How the CIA recruits spies

 

CIA spies recruit assets, also known as "sources" or "informants," by building relationships and gaining their trust. This can be done through a variety of methods, such as by approaching them through intermediaries, offering them financial incentives, or appealing to their ideological beliefs. Spies may also use deception and manipulation to recruit assets. The specific methods used will depend on the situation and the individual being targeted.

     The CIA uses the term "MICE", an acronym that stands for Money, Ideology, Compromise, and Ego. These are the four main motivations that can be used to recruit and run assets or informants, also known as spies, for intelligence agencies like the CIA:

·        Money: An individual may be motivated by the promise of financial gain.

·        Ideology: An individual may be motivated by a belief in a cause or ideology that aligns with that of the agency.

·        Compromise: An individual may be vulnerable to compromise, such as through blackmail or other leverage.

·        Ego: An individual may be motivated by the desire for recognition or power.

The CIA and other intelligence agencies will use the MICE factors to identify potential assets and then use the most effective approach to recruit and run them.

     So, which of the "mice" method does the CIA like best? It is likely that the CIA would prefer the "ideology" method of recruiting assets, as individuals who are motivated by a belief in a cause or ideology are likely to be the most reliable and committed over the long-term.

     However, different methods may be more effective depending on the specific individual and situation being targeted. The CIA uses a combination of the different MICE methods to successfully recruit and run assets. The most important factor is that the assets are reliable and have access to valuable information that the agency needs. It's worth noting that the recruitment of assets is a complex and delicate process, and the agency must consider legal, ethical, and operational factors.

     I the MISSION OF VENGEANCE spy thriller, Corey Pearson uses the MICE method to recruit spies. Here's a Snippet:

     Corey thought of the CIA cell he organized in the Dominican Republic, code-named CIA-DR5. Five CIA case officers were sent there as NOCs to recruit spies inside five public areas: the street vendor community, National Police, the El Nacional newspaper, a few banks and in an employment agency-front company called Agencia de Empleo Sousa. The Sousa Employment Agency started when a CIA case officer entered the local bank in Sousa with a generous check made out to him by In-Q-Tel, the CIA’s personal investor.

Corey was pleased that he assigned Sweeney to lead the CIA’s Dominican Republic cell with the supplementary duty of infiltrating the National Police. He did a good job. Within six months, he recruited an officer in the homicide division.

“What about Lieutenant Danilo Sanchez? Is he in on this?”

“I called his office at homicide. They said he was at the resort investigating a murder.”

“Good. He’ll give us the forensic details. By the way, nice job in enlisting him to work for us, Steve. Anything else?”

“Yes. Agent Murray was contacted by one of her street vendor recruits, named Leonel. He saw photos of the slain American family on TV and recognized them. They were strolling around downtown Sousa and bought some of his odds and ends, touristy stuff.”

End of Snippet 

     The CIA uses the “MICE” method extensively to recruit spies around the world. I tried to find out how many, but it is not publicly known exactly how many since it’s a highly secretive organization and does not publicly disclose information about its operations or the number of assets (spies) it has recruited. Additionally, the number of assets recruited by the CIA can change over time as new assets are recruited and old ones are retired.

     One thing is for sure. It maintains a large and diverse global network of assets and partners, which includes foreign intelligence services, militaries, law enforcement agencies (like in the novel snippet above), and other organizations.

     These partnerships and assets, basically, act as “spies” for the CIA and are used to collect and share intelligence, conduct covert operations, and carry out other activities to protect US national security interests. 

Robert Morton is a member of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) and enjoys writing about the U.S. Intelligence Community. He authors the Corey Pearson- CIA Spymaster series. Check out his latest spy thrillers: MISSION OF VENGEANCE.