Educing Information: Interrogation - National Intelligence University

using SIM cards, 651 instant messaging, chat rooms, and steganography 652 — by
terrorist groups in planning and staging attacks has created serious challenges for
Western intelligence services. As the increasingly sophisticated face of terrorism
relies ever more heavily upon the ability to communicate effectively and covertly,
whether that communication involves tactical direction within an operational cell
or a call to action delivered across the globe, it becomes critical for an interrogator
to possess the requisite technical expertise to effectively exploit a detainee’s
knowledge in this vital area.
In a similar fashion, financing terrorism involves far more than simply
securing money for weapons and recruits. As terrorist attacks become more
complex (consider 11 September), the costs involved become substantial. 653 The
ability to move large sums of money through a global system — which is now
more open to scrutiny by law enforcement and intelligence agencies after decades
of money laundering by international organized crime — poses challenges to
the terrorist. Because terrorist organizations use both cutting-edge technology
and ancient means of financing (e.g., Hawala, the underground, trust-based
banking system that facilitates the movement of money without a trailing record
of transactions), it is exceedingly difficult to identify the funding that supports
terrorism against the complex background of global finance. An interrogator who
lacks an understanding of how money moves across international boundaries,
how currencies are transformed into digital equivalents, the nature of national
and international reporting requirements, constantly evolving money laundering
schemes, and the system of Hawala, will have little ability to leverage the potential
intelligence value of a well-placed, knowledgeable source.
As challenging as these examples might be, greater challenges lie in possible
future conflict scenarios involving near-peer competitors (e.g., China). The
technical intelligence requirements for such a conflict would be far more complex
— and far more critical to the war effort — than in any previous conventional
conflict. With this in mind, the need to prepare for and overcome the technical
barriers to educing information becomes self-evident.
The Challenge of Technical Support to Interrogation
Technical barriers involve far more than the nature of the intelligence
gathered: of equal importance is the role of technology in how intelligence is
651
The Subscriber Identity Module contains a small microprocessor that stores information about
the phone, including the telephone number, and identifies that phone to a given network (i.e., network
permissions). Pre-paid SIM cards may be inserted into a phone and used on a one-time or limited basis,
which, along with encryption technology, makes it difficult to trace a call to an individual.
652
Steganography involves the insertion of a hidden message within an image or text. Although
a centuries-old practice, the advent of digital communications has presented enormous potential for
employing steganography to support covert communications.
653
The 9/11 Commission Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United
States notes that Al Qaeda operatives spent between $400,000 and $500,000 to plan and conduct the
attacks. Questions about the source of sizable short-trade actions targeting U.S. airline companies in
the days before September 11 remain unanswered. There has been speculation that Al Qaeda-related
entities employed this strategy to exploit the financial windfall that was almost certain to occur after
the hijackings, thereby funding the training and logistic support required to enable the attack.
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