Hunting Russian Moles: How the FBI and CIA Track Spies Inside U.S. Defense Plants

One well-placed Russian mole could shift the balance of power in ways most people can’t even imagine

Russian spies sneaking around inside America’s top-secret defense plants—it sounds like something straight out of a Hollywood thriller. But this isn’t fiction. It’s been happening for decades. Russia’s intelligence agencies—the GRU, SVR, and before them, the KGB—have been after U.S. military tech for as long as anyone can remember. And the stakes? They couldn’t be higher. One stolen blueprint, one leaked secret, one well-placed mole could shift the balance of power in ways most people can’t even imagine.

     That’s why the FBI and CIA’s counterintelligence teams are always on the hunt, working behind the scenes to track down and stop Russian moles before they can do serious damage. The way Russian intelligence pulls this off isn’t always the stuff of spy movies—it’s a lot more subtle. One of their go-to moves is recruiting insiders. That could mean targeting an engineer with access to classified info, a disgruntled employee looking for a payday, or someone with just the right mix of personal problems and ideological leanings to be swayed. And it’s never obvious. It might start with casual small talk at an industry event, maybe a friendly drink, then gradually escalate into something more dangerous—an envelope full of cash for what seems like a tiny, insignificant piece of information. But those small pieces? They add up fast.

     Another favorite Russian tactic is supply chain compromise. Instead of targeting the heavily secured headquarters of a defense contractor, they go after third-party suppliers—companies that manufacture specific components or provide specialized services but don’t have the same level of security oversight. Hackers working for Russian intelligence have also been caught targeting these contractors, slipping past firewalls and stealing classified information right from the source.

     Russian espionage in the U.S. defense industry isn’t just some far-fetched conspiracy—it’s a real, ongoing problem. Take Alexander Fishenko, for example. On the surface, he looked like just another businessman running a tech company in Houston. But behind the scenes? He was shipping military-grade microelectronics straight to Russia, the kind of tech that could be used in missile systems. His company was nothing more than a front, and by the time the FBI caught on, he had already moved a ton of sensitive materials overseas.

     Then there’s Peter Debbins, a former U.S. Army Green Beret with a long history of selling out his country. The Russians recruited him all the way back in the ‘90s, and for years, he fed them classified military info. He managed to stay under the radar for decades before finally getting busted in 2020. And here’s the scary part—these guys are just the ones who got caught. The harsh reality is, for every spy the FBI takes down, there are probably more still out there, working in the shadows.

     The FBI and CIA have been at this game for a long time, constantly sharpening their tactics to stay ahead of Russian spies. If you work in a classified defense role, you’re going to be put under a microscope—background checks, polygraphs, the whole nine yards. They’ll keep an eye on your finances too, because if a defense contractor suddenly has a bunch of unexplained cash rolling in, that’s a huge red flag. Even personal connections get scrutinized. Start taking frequent trips to Moscow without a solid reason? Yeah, that’s going to get you on someone’s radar real fast.

     But counterintelligence isn’t just about playing defense—it’s about flipping the script. One of the FBI’s favorite tricks is running double-agent operations, feeding false information to Russian handlers and baiting them into making a mistake. One of their biggest wins came in 2010 with Operation Ghost Stories, when they busted ten Russian sleeper agents who had been living in the U.S. for years, blending in as everyday Americans. They had jobs, families, the whole act—but behind the scenes, they were working for Moscow. The FBI played them long enough to gather solid evidence, then swooped in and took them down.

     This is exactly the kind of high-stakes world that CIA operative Corey Pearson walks into in The Hunt For A Russian Spy. Pearson is sent undercover into Boeing, one of the most secretive defense facilities in the U.S., where a cutting-edge hypersonic spy plane is being developed. If a Russian mole gets away with the blueprints, it could give Moscow the ability to counter the next generation of U.S. reconnaissance technology. The catch? Pearson has to go in dark. No backup, no safety net, just his own instincts and training to find the traitor before it’s too late.

     The challenge for Pearson—and for real-life counterintelligence officers—is that Russian moles are rarely amateurs. They’re embedded deep, sometimes for years, with spotless records and carefully maintained covers. The mole at Boeing is suspected to be an employee who was recruited long ago, someone who’s played the long game, slowly building trust and access. That’s a pattern seen over and over in real-world espionage. Many of the spies caught in recent years weren’t outsiders sneaking in; they were insiders who had been compromised long before they ever had access to classified materials.

     This spy-versus-spy game never really stops. Defense contractors and intelligence agencies are constantly working together to stay one step ahead—tightening cybersecurity, running insider threat programs, and making sure employees know exactly what kind of dangers are out there.  But let’s be real—as long as there are valuable secrets, there will always be people trying to steal them. That’s just how the world works. And that means the hunt for Russian moles inside U.S. defense plants isn’t going away anytime soon—both in real life and in The Hunt For A Russian Spy.

 

Robert Morton is a member of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) and an accomplished author. He writes the Corey Pearson- CIA Spymaster Short Story, blending his knowledge of real-life intelligence operations with gripping fictional storytelling. His work offers readers an insider’s glimpse into the world of espionage, inspired by the complexities and high-stakes realities of the intelligence community.