Talk:List of intelligence gathering disciplines

To be included?
 * TECHINT - Technical Intelligence

TECHINT sounds like it specifies the targeted information rather than specifying the collection method like the rest that are currently listed. Isomorphic 05:04, 25 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Absolutely keep - It's been on the list of functional disciplines since at least WWII. Perhaps the easiest way to determine whether something really is a functional discipline of intelligence is to attempt to start definition with "Acquisition of intelligence through the exploitation of ..." Bridesmill 15:54, 17 March 2006 (UTC)

Intelligence analysis
What is missing from this list is intelligence analysis, such as is performed by the Australian Office of National Assessments, the British Joint Intelligence Committee, and in the United States by the National Intelligence Council, the Central Intelligence Agency's Directorate of Intelligence and the Bureau of Intelligence and Research. m.e. 10:13, 17 Jul 2004 (UTC)

Personnel, vehicle, etc. detection
While VPBINT Variable Programmable Beacon Intelligence -  gathered via telematics from static and dynamic (mobile) variable programmable intelligent beacons. was a separate item in the list,, it is no more and no less than a collection of MASINT sensors for detecting personnel, vehicles, etc.

The Vietnam-era Igloo White was a similar collection of MASINT sensor, and the current state of the art is I-REMBASS, both discussed in MASINT disciplines. The main discussion is in geophysical MASINT, to cover acoustic, seismic, and magnetic detection. I don't have a great term for these multidisciplinary things that are still collection rather than analysis, although I discussed some of the requirements (e.g., for shallow water operations) in the main MASINT article.

Suggestions are welcome for describing multidisciplinary approaches that are still mostly MASINT, and are clearly collection and immediate processing more than analysis Howard C. Berkowitz 16:43, 1 December 2007 (UTC)

FININT
I'm troubled with listing this as a separate collection discipline, although I can list the various bank and other reports (at least in the US) that are the raw data collected. In some cases, these include OSINT, and even HUMINT from informers, but the main data source is sensitive but unclassified information provided by financial institutions. I can build out an article on it, at least for the US, but it feels more like an analysis discipline.

OTOH, clandestine collection of telegrams, telephone information, etc., especially on domestic targets, is usually part of SIGINT. It's a difficult call where FININT belongs, and it is an increasingly important technique, especially in finding terrorist operational cells. Howard C. Berkowitz 16:43, 1 December 2007 (UTC)

Intelligence / Information
Of course, "intelligence gathering" is a misnomer. "information gathering" is perhaps more appropriate as "intelligence" is what you should be using to process the information. ...but obviously whatever the US military decide to call their activities is the term which we all must use (although their activities frequently seem far removed from "intelligence")212.137.27.116 (talk) 14:48, 23 June 2008 (UTC)

Computer Hacking
Is there a discipline for intelligence gathering over the internet or through other conventional means of computer hackers? This seems like more of a modern thing but certainly it must happen. Andrew Keenan Richardson 18:38, 17 June 2010 (UTC)


 * Would correspond roughly to: SIGINT; specifically: COMINT.. Zero Thrust (talk) 06:24, 27 October 2010 (UTC)

Hey guys should'nt this be included? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_intelligence — Preceding unsigned comment added by 124.176.162.28 (talk) 10:19, 28 November 2012 (UTC)

Criminal Intelligence
If we are to truly consider all forms of intelligence and drill down to include financial intelligence, I would think that the collection of raw data from OSINT would naturally include the goal of intelligence collection, collation, and analysis...to intercept, interrupt, foil, reduce, or prevent criminal success. Consider that news that a series of vehicle break-ins have occured in a particular part of town, during a particular time-frame. The basic information could be analyzed to identify patterns, trends, and other identifyable behavior, that security or law enforcement could exploit to neutralize the criminal threat. Eugene Matthews 10:38, 19 April 2015 (CST)Matthewsem 15:49, 19 April 2015 (UTC)