By Smartencycclopedia
The term covert agent refers to an individual engaged in secretive or clandestine activities on behalf of an intelligence or government agency, often working under a concealed identity to gather information or conduct espionage. The meaning and definition of a covert agent vary depending on the context and the jurisdiction, with a specific legal definition in the United States.
Definition in the United States
Within the United States Intelligence Community, the term covert agent is legally defined under U.S. federal law, specifically in 50 U.S.C.A. §426. According to this statute, a covert agent is either a government employee, a member of the Armed Forces, or a private citizen affiliated with an intelligence agency, and whose relationship to this agency is classified.
Cornell Law Definition
The legal definition of a covert agent, as interpreted from the plain language of the statute, includes:
- Current or Former Government Personnel
- A current or retired officer or employee of an intelligence agency, or a current or retired Armed Forces member assigned to an intelligence agency.
- Their identity as such must be classified information.
- They must be serving or have served outside the United States within the past five years.
- U.S. Citizen Operatives
- A United States citizen whose intelligence relationship is classified.
- The individual must act outside the United States as an agent, informant, or operational source for an intelligence agency or, at the time of disclosure, as an agent for the FBI’s foreign counterintelligence or counterterrorism units.
- Foreign Nationals
- Non-U.S. citizens with a classified intelligence relationship to the U.S., either currently or formerly serving as agents or informants to a U.S. intelligence agency.
Identity Protection
Under U.S. law, covert agents’ identities are protected to prevent their exposure, which could endanger the agents and compromise ongoing intelligence operations. If someone knowingly reveals a covert agent’s identity, the act is punishable by up to ten years in prison. Further, anyone who receives this information and subsequently discloses it to others can face up to five years in prison.
Famous Cases of “Outing”
- Anti-CIA Activism in the 1960s-70s
During the 1960s and 1970s, anti-CIA activists occasionally exposed lists of CIA personnel stationed abroad, aiming to disrupt their activities. These incidents raised concerns within intelligence communities about safeguarding agents’ identities. - Valerie Plame Affair (2003)
One of the most prominent cases involving the exposure of a covert agent’s identity occurred in 2003, with the leak of CIA officer Valerie Plame’s identity. In this instance, I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, an advisor to Vice President Dick Cheney, was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice. Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald confirmed in a court filing that Plame was indeed a covert agent at the time of the disclosure, leading to national debates on security, law, and ethics surrounding intelligence practices.
References
- “§426. Definitions, U.S. Code Collection.” Cornell Law School.
- Memmott, Mark. “CIA ‘outing’ might fall short of crime.” USA Today, July 14, 2005.
- “Plame was ‘covert’ agent at time of name leak – Newly released unclassified document details CIA employment.” NBC News, May 29, 2007.
- Seidman, Joel. “Plame was ‘covert’ agent at time of name leak.” NBC News, May 29, 2007.
- Froomkin, Dan. “Fitzgerald Again Points to Cheney.” The Washington Post, May 29, 2007.
- Ponder, Jon. “It’s Official: Plame was Covert – So Federal Law Was Broken, But ‘Rule of Law’ Only Applies to Dems.” Pensito Review, May 30, 2007.
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