyer's advice has achieved the intended effect. After all, the subject confronted the people who were "following" him and they immediately "stopped".
What the subject does not realize, of course, is that the Stealth Team is now active. They have been there all along, of course, as part of the background while the Decoy Team was working. When the Decoy Team departs, the Stealth Team is still there as part of the background. So from the subject's point of view, everything appears to return to normal.
Basic psychology. The FBI surveillance team is only too willing to accommodate your emotional desire for control over your immediate environment. It is a fantasy that will lead to your ruin. Here's why. When you see the Decoy Team has departed, you begin to feel safe, so you let down your guard. You become easy prey for the Stealth Team. Of course, infiltration comes next – FBI agents penetrate your circle of friends, associates, coworkers, and acquaintances. Arrest and indictment are simply a question of time.
Dummy up. Here's what this means in simple language. You can play the macho man OR you can beat the FBI. You cannot have it both ways. It is an "either-or" situation. If you insist on being a know-it-all tough-guy confronting the people who are "following" you, the FBI is going to play you like a cheap fiddle at a country hoe-down. To beat the FBI you need self-control and self-discipline.
Be smart. Learn from the mistakes of others. FBI surveillance teams do not just go away.
You don't stop wrestling a gorilla when you get tired. You stop when the gorilla gets tired.
Rapid response...
This is the second component in the FBI's three-pronged strategy of multi-layered teams, rapid response, and managed aggression.
The width and breadth of the FBI's presence has been a closely-guarded secret up to now. Many people do not realize that the FBI can provide same-day response anywhere in North America. This is called the strategy of surveillance-in-time.
In fact, the FBI can mount a same-day surveillance operation in any city located in the United States, Canada, or Mexico. The FBI can also mount a same-day response in many major European cities, most major South American cities, and some Asian cities.
They use a skeleton crew to start. Outside North America they sometimes farm out the work to subcontractors.
Then, in many cases, the full surveillance deployment arrives overnight and begins work the next day. In situations where FBI resources are already stretched by other major cases, it may take two days for the full surveillance compliment to arrive.
But make no mistake about it, surveillance has been underway since day one. If they choose to do so – and they often do – the FBI can initiate surveillance the same day they become aware of you.
The reconnaissance factor. In many surveillance situations, a special team is deployed to provide reconnaissance information for the main surveillance teams. This reconnaissance team is called the Advance Team. The reconnaissance team is deployed ahead of the Decoy and Stealth teams that were discussed earlier in this article.
The Advance Team is tasked with establishing roughly who you are, where you are, and what you're doing. They'll take photographs of you, your home, your office, and your vehicles. The photographs help agents identify you on sight. The person who secretly takes pictures of you is called a peep. The peep often arrives at your doorstep disguised as a volunteer collecting for charity or as a religious canvasser. (Like the CIA, the FBI is big on using organized religion as cover for covert operations.)
Surreptitious entry. The primary task of the Advance Team, however, is to break into your office or home. This is called surreptitious entry by spies. That's just polite talk for break-and-enter. The break-in usually happens during the first few days of a surveillance operation.
Once inside, they perform a quick search of your property. They've got special ways to get inside locked drawers and office safes. (See future articles in Spy & CounterSpy for more on this.)
They'll often bug your office or home. Being able to hear all your conversations gives them a tremendous advantage. If they already know where you're going, it makes it easier to "follow" you. If they know you're going to a restaurant, for example, they can arrive "before" you do. The FBI's tactic of being the first to arrive at your destination has fooled many people over the years.
They'll also usually attach a tracking device (called a beeper) to your vehicle. This makes it easier for them to track you in traffic.
Clearly, if you are sharp enough to detect the Advance Team – and if you don't reveal that you've spotted them – you can enjoy a major tactical advantage over the FBI during the entire surveillance operation. You can either cloak your activities so they find nothing. Or you can feed them misinformation. (See future articles in Spy & CounterSpy for more on detecting the first break-in.) You can also watch the behavior of the surveillance team itself for telltale signs that indicate they've got your home or office bugged.)
Consequences of same-day response. What's the lesson in all this? Here's a real-world example. Suppose you are a controversial activist group. If you send out a news release to the media exposing government abuse, then you'd better be prepared for same-day surveillance by the FBI.
Not tomorrow. Not in a few days. Today.
The same advice applies if you are an investigative journalist submitting a controversial article for publication.
The implications of same-day surveillance can be serious. Suppose you've got documents or materials that you relied on when writing your news release or your article. These documents might contain references to confidential sources or informants or whistleblowers. You don't want the FBI to find these materials. You don't want to compromise your sources.
The materials had better be securely stowed away BEFORE you send out the news release. Trying to hide the materials AFTERWARD may be too late. Because if you think you're faster than the FBI, you're asleep at the wheel, heading for Dead Man's Curve. But be careful where you hide the materials. Safes, alarm systems, even bank safe-deposit boxes are generally useless against a determined FBI surveillance team. (Future articles in Spy & CounterSpy will describe how to keep information from the FBI. It isn't easy, but it can be done.)
The FBI's capability for same-day response has caught many surveillance targets unprepared. This is not a game for slowpokes. If you don't move fast, you're gonna be roadkill.
...
...
NOTE – There is more to
managed aggression than
we cover in this article.
For more on mind-games
the FBI plays, return to
our home page and
click on
Learning the basics.
Managed aggression...
This is the third component in the FBI's three-pronged strategy of multi-layered teams, rapid response, and managed aggression.
The FBI has a bureau-wide policy of managed aggression. This policy also affects FBI surveillance operations.
Surveillance teams are given specific goals. The FBI command structure accepts no excuses. It tolerates no failures. This strategy of surveillance-for-results leads to aggressive behavior in FBI surveillance teams because of the pressure they're under. This results-driven aggression tends to manifest itself as professional aggression.
An FBI surveillance team is using professional aggression when it intentionally and deliberately applies pressure to the subject of a surveillance operation. Actions like this are called psy-ops, which is spy-talk for psychological operations.
Here is an example of how an FBI surveillance team will deliberately provoke you.
When you're walking through a mall or a downtown shopping district, the surveillance team will intentionally interfere with your route. A pavement artist will "absent-mindedly" cross your path, forcing you to change course to avoid walking into him. A group of agents will "inadvertently" obstruct your path – they'll be standing together chatting, forcing you to walk around them. Other pavement artists will "accidentally" create near-misses as you walk along. Some of these "pedestrians" will create situations with a potential for a head-on collision, forcing you to dodge them.
As the psychological pressure continues to build, agents may "innocently" bump into you, jostle you, or step on your heel from behind. A group of pavement artists will cue up ahead of you, creating a line-up that delays you as you try to make a purchase, order fast food, buy tickets, and so on.
Activity like this can quickly create frustration, even anger, in you. But because the incidents occur in public locations, it's difficult to prove who's behind them. You never see any agent more than once. You don't know where the next provocation is going to come from. You're beginning to get upset, irritated, unstable. You're more likely to make mistakes in judgment. And that's exactly what the surveillance team wants.
When a surveillance team is experiencing difficulty cracking open an investigation they sometimes resort to professional aggression. This is a wicked mind-game. It can be very effective if you're not anticipating it. The FBI surveillance team has the power to make or break your day – and they don't hesitate to use that power.
This is not a game for choirboys.
Conclusions: FBI surveillance strategy...
The FBI's triple-threat surveillance strategy of multi-layered teams, rapid response, and managed aggression must be taken seriously. These three threats were mentioned at the beginning of this article. They are important enough to be repeated.
Threat #1 – A multi-layered team can fool you into thinking that the surveillance has ended. This is an extremely dangerous situation. They're still lurking nearby, of course, waiting for you to say or do something incriminating.
Threat #2 – A same-day response by the FBI means that surveillance might begin before you're ready for it. They'll catch you unprepared. The FBI surveillance team may end up watching you trying to hide the very material that you're hoping to conceal from them.
Threat #3 – The FBI's policy of managed aggression can easily provoke you into losing your temper, or your nerve, or both. It is a wicked strategy. That's why they use it.