Intelligence Sources in the Process of Collection of Information by the U.S. Intelligence Community
Intelligence Sources in the Process of Collection of Information by the U.S. Intelligence Community

Summary/Abstract: Every day, U.S. intelligence agencies gather huge amounts of information from a variety of sources. Collection of information is an essential part of the process described as Intelligence Cycle. The purpose of this article is to identify the essence and nature of intelligence sources and to analyze their practical use by the agencies and departments that make up the U.S. Intelligence Community. The author characterizes the main types of intelligence sources – Human Intelligence (HUMINT), Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT), Signals Intelligence (SIGINT), Measurement and Signature Intelligence (MASINT), and Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) – and indicates which U.S. intelligence agencies are responsible for their use. Moreover, the author presents the problems with the use of intelligence sources that occur in the work of the U.S. Intelligence Community. Research findings indicate that the best results of intelligence work can be achieved with the use of “all-source intelligence” (also referred to as fusion intelligence), which involves using as many sources as possible to prepare a final intelligence product.

• Details
• Contents