The agent provocateur's role was not mere passive watching of the enemy's actions and espionage, his range of action was quite wide. The task of the agent provocateur was to attract potential enemies of the leadership to the department, to provoke them to antilegal activities, and hand them over to the authorities. These came from both the members of the organization and from outside it. Sooner or later, the patron's control over the agent provocateur was over and the latter became dangerous. Under the cover of secrecy and security, agent provocateurs also escaped the control of political parties and eventually become dictators, threatening everyone.
Provocation is immoral, because it pushes people to commit crimes.
Among the agent provocateurs were S. P. Degaev, I. F. Okladsky and A. M. Garting. The aim of all these organizations was to overthrow Tsarist rule. Eino Azef appeared among the social democrats at this later stage. Lieutenant colonel G. P. Sudeikin of the gendarmerie was a great admirer of the use of agents provocateurs. In this raid M. F. Grachevsky, manufacturer of the dynamite was among the 120 people arrested.