Spycraft is a fairly detailed history of CIA’s Office of Technical Service, the outfit that makes all the neat James Bond toys used -- or not used -- in espionage since the creation of the first OTS during World War Two. The first OTS was called R&D, Research and Development, when it was first created in 1942. (I use the phrase “fairly detailed history” since much of what OTS did or does is still highly classified.)
Past credits include observation planes, the most famous of which was the U-2. Heirs to the U-2 include Oxcart, A-12, SR-71, and AURORA, although you won’t find much information about AURORA, since it’s still being used. Satellites have, of course been around since the late 1950s, and it wasn’t long after the first one that many more were launched. When the program became too big, a separate agency was spun off and created. Again, not much is made public, except for instances such as the Jonathan Pollard case, when the agency was known as the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), now called the National Geo-Spatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA).
The most enjoyable parts of the book are the first five sections, which are described as stories of “ingenuity, skill and courage.” Section VI of the book is a treatise on clandestine tradecraft, including the revolutionary changes digital technology has brought. It also gives the five essential elements of clandestine operations used by every intelligence service in the world. I find it interesting that this section can be read first, to give yourself a primer or refresher on the business of spying, or after the first 15 chapters.
Some of the more ingenious and effective toys include an audio transmitter that can fit into the spine of a book and remain unnoticed; an electrical plug that doubles as a transmitter; “dead drops” disguised as everyday items such as ordinary bricks used in construction, and in such things as dead rats, pinecones, and much more; dental prosthetics to alter the shape and dental structure of a person’s face; a high speed launch disguised with a breakaway shell of an Oriental junk, used in Vietnam; a rubber airplane that could be deflated, compacted and airdropped into a hostile area, and used for exfiltration. Other more common items include camera pens, camera lighters, eavesdropping pens, cigarette pack cameras, and a “rollover” pen which copied documents as the tip of the pen is rolled over the document. All of these items were, of course, perfectly usable as the items they represented.
In addition to the meat of Spycraft, the appendices give organizational genealogy, a chronology, a list of OTS directors, “Trailblazers from OTS,” pseudonyms of CIA officers, and a glossary. Additionally, instructions for use of a simple encryption/decryption scheme are given, along with a demonstration.
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