Spy Poll

[Rebounder]

[quote name='Doitzel' timestamp='1282462064' post='2426469']
Terrorists? Fearless armed liberators, I think you mean!
[/quote]

Good to see you. I thought you had.. err... [IC]left this earth[still IC]

Honestly, I miss the days of Vox and FAN spies occasionally popping up from the depths of Pacifica's sphere of influence, causing immeasurable amounts of drama, surprise, and sweat from Hegemony leaders.

Perhaps a spy organization is still out there waiting, in every major alliance, to come out and take its place as the new leader of the globe? You never know. Alliance members, the ones you follow may themselves be traitors. I'd watch them closely if I were you. Trust no one, and look for the signs. If someone occasionally steals off in the dusk, without telling anyone where they are going, they may be a spy. If you see one, act quickly, shoot first, and ask questions later. You can never be too careful.

[Yevgeni Luchenkov]

As boredom kills everything, I suppose some of us might be tempted to once again form networks and plant spies/agents for various means and goals.

I also know spying occurs.

Also, what babyjesus said is pure truth.

[KingEd]

Spying should continue. It's like the only CB that doesn't get criticized, Oh wait...

Nonetheless, Why Spy ? There's that new Website. Worry Free CN Talk.

lolz

[Xerxer]

I'm a spy.

[Chickenzilla]

Alot of spying is just listening, and using what you hear to get people who know what's going on to elaborate. Then you use that to gain the trust of others. Also spies help.

[Cortath]

I don't understand why people would spy to get OPSEC information. Most actionable military intelligence can be collected through traditional methods.

[The Pansy]

[quote name='Cortath' timestamp='1282564634' post='2427641']
I don't understand why people would spy to get OPSEC information. Most actionable military intelligence can be collected through traditional methods.
[/quote]
Cortath, just don't stop my Pay Cheques, I have still got purple covered buddy

[Delta1212]

You can get better intelligence about more things with less effort (and no risk) by making friends than by utilizing spies. I'm quite sure that people still do it, but I have a feeling that's mostly because the people in question think spying is cool rather than it actually being a practical intelligence gathering method.

[Qaianna]

Looks like the consensus among commentators is that planting moles in an alliance isn't as useful as just making friends in the right places. Also avoids what Ashoka just mentioned, where the mole goes native on you. Which, if that happens, means that you've enriched the enemy and gotten almost nothing.

I'm actually surprised that the third question has as many 'no' answers as it does. Given how many boast of their spying exploits, you'd think people would guess someone would own up, especially anonymously.

[supercoolyellow]

I would think that if you had one, or even better yet, two or three spies in a targeted alliance, you could have them spread poisonous enough discord that you could cause the alliance serious harm from the inside.

Edited August 24, 2010 by supercoolyellow

[SiCkO]

[quote name='supercoolyellow' timestamp='1282626834' post='2428871']
I would think that if you had one, or even better yet, two or three spies in a targeted alliance, you could have them spread poisonous enough discord that you could cause the alliance serious harm from the inside.
[/quote]

usually the people who do this arn't on the winning side of wars and generally get beat down :/

[Stefano Palmieri]

Voted: No,, #5, No

[Kalasin]

[quote name='Qaianna' timestamp='1282625838' post='2428824']
Looks like the consensus among commentators is that planting moles in an alliance isn't as useful as just making friends in the right places. Also avoids what Ashoka just mentioned, where the mole goes native on you. Which, if that happens, means that you've enriched the enemy and gotten almost nothing.
[/quote]

In which case, I have no doubt most spy handlers would promptly expose their spies to the alliance they'd been spying on. *shrugs*

Distasteful business.

Edit: I suppose I was thinking about a Vox context. If say, NPO, spied on C&G, obviously for self-interested reasons they wouldn't $%&@ over their spies.

Edited August 24, 2010 by Kalasin

[Hydro]

The general attitude toward spies in this game SUCKS. We need spies to go roaming about, entering alliances and flat out destroying them from the inside out.

[Qaianna]

[quote name='Hydro' timestamp='1282710541' post='2430474']
The general attitude toward spies in this game SUCKS. We need spies to go roaming about, entering alliances and flat out destroying them from the inside out.
[/quote]
Depends on which attitude you mean.

'Spies are ZOMG evil!' attitude? Your suggestion kind'a ENCOURAGES that, especially as it tends to be used in less than even conflicts. Which tends to reverse itself when the ones using that tactic find themselves in their victims' place (tho there are exceptions).

'Spies aren't worth it!' attitude? The alliances that are most susceptible to falling apart from spies don't need spies for it. Honestly, if you had a spy in an enemy alliance and your next report from them was their promotion to Head Honcho, why destroy that alliance? And if they're stuck in the bottom ranks? It takes a while to get the grumbling out, and you've got the whole 'what's your spy doing here?' risk..which can be done away with by just staying outside and nudging members from the outside.

[Hyperion321]

I was a spy like...4 years ago.

Edited August 25, 2010 by Hyperion321

[Duke Nukem]

I spy on the Delta RIA for the glorious Leo RIA.

[Chief Savage Man]

It's not worth the trouble. The only reason Vox ever did it was because they had nothing to lose doing it. Plus somebody leaks most things eventually.

[rsoxbronco1]

I spy on Ronin constantly.

Also, this thread needs more mhawk.

[PrinceArutha]

I co-founded Nueva Vida almost 4 years ago so that I could be a spai for MK. How's that for manipulating the puppet strings by MK? They're THAT good.

NV is too lazy and drunk to catch me too

[hizzy]

i spied on an alliance back in 2008. it was a new alliance at the time, and mostly I thought it was a bunch of GOONS rerolls so i joined up and it was actually pretty pointless because it was obvious they werent. but then for !@#$% and giggles i stayed in the alliance and became a government member, i actually contributed to them, helped them out with figuring out the right trade combos people needed, etc... eventually they all went rogue on someone else and disbanded.

spying really is useless though, if you need information just go into someones public channel and ask whatever it is you want to know but type it in all caps. you'll get an answer.

[Mayzie]

[quote name='hizzy' timestamp='1282788483' post='2431427']
blah
[/quote]

I spy on your mum at night.

But yeah, spies are worthless in my opinion, there's so many treaties and people have so many 'friends' that !@#$ spreads really quick. Plus, if you have someone active and intelligent enough to gather any form of worthwhile information, then surely they could be put to better use in your own alliance.

[Bob Janova]

[quote]if you need information just go into someones public channel and ask whatever it is you want to know but type it in all caps. you'll get an answer. [/quote]
Hahahaha! And it's funny because it's true, too.

[Kzoppistan]

Frankly, most alliances aren't duplicitous enough, either in ability or paranoia, to hide their true intentions. Most of what happens like forging and breaking treaties and such is telegraphed ahead of the action. Only in the case of CBs that pull in the globe, or somehow open an opportunity to you, are worth knowing about in advance, and the randomness of these occurrences would mean placing a spy in virtually every alliance. And heck, if you had that many spies, you could just employ them as ministers at home and wouldn't need any covert spying advantage anyway.

Spying can be usefully to determine what people actually think about things, as they express themselves more freely at home than on the CN forums, but doesn't really overcome the cost/benefit ratio.

Agent provocateurs and other gov infiltration can be more useful than just spying alone.

*Edit: Also, I know for a fact that spying still exists.

Edited August 28, 2010 by Kzoppistan

[Gn0xious Jr]

i never understood the use of spying to catch spying. on several occassions spying was suggested, when evidence was produced, it was gathered by spying... i guess the alliance in the right is the one that finds out first? doesn't make sense to me...