1. Counterintelligence Briefings for Foreign Travelers September 26, 2012
The Aware Traveler
Counterintelligence Briefings for Foreign Travelers
September 26, 2012
Jonathan Mouzon
LMMFC Counterintelligence Office

2. The Aware Traveler Part 1: Why Brief Foreign Travelers?
Part 2: How Do We Brief Foreign Travelers Effectively?

3. Part 1: Why Brief Foreign Travelers?
I. Need To Address The Threat
II. Produces Quality Suspicious Contact Reports
III. DSS Enhancement

4. Part 1: Why Brief Foreign Travelers?
I. Need To Address The Threat
II. Produces Quality Suspicious Contact Reports
III. DSS Enhancement

5. 1.1 Economic Espionage
“Economic Espionage is the greatest threat to our national security since the Cold War.”
Louis Freeh, FBI Director, 1996

6. 1.1 Economic Espionage
Courtesy of CI CENTRE and SPYPEDIA

7. 1.1 Economic Espionage
“Espionage used to be a problem for the FBI, CIA and military, but now it's a problem for corporations…”
Joel Brenner, ODNI, 2008
Classified information
Corporate proprietary, intellectual property, pre-classified research
National Security
US technological edge and financial prosperity
Government
Private Industry
Foreign Nations
Industry Competition
Courtesy of Washington Post, April 2008

8. 1.1 Economic Espionage
Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive
Impacts on the U.S. economy:
No reliable estimates on monetary value exists
Many companies are unaware or do not report due to the risk of damage to their reputation
Differing methods to estimate loss
Actual development costs
Loss of future revenues

9. 1.1 Economic Espionage DuPont
Leading producer of titanium dioxide (TiO2) used in white paints, plastics and paper
$12 billion market
TiO2 secrets sold to a Chinese state-run company
Small Businesses Beware
Courtesy of US Justice Department February 8, 2012, public release

10. 1.1 Why Brief Foreign Travelers?

11. 1.1 Why Brief Foreign Travelers?
When traveling to a foreign country, you and your company’s information are at greater risk
Many foreign countries do not have legal restrictions against technical surveillance
Some foreign governments help their domestic corporations collect competitive intelligence
Courtesy of FBI

12. 1.1 Outside Your Comfort Zone
Scenario 1
A foreign visitor has come to your facility to give a presentation on a product or service they can provide. In a room full of your company’s employees, the visitor requests to insert a foreign thumb drive into a networked computer at your company in order to load a file or presentation.
Which FSO’s can say your employees would not load the thumb drive?

13. 1.1 Outside Your Comfort Zone
Scenario 2
One of your company’s employees is on international travel to negotiate an important contract. In a room full of his/her foreign hosts, the employee is given a thumb drive to load a critical file to his/her laptop that is necessary for the meeting. The employee is worried that rejecting the thumb drive could offend the hosts and jeopardize the contract.
Which FSO’s can say your employee would not load the thumb drive?

14. Part 1: Why Brief Foreign Travelers?
I. Need To Address The Threat
II. Produces Quality Suspicious Contact Reports
III. DSS Enhancement

15. 1.2 Quality Reporting
20% of LMMFC SCRs are from foreign travelers

16. 1.2 Recent SCR #1

17. 1.2 Recent SCR #1 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th
803
1012
1304
1401
1505
1604
1809
1904
1306
1404
1605
1903
1310
1405
1507
1607
1407
1610
1510
1514

18. 1.2 Recent SCR #1
1605
1607
1505
1507
1405
1407

19. 1.2 Recent SCR #2
Evidence of hotel room search

20. 1.2 Recent SCR #3 “American Boyfriend”
Older Lockheed Martin Businessman
Attractive Hotel Receptionist

21. Part 1: Why Brief Foreign Travelers?
I. Need To Address The Threat
II. Produces Quality Suspicious Contact Reports
III. DSS Enhancement

22. 1.3 DSS Enhancement
Category 7: Counterintelligence Integration/ Cyber Security
Foreign travel pre-briefings and debriefings conducted (when not a contractual requirement) or implementation of quality assurance efforts to check and verify training on suspicious contact reporting (SCR), and employee knowledge (e.g., setting up appropriate exercises to validate employee knowledge/situational awareness of SCR reporting process)

23. So Why Brief Foreign Travelers?
Briefing Your Foreign Travelers
Protects Your Company’s Trade Secrets
Business Leaders
FSO
DSS

24. The Aware Traveler Part 1: Why Brief Foreign Travelers?
Part 2: How Do We Brief Foreign Travelers Effectively?

25. Part 2: How Do We Brief Foreign Travelers Effectively?
I. Choosing The Right Form of Communication
II. Pre-Travel Counterintelligence Briefing
III. Post-Travel Counterintelligence Debriefing

26. Part 2: How Do We Brief Foreign Travelers Effectively?
I. Choosing The Right Form of Communication
II. Pre-Travel Counterintelligence Briefing
III. Post-Travel Counterintelligence Debriefing

27. 2.1 Right Form of Communication
What if you do not have the time to
brief everyone face-to-face?

28. 2.1 Factors to Consider Location Program Criticality
Targeted Technology
Subject Matter Expert
Traveler Experience
Trip Purpose
Foreign Interaction

29. 2.1 Factors to Consider Location
Is it a high threat destination for collection?

30. 2.1 Factors to Consider Program Criticality
Is it a critical program to your company or the country?

31. 2.1 Factors to Consider Targeted Technology
Is the country known for targeting this type of technology?

32. 2.1 Factors to Consider Subject Matter Expert
How much critical knowledge does the traveler have?
Traveler Experience
Does the employee travel often?

33. 2.1 Factors to Consider Trip Purpose Tradeshow Business Development
Contract Negotiations
Field Service Work
Gives you an opportunity to learn more about the company’s overseas activities and tailor your briefing to their needs

34. 2.1 Factors to Consider Foreign Interaction
Who is the traveler meeting with?
Foreign Military Personnel
Foreign Defense Contractors
U.S. Military Personnel

35. Part 2: How Do We Brief Foreign Travelers Effectively?
I. Choosing The Right Form of Communication
II. Pre-Travel Counterintelligence Briefing
III. Post-Travel Counterintelligence Debriefing

36. 2.2 Pre-Trip Briefing Gather itinerary details Dates Airports Hotels
Travel Companions

37. 2.2 Hotels Things to look out for:
Same hotel or block of rooms on multiple trips
Hotel room searches

38. 2.2 Hotels Countermeasures:
Beware your conversations may not be private
Keep you hotel room doors locked
Place “Do Not Disturb” sign on door
Turn TV or radio on

39. 2.2 Hotels Countermeasures:
Do not leave sensitive information in your hotel room or safe
Do not use hotel computer or fax equipment at foreign hotels for sensitive matters

40. 2.2 Electronics Things to look out for: Abnormal occurrences
Turning off and on
Large amounts of pop-ups
Unusual updates
Device seems sluggish

41. 2.2 Electronics Things to look out for:
Attempts to connect foreign electronic storage devices to laptop or blackberry
Device automatically connecting to Wi-Fi networks
Laptop taken out of sight by an airport official for an extended period of time for “security reasons”

42. 2.2 Electronics Countermeasures: If you don’t need it, don’t take it
Utilize loaner laptops and phones
Utilize encryption
Maintain control of electronic devices

43. 2.2 Electronics Countermeasures: Disable wireless capabilities
Avoid Wi-Fi networks
Clear your internet browser history after each use. Delete history files, caches, cookies, and temporary internet files
Be wary of thumb drives, computer drives, CDs or other “gifts” given to you

44. 2.2 Elicitation
The strategic use of conversation to extract information from people without giving them the feeling they are being interrogated
Things to look out for:
Flattery
Bracketing
Deliberate False Statements
Can you top this?
Macro to Micro
Feigned Ignorance
Quote Reported Facts

45. 2.2 Elicitation Countermeasures:
Ignoring any question or statement you think is improper and changing the topic
Deflecting a question with one of your own
Responding with “Why do you ask?”
Giving a nondescript answer
Stating that you do not know
Stating that you would have to clear such discussions with your security office
Stating that you cannot discuss the matter

47. Part 2: How Do We Brief Foreign Travelers Effectively?
I. Choosing The Right Form of Communication
II. Pre-Travel Counterintelligence Briefing
III. Post-Travel Counterintelligence Debriefing

48. 2.3 Post-Trip Debriefing
Close the loop

49. Conclusion Part 1: Why Brief Foreign Travelers?
I. Need To Address The Threat
II. Produces Quality Suspicious Contact Reports
III. DSS Enhancement
Part 2: How Do We Brief Foreign Travelers Effectively?
I. Choosing The Right Form of Communication
II. Pre-Travel Counterintelligence Briefing
III. Post-Travel Counterintelligence Debriefing

50. Questions?