https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9589975/amp/Pentagon-charge-60-000-strong-secret-army-undercover-operatives.htmlThe Pentagon has amassed a secret, 60,000-strong undercover army to carry out domestic and foreign assignments, a new investigation has revealed The force is reportedly more than 10 times the size of the CIA's clandestine operation and includes military and civilian agents 'in real life and online'The agents are 'trained to create secret identities for themselves, make disguises, and can assume fake identities online to pursue high value targets'The digital sleuths can even manipulate biometric databases of foreign Governments so agents can pass fingerprint checks under false identities Newsweek says the force is part of a new front in covert warfare using a little-known espionage known as 'signature reduction'Signature reduction gives the US deniability on sensitive missions and allows soldiers, civilians and contractors to work under false identities While signature reduction operatives are rarely outed, intelligence agents point to the 2013 arrest of American 'diplomat' Ryan Fogle in Moscow as one such case
The Pentagon has been operating a secret 60,000-strong undercover army made up of soldiers, civilians and contractors who work under fake identities to carry out undercover domestic and overseas missions, according to a Newsweek investigation.
The force includes NSA agents, cyber security experts and special forces operating behind hostile enemy lines in places like North Korea and Iran. It is serviced by around 130 private companies and supported by dozens of secretive government agencies at an annual cost of $900million, according to the report.
Its 60,000 members include cyber warriors who use false personas online to search for 'high-value targets'.
The 'army' operates in an amorphous new area of combat known as 'signature reduction', which is largely undefined but is a term used to describe the extreme measures taken to protect undercover operatives and operations.
It involves, in part, creating false documentation and disguises to paying the bills and taxes of agents while they are operating under their fake identities. It also involves building high-tech and undetectable devices that agents can use to photograph or listen in on activities in remote sections of the world.
A Department of Defense spokesperson told Newsweek that 'signature reduction' 'is not an official term'. The Defense Intelligence Agency says it could be described as 'operational security (OPSEC) measures for a variety of activities and operations'.
The true size of the force of undercover operatives, which is completely unregulated and has never been the subject of Congressional oversight, is unknown. However, after a two year investigation, Newsweek says it is 10 times the size of the CIA's clandestine forces and has grown substantially in the past decade.