The Pros And Cons Of Human Intelligence Collection

In a day and age where digital technologies dominate, you can expect that there is a heavy reliance on technical intelligence capabilities. Despite the remarkable capabilities in technical intelligence collection, technology has yet to replace the invaluable intelligence collected through human intelligence sources. Nevertheless, technology and human collection programs have limitations; however, when you combine both human and technical intelligence, the chances for success significantly increase.

Human intelligence (HUMINT) collection methods may be the most high risk, high reward, methods of intelligence collections, but it is not with out limitations. Human intelligence collection provides critical intelligence that may not other
Additionally, it provides the opposing team if you will, with evidence that can be used in influence operations (IO) to win in the court of pubic opinion, or support at home. Furthermore, HUMINT collection cannot be done remotely, requires proximity and access that may be difficult to obtain, and arguably the most susceptible to deception (Logan, 2010). A great example of deception and manipulation was the case of WMDs in Iraq where intelligence was collected and based on a single HUMINT source. As it would turn out later the informant known as “Curve Ball” admitted he lied about Saddam Hussein possessing WMDs (site). While there were significant efforts to utilize technical collection methods to provide further evidence of Saddam’s WMDs, it was the sole human intelligence source that provided the leverage needed to wage war by the Bush administration. Despite this incident that deeply marred the IC’s image in the public eye, HUMINT collection remains, and will, a vital component in the methods in which intelligence is
Technical intelligence, like it sounds, is centered on science and technology to gather intelligence, such as satellites (IMINT), sensors, and digital and voice networks (SIGINT). Arguably one of the most significant advantages of technical intelligence collection is the ability to conduct collection remotely. Conversely, technical intelligence requires a robust technical infrastructure in order to provide accurate and timely intelligence. Additionally, technical intelligence is expensive due to the high cost associated with the space and science requirements to support and operate it. A great deal of the collection by technical methods is mass collections conducted through cyber and electronic sources (Clark, 2013). Once again, while highly accurate, expense and time, are the critical short falls due to the limited number of analyst within various specialties to properly analyze and vetted the collected