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Countering the Threat of Insider Spies

David Charney was a speaker at the Institute of World Politics’ Chancellor’s Council Meeting. He spoke on the topic of “Countering the Threat of Insider Spies”. Here is a video…

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Evaluating insider threat indicators and mitigation measures: A Delphi study

Dr. David Charney was part of a worldwide group of insider threat experts who were consulted for a University of Antwerp doctoral project on insider threats, which was published in April 2022. The project used the Delphi technique, which is “a widely used method of gathering group consensus from a panel of knowledgeable persons”.  The…

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Why Benedict Arnold Turned Traitor Against the American Revolution

The psychology of Benedict Arnold. This article appeared in the May 2016 Smithsonian magazine: He was short, solidly built (one acquaintance remembered that “there wasn’t any wasted timber in him”) and blessed with almost superhuman energy and endurance. He was handsome and charismatic, with black hair, gray eyes and an aquiline nose, and he carried himself with the…

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New Deal for Insider Spies Could Have Prevented Snowden Case

Article by Bernie Reeves in American Thinker, September 8, 2014: In the espionage business, uncovering secrets passed on to the enemy by a captured insider spy is critical to resuming normal operations. Until a thorough damage assessment is completed, intelligence agencies don’t know what data are secure, or if agents in place are safe. And while…

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Jeffrey Delisle GRU

“They Had a Photo of My Children”: The Jeffery Delisle Case, Part II

Background on Delisle spy case — By John Irvin  NOIR Team If it was former Canadian Navy Sub-Lieutenant Jeffery Delisle’s intention to free himself of the burden of his financial troubles and to take some decisive action to counter his sense of helplessness when faced with the collapse of his marriage, any relief he may have…

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Psychiatrist David Charney Explores the Psychology of the Insider Spy

Dr. David Charney’s medical school alumni magazine wrote a featured article about his work in the spring 2020 issue of Upstate Medical Alumni Journal: From Patriot to Traitor: Psychiatrist David Charney Explores the Psychology of the Insider Spy (pdf) . . . . According to Virginia-based psychiatrist David Charney, MD ’68, spies often decide to…

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Don’t be an Espionage Pawn

The FBI has recently released two videos about the Glenn Shriver espionage case to alert other college students who are studying abroad to the possibility of being targeted for recruitment by a foreign intelligence service or entity. What are people who are recruited to spy (clandestinely directed by foreign handlers) against the US in for?…

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Lecture Video: What Makes Traitors Tick?

On Wednesday, February 5, 2014, David Charney, MD gave a lecture for the Smithsonian Associates at the International Spy Museum entitled, “What Makes Traitors Tick?” The lecture is based on his article, “True Psychology of the Insider Spy.”

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Focus on the Person, not Technology

“The foundation of a counter-insider threat program needs to start with recognizing there is a person at the other end,” says Keith Lowry, former Chief of Staff to the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Human Intelligence, Counterintelligence and Security at the Pentagon in this article on ZDNet: Fighting the person should be cybersecurity best practice When…

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The Average Joe Accused of Trying to Sell Russia Secrets

The psychology of Gregory Allen Justice, a Boeing satellite engineer with a top secret security clearance passed over for promotion. This article appeared in the Daily Beast in August 2016: . . . . Among those satellites were sensitive military systems that Justice himself had worked on at Boeing for more than 15 years. Concealed in…

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An Off-Ramp on the Road to Hell

By John Alan Irvin Proverbs are passed down over the centuries or millennia because we recognize that they contain a larger truth or a useful lesson. Circumstances change, but the proverbs stay relevant. That’s because they speak to our human nature, which hasn’t changed. As unique as we may be as individuals, as humans we’re…

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The Spy of Raspberry Falls

Kevin Mallory’s hatred was never for his country. It was only for himself, said Dr. David Charney in a BBC Radio documentary about this spy who worked for the CIA and spied for China. – From the BBC: Kevin Mallory lived a double life – he helped people on his street with yard work, went…

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