Starfleet Intelligence
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Similar to the more famous Intelligence Agencies of the past such as the CIA, KGB and MI6 (or SIS) the role of StarFleet Intelligence (SFI) is to provide the Federation with a galactic covert capability to promote and defend the security and well-being of the Federation and it's member worlds.
Hierarchically, StarFleet Intelligence maintains a central headquarters on Earth, where senior officers oversee the broad Intelligence mission. The vast majority of Intelligence work, however, is done by the field units, found throughout the Federation. Many field units may be grouped together into a taskforce.
Ultimately, an Intelligence unit is made up of a number of different sections, all with section leaders who report to their Unit Director, who in turn reports to any applicable Taskforce Head, who in turn reports to their designated contact at Intel HQ. A Director may also be required to pass on relevant mission related data to the ranking StarFleet Officer (who in turn reports to their Flag Officer) at their local site. While the work that SFI does is generally inclusive, the end result can have far reaching consequences.
Sections
The sections within an Intelligence unit can broadly be broken down into three different areas: Field Operations, Operational Technology and Analysts. Given the wide variety of jobs within each of these sections, officers specialize in one particular area of the section which they are within.
Field Operations
The Field Operations unit governs the deployment and control of Field Operatives or Agents deployed from the Intelligence taskforce. Agents can be deployed in a number of formats ranging from tactical insertion to the covert placement of a single operative. Length of deployment depends on the source of the Intelligence unit. On the whole, short term operations are deployed from starships while longer term operations, including undercover operations, are deployed from a starbase or similar fixed, defensible position.
In general, Field Operatives are the muscle of the Intelligence Department when needed, yet there is more to the job than that. Specialties within are wide ranging from 'Human' Intelligence to such tasks as covert surveillance, electronics and demolition. Other more obvious specialties that fall within the realm of Field Operations would include interrogation and the art of getting into somewhere where you should not be.
Operations Technology
Operation Technology (or Op Tech.) officers work to enhance standard equipment, to come up with new solutions to problems and to maintain the Intelligence units equipment ranging from phasers to computers. Beginning in the planning stage of a mission, Op Tech remains involved in planning to determine whether changes to existing equipment is needed or whether custom built specialist equipment is required for the mission to be successful.
Depending on deployment location, a job can have more mundane duties to perform. Given the type of jobs that need to be performed by Op Tech, the skill base is wide and varied. It should be noted that in all but the largest Intelligence units, Op Tech works on a rather small scale, anything larger than something a normal person can carry would require the assistance engineering.
Analyst
The Analyst section is generally regarded as the largest section, although this would depend on the mandate of the Intelligence unit. The two main sub-unites of the Analyst section are Data and Communication analysts. The jobs of both sub-units are to collect, compile and analyze information from any number of different sources and pass any information of value to the Director. In this capacity, Analysts separate the "signal" from the "noise." When an ongoing mission in underway, Communication Analysts are tasked with keeping the Field Operatives in contact with the ship and to keep the contact hidden while monitoring all on going Communications.
Data Analysts monitor what the Field Operatives are actually doing remotely while providing support information to any problems that the Field Operatives face. The section leaders of both Data and Communication Analyst sections report directly to the Director, who has overall control of the operation. Data Analysts are also tasked with Crypto-analysis, the task of deciphering and analyzing enemy cryptographic codes.
Director of Intelligence
The Director of the Intelligence unit ultimately has to govern when, where, and how the unit operates with relation to the overall mission of the ship or facility that they are on. Strong links with the FO or CO of the parent unit are required, to ensure that the mission of the Intelligence department coincides broadly with the mission of the general StarFleet forces. Other than serving as a liaison, the Director is also required to run the Intelligence unit in the same manner in which a department head runs any other grouping of officers.
Missions
The agents of SFI participate in various missions to accomplish their goals.
Counter-Intelligence
Counter Intelligence operations involve identifying possible hostile activity and taking preventative action to impede their operations. This could require uncovering long term operatives, taking proactive measures to stop planed operations or in extreme cases require Counter Terrorism teams being employed to resolve any urgent situations.
Counter Intelligence duties within SFI are primarily directed at identifying intelligence activity targeting the Federation. This not only includes operations undertaken by hostile governmental agencies, such as the Tal Shiar and the Obsidian Order, but also with threats from independent organizations such as the Orion Syndicate and the now-defunct Maquis.
Deception & Disinformation
To divert intelligence-gathering operations away from vital Federation interests, or to disguise ongoing SFI operations, the SFI department may engage in deception and disinformation activity, by way of imparting into the hands of non-Federation parties information which they believe credible. Even non-enemies may be the unknowing target of deception and disinformation, if SFI believes that the ultimate target may be more convinced of such information by proxy.
Extraction
Extraction, in the intelligence field, is the act of moving a target from an unfriendly location to a friendly location. Two types of extraction missions exist:
- Extraction of a friendly target. Typically, this involves recovering undercover agents, valuable personnel, or defectors from a hostile location.
- Extraction of an unfriendly target. At times, it may be necessary to obtain key enemy personnel to acquire their technical or strategic knowledge.
Investigation
Occasionally, SFI investigates incidents which may have an impact on intelligence. In such cases, agents become involved either in StarFleet or non-aligned agencies.
Reconnaissance & Surveillance
As one of the primary activities of SFI, reconnaissance and surveillance are the primary means of learning about non-Federation activities. In such missions, intelligence information is collected in the following methods:
- Researching: simply enough, SFI agents may spend an inordinate amount of time researching via data archives.
- Intercepting transmissions: agents may be required to find ways to intercept communications by way of technological methods, including bugging target locations, amplifying signals sent between two target parties, and so forth. Such transmissions are then sent to HQ for analysis.
Infiltration
If necessary, SFI may covertly infiltrate a target organization by way of disguising and inserting agents. Once successfully in place, the operative(s) must complete their assigned mission and withdraw safely.
Credits
Text prepared by Captain Steven McCall.
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