[News in War History] 'Spy Warfare' Reexamined Amid US Classified Leak Controversy... "Starting from Ancient Egypt"

The Father of Modern Intelligence Organizations is the British Queen's 'Secretary'
Intelligence Warfare Expands to Cyberspace Including SNS

Editor's Note[News in War History] is a content series created to provide multifaceted perspectives on the constantly unfolding war and conflict news worldwide. Through 'News,' we first understand the current situation; through 'History,' we analyze the hidden meanings behind the news; and we also offer 'Implications' for the near future. We visit you every Sunday, and after 40 episodes, the series will be published as a book.

[Photo by Unsplash·Egypt Cairo Museum]

Recently, documents presumed to be classified intelligence from the U.S. Department of Defense and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) have been massively leaked through social networking services (SNS), causing a global sensation. Allegations have emerged that the U.S. government wiretapped and eavesdropped not only on adversary countries such as China and Russia but also on internal information and leaders of allied countries including South Korea and Europe, leading to significant international repercussions.

In particular, the fact that the information was spread by a U.S. soldier who was playing online games has put intelligence agencies worldwide on high alert. The documents rapidly spread worldwide through the gaming chat application 'Discord,' making containment difficult.

It has become known that information can be leaked not only through intelligence agents or official diplomatic channels but also through online games and communities spread across the globe, making it hard to predict when and where a leak might occur. In this article, we will explore the complex and delicate world of espionage warfare unfolding today.

Photo of a document presumed to be a leaked U.S. Department of Defense classified document, which was leaked through social networking services (SNS) such as Twitter and Discord on the 7th (local time). [Image source=Twitter]

◆News: Classified Documents Leak Originating from Discord Private Chat Rooms

First, let's look at the related news. The suspect who initially spread government classified documents on the game chat app Discord is reported to be a soldier in his 20s belonging to the U.S. National Guard, which has shocked many.

According to the New York Times (NYT) on the 13th (local time), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested Jack Teixeira, the operator of the Discord chat room where the classified documents were first leaked. He is known to be a soldier working in an intelligence-related unit within the Massachusetts Air National Guard. Currently, U.S. judicial authorities are investigating Teixeira regarding the purpose and circumstances of the leak, possible accomplices, and document tampering.

According to the Washington Post (WP), he was the moderator of one of the Discord game chat rooms and reportedly revealed some documents to show off the information he had to his friends who played games with him. It is presumed that the classified documents then spread to other chat rooms and SNS through various channels.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

Subsequently, these documents became publicly known as they spread in public channels amid disputes among gamers on Discord public servers. According to the British daily The Guardian, an investigation by the UK research group Bellingcat revealed that the classified documents spread after a debate between pro-Russian and anti-Russian gamers about Russian military casualties in the Ukraine war on a public chat server of a game. One gamer then disclosed some classified documents that were in a private channel.

The classified documents circulated about a month after the initial leak on the far-right online community known as '4chan,' accelerating their spread. Most of the content related to intelligence on the Ukraine war, and some included information about allied countries collected by U.S. intelligence agencies through wiretapping and eavesdropping. Criticism has grown as it became known that U.S. authorities used such methods not only against adversary countries but also to gather intelligence on allies.

◆History 1: The History of Espionage Starting from Ancient Egypt's 'Eyes of the Pharaoh'

The golden mask of King Tutankhamun, the Egyptian pharaoh from the 14th century BC [Image source=Egypt Cairo Museum]

When did the intense espionage warfare spanning the globe begin? According to the German Spy Museum in Berlin, it is no exaggeration to say that the concept of espionage has existed since the dawn of human history. Thousands of years ago, in ancient Egypt, there was even an intelligence organization called 'the eyes of the Pharaoh.'

The Bible contains more detailed stories about ancient spies. In the Old Testament's Book of Joshua, it is recorded that Joshua, Moses' successor and leader of the Israelites in the 15th century BCE, sent two spies to attack the city of Jericho. They completed their espionage mission with the help of Rahab, a woman living in Jericho, and safely escaped outside the city walls.

In China, espionage developed significantly during the ancient Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, when hundreds of regional states competed. The strategic classic 'The Art of War' by Sun Tzu categorizes spies into five types, showing how detailed espionage was even then. According to the 13th chapter 'Use of Spies' (Yongjian), spies are classified as Xiangjian (local spies), Neijian (internal spies), Fanjian (double agents), Sajian (dead spies who spread false information), and Shengjian (living spies who report regularly).

Xiangjian refers to spy organizations composed of local residents; Neijian are spies recruited from enemy officials; Fanjian are double agents; Sajian spread false information to enemy spies; and Shengjian are spies dispatched directly from the home country who report regularly.

Not only in China but also in Korean history, countless stories of spies appear. The first spy in Korean history is known as Dorim, a secret envoy of King Jangsu of Goguryeo. According to the Samguk Sagi, Dorim was a monk who was very skilled at the game of Go. King Gaero of Baekje, who loved Go, appointed him as a national advisor, giving him influence over state affairs.

Later, Dorim advised King Gaero to initiate various civil engineering projects, wasting Baekje's national resources and causing public discontent. Taking advantage of Baekje's internal turmoil caused by Dorim's strategy, King Jangsu attacked and captured Hanseong, Baekje's capital, in 475 CE. King Gaero died in this battle due to betrayal by his ministers.

A portrait of Francis Walsingham, known as the secretary during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England who established a modern intelligence agency.

The modern concept of organized large-scale espionage warfare began in earnest in 16th to 17th century Europe. The word 'spy' also started to be widely used during this period.

According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the English word 'spy' originates from the medieval French word 'espiier,' which originally meant "to observe, to watch." This influence remains in the English word 'espionage,' which means spy activities.

One of the most famous spies in the turbulent Europe of that time was Francis Walsingham, secretary and principal secretary to Queen Elizabeth I of England. He established an extensive intelligence network across Europe by deploying agents from London to Moscow, laying the foundation for modern espionage organizations.

In 1586, Walsingham devised a plot to trap Mary Stuart, Queen Elizabeth I's fifth cousin, who was accused of treason and threatening Elizabeth's throne. At that time, King Philip II of Spain was in conflict with England and had declared his intention to invade England, overthrow Elizabeth I, and place the Catholic Mary on the throne.

Walsingham bribed to obtain secret letters exchanged between Mary and the French ambassador and arrested her for treason. Mary was executed for treason in February 1587. Subsequently, England and Spain fought the Battle of Calais in 1588, one of Europe's three major naval battles. Spain lost its Invincible Armada in this battle, marking the end of its golden age and a rapid decline in national power. Walsingham's intelligence network across Europe played a significant role in this victory.

◆History 2: The '007 James Bond' Series Created by a Retired Spy

Movie 007 Series Still Cut
[Image Source=Yonhap News]

As the scale of wars expanded, espionage organizations also grew. Especially in the 20th century, through World Wars I and II, espionage between countries intensified, leading to the development of both espionage organizations that acquire foreign intelligence and counterintelligence organizations that suppress foreign spies to protect national security.

These two types of organizations are collectively called 'Intelligence Agencies.' Representative organizations include the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), specializing in espionage, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), specializing in counterintelligence. The CIA was established in 1947, and the FBI earlier in 1908. These agencies collect information from various sources, including human intelligence (HUMINT) from agents abroad, signals intelligence (SIGINT) from intercepted communications, and open-source intelligence (OSINT) from publicly available information.

Since the Cold War era after World War II, spies have also gained popular fame through media. A prime example is the spy code-named 'James Bond' in the '007 series' films. James Bond is a spy belonging to the British Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), operating worldwide. The series originated from novels that sold over 100 million copies.

The original author of the 007 series is Ian Fleming, who was not originally a writer but a former military officer and intelligence agent who served in the British SIS during World War II. He worked as a Reuters correspondent in Moscow before joining SIS in 1939 when the war broke out, engaging in espionage and counterintelligence. After the war, he retired and wrote the 007 series based on his experiences to earn a living, achieving great success.

◆Implication: The World of Espionage Where Time and Space Boundaries Disappear, Must Strengthen Defenses

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

Since the end of the Cold War, modern espionage has become even more complex. With the advancement of information and communication technology, smartphones are now widespread in almost every country and region, and various types of information circulate through social networking services (SNS) and online communities, making information control extremely difficult.

Suspicions of so-called 'backdoor chips' that can leak information from smartphones have significantly influenced the power struggle between the U.S. and China. Concerns over backdoor chips allegedly embedded in Huawei smartphones, a Chinese manufacturer, led Western countries including the U.S. and the UK to impose regulations on Chinese companies' 5G network projects, escalating into diplomatic disputes.

Following this information leak incident, surveillance and control over game chat apps and communities, which had been blind spots for information leaks, are expected to be strengthened. As the boundaries of time and space disappear in information leakage methods and it has been confirmed that neither enemies nor allies can be fully trusted in espionage warfare, our intelligence agencies must pay even closer attention to counterintelligence.