Director, Counterintelligence 

 

 Current Terrorist 

 Threat Condition

NASA CI/CT MONTHLY NEWS UPDATE – December 2015 

This monthly newsletter is published to increase NASA personnel awareness of significant current 

issues related to counterintelligence, counterterrorism, and counterintelligence cyber matters. To 

learn more about CI/CT awareness, or to schedule a CI/CT presentation, please contact the CI 

POC located on the last page. 

Significant Counterterrorism (CT) Issues: 

TERRORISM: DEATH & ECONOMIC TOLL SET NEW RECORDS 

The rise of Islamic State and Boko Haram brought the economic and 

human cost of terrorism to their worst levels in 2014, according to new 

statistics. http://www.cnbc.com/2015/11/17/terrorism-death-and-economic-tollset-new-records.html 

U.S. INVESTIGATORS STRUGGLE TO TRACK HOMEGROWN ISIS SUSPECTS 

At least three dozen people in the United States suspected of ties to 

the Islamic State were under heavy electronic or physical 

surveillance even before the Paris attacks, senior American officials 

say. But unlike the attackers in France, the officials say, the majority 

of those under investigation here never traveled to Syria to fight 

alongside the Islamic State or receive training from it. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/20/us/us-investigators-struggle-to-track-homegrown-isis-suspects.html?_r=2 

Significant Counterintelligence Issues: 

IN AN ERA OF HIGH-TECH SPYING, OLD-SCHOOL ESPIONAGE IS ON THE RISE 

As dependence on technology permeates Western society, so does 

electronic espionage as state and non-state agents spy, steal and 

sabotage secure networks, hence the return to less high-tech spying. In 

spy parlance, the return to old-school tradecraft means HUMINT, or 

human intelligence. 

http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2015/11/05/in-era-high-tech-spying-old-school-espionage-is-on-rise.html# 

ECONOMIC ESPIONAGE: THE GLOBAL WORKFORCE & THE INSIDER THREAT 

It isn’t natural to think of your colleagues, be they in the next cubicle or 

across the globe, as a threat — and most aren’t. Sadly, a good deal of 

industrial, corporate or economic espionage is made possible or conducted by 

these colleagues, or as they are referred to today, insiders. 

https://securityintelligence.com/economic-espionage-the-global-workforce-and-the-insider-threat/

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Significant Cyber Issues: 

U.S. COUNTERINTELLIGENCE CHIEF SKEPTICAL THAT CHINA HAS CURBED 

SPYING ON U.S. 

The U.S. counterintelligence chief said recently that he was skeptical 

China had followed through on recent promises to curb spying on the 

United States. The chief said that a briefing that he had been given 

showed "no indication" from the U.S. private sector "that anything 

has changed" in the extent of Chinese espionage on the United States. 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/11/19/us-usa-cybersecurityidUSKCN0T72XG20151119#iLDp1oBmzSCPOeiZ.97 

IRAN MILITARY HACKERS TARGET OBAMA ADMINISTRATION ACCOUNTS

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards stepped up hacking of email and social media 

accounts of Obama administration officials in recent weeks, in cyber-attacks 

believed linked to the arrest of an Iranian-American businessman in Tehran. 

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/05/iran-revolutionary-guard-hackingobama-administration

Analyst Notes – Items to Watch: 

 The downing of a Russian airliner, suicide attacks in Lebanon and the horrific slaughter in

Paris all point to an increasingly sophisticated ISIS threat, not just in the Middle East, but

worldwide. In addition, the recent hotel assault in Mali shows that Al Qaeda affiliates are in

direct competition with ISIS for headlines. It is obvious that the threat to the United States is

considerable and extra vigilance is called for. The number of ISIS plots in the United States

continues to rise and both the FBI and DHS expect more “lone wolf” type attacks to be 

forthcoming. Conventional espionage and the insider threats continue unabated, despite signed 

international agreements. Iran and China continue their espionage offensives against the United

States and other Western countries, often with spectacular success (Example: the OPM hack). 

The NASA CI/CT division continues to monitor these threats and any others that have the 

potential to harm NASA or its equities. 

NASA CI Offices:

Ames Research Center:

Armstrong Flight Research Center:

Glenn Research Center:

Goddard Space Flight Center:

Jet Propulsion Laboratory:

Johnson Space Center: 

Kennedy Space Center:

Langley Research Center:

Marshall Space Flight Center: 

NASA Headquarters:

Stennis Space Center:

(b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C) (b) (6), (b) (7)(C)