Editing Defense Intelligence Agency (section)

== Controversies ==

=== Alleged torture with drugs, gay porn, and loud music ===
[[File:FBI correspondence regarding DIA personnel in Guantanamo.pdf|thumb|A declassified FBI correspondence alleging DIA misconduct]]
In 2003, the Defense Secretary [[Donald Rumsfeld]]'s "Working Group" on interrogations requested that DIA come up with prisoner interrogation techniques for the group's consideration. According to the 2008 [[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services|US Senate Armed Services Committee]] report on the treatment of detainees in U.S. custody, DIA began drawing up the list of techniques with the help of its civilian employee, a former Guantanamo Interrogation Control Element (ICE) Chief David Becker. Becker claimed that the Working Group members were particularly interested in aggressive methods and that he "was encouraged to talk about techniques that
inflict pain."<ref>[[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services]] [http://www.armed-services.senate.gov/Publications/Detainee%20Report%20Final_April%2022%202009.pdf "INQUIRY INTO THE TREATMENT OF DETAINEES IN U.S. CUSTODY"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131021194943/http://www.armed-services.senate.gov/Publications/Detainee%20Report%20Final_April%2022%202009.pdf |date=October 21, 2013 }} November 20, 2008, p 111</ref>

It is unknown to what extent the agency's recommendations were used or for how long, but according to the same Senate report, the list drawn up by DIA included the use of "drugs such as [[sodium pentothal]] and [[Demerol]]," humiliation via female interrogators and sleep deprivation. Becker claimed that he recommended the use of drugs due to rumors that another intelligence agency, the name of which was redacted in the Senate report, had successfully used them in the past.<ref>[[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services]] [http://www.armed-services.senate.gov/Publications/Detainee%20Report%20Final_April%2022%202009.pdf "INQUIRY INTO THE TREATMENT OF DETAINEES IN U.S. CUSTODY"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131021194943/http://www.armed-services.senate.gov/Publications/Detainee%20Report%20Final_April%2022%202009.pdf |date=October 21, 2013 }} November 20, 2008, p 112</ref> According to the analysis of the [[Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Defense|Office of Defense Inspector General]], DIA's cited justification for the use of drugs was to "[relax] detainee to cooperative state" and that mind-altering substances were not used.<ref>[[Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Defense|Deputy Inspector General for Intelligence]] [http://www.dodig.mil/FOIA/ERR/09-INTEL-13_Redacted.pdf "Investigation of Allegations of the Use of Mind-Altering Drugs to Facilitate Interrogations of Detainees"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313195818/http://www.dodig.mil/FOIA/ERR/09-INTEL-13_Redacted.pdf |date=March 13, 2017 }} September 23, 2009, p 10</ref>

Some of the more lurid revelations of DIA's alleged harsh interrogations came from [[FBI]] officers, who conducted their own screenings of detainees in [[Guantanamo]] along with other agencies. According to one account, the interrogators of what was then DIA's [[Defense Clandestine Service|Defense Humint Service]] (referenced in FBI correspondence as DHS<ref>White, Josh. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/23/AR2006022301813.html FBI Interrogators in Cuba Opposed Aggressive Tactics], ''The Washington Post'', February 24, 2006</ref>), forced subjects to watch [[gay porn]], draped them with the [[Flag of Israel|Israeli flag]], and interrogated them in rooms lit by [[strobe light]]s for 16–18 hours, all the while telling prisoners that they were from FBI.<ref name="aclu.org">[[American Civil Liberties Union]] [https://www.aclu.org/files/projects/foiasearch/pdf/DOJFBI003584.pdf Email &#91;parties redacted&#93; re GTMO], 7/31</ref>

The real FBI operatives were concerned that DIA's harsh methods and impersonation of FBI agents would complicate the FBI's ability to do its job properly, saying "The next time a real Agent tries to talk to that guy, you can imagine the result."<ref name="aclu.org" /> A subsequent military inquiry countered FBI's allegations by saying that the prisoner treatment was degrading but not inhumane, without addressing the allegation of DIA staff regularly impersonating FBI officers—usually a [[felony]] offense.<ref>Lewis, Neil. [https://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/14/politics/14gitmo.html "Report Discredits F.B.I. Claims of Abuse at Guantánamo Bay"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', July 14, 2005</ref>

Similar activities transpired at the hands of DIA operatives in [[Bagram]], where as recently as 2010 the organization ran the so-called "Black Jail". According to a report published by ''[[The Atlantic]]'', the jail was manned by DIA's [[DCHC]] staff, who were accused of beating and [[Sexual abuse|sexually humiliating]] high-value targets held at the site.<ref>Ambinder, Marc. [https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2010/05/inside-the-secret-interrogation-facility-at-bagram/56678/ "Inside the Secret Interrogation Facility at Bagram"], ''[[The Atlantic]]'', May 14, 2010</ref> The detention center outlived the black sites run by the [[Central Intelligence Agency]], with DIA allegedly continuing to use "restricted" interrogation methods in the facility under a secret authorization. It is unclear what happened to the secret facility after the 2013 transfer of the base to Afghan authorities following several postponements.<ref>Rodriguez, Alex. [https://www.latimes.com/world/la-xpm-2013-mar-25-la-fg-wn-us-bagram-prison-afghanistan-20130325-story.html "U.S. hands over control of Bagram prison to Afghan government"], ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', March 25, 2013</ref>

DIA's harsh interrogation methods at times paled in comparison to those of some U.S. [[special operations forces]]. In 2004, interrogations by [[Joint Special Operations Command]]'s high-value targets special operations task forces (including [[Task Force 6-26]]) were so heavy-handed and physical with the detainees that two DIA officials complained, as a result of which they were threatened and put under surveillance by abusive military interrogators. The two DIA officials managed to share their accounts of abuse with the agency leadership, prompting DIA Director [[Lowell E. Jacoby|Lowell Jacoby]] to write a memo on this topic to the [[Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence]].<ref>Lewis, Neil. [https://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/07/politics/07cnd-abus.html?ex=1103462134&ei=1&en=1329389e02672a45&_r=0 "Memos Say 2 Officials Who Saw Prison Abuse Were Threatened"], ''The New York Times'', December 7, 2004</ref>

=== Skinny Puppy controversy ===
[[File:OhGr live.JPG|thumb|[[Skinny Puppy]] billed DIA for allegedly using its [[Music in psychological operations|music in torture]]]]

In 2014, Canadian electronic music group [[Skinny Puppy]] sent the Defense Intelligence Agency a symbolic bill of $666,000, after finding out that the agency used their music in [[Guantanamo Bay Naval Base|Guantanamo]] during "enhanced interrogation" (deemed torture by some) sessions.<ref>Holdbrooks, Terry C. [http://america.aljazeera.com/opinions/2014/2/industrial-action.html "Why Skinny Puppy asked Gitmo to pay up"], [[Al Jazeera Arabic|Al Jazeera]], February 12, 2014</ref> Their music was originally heard at GTMO by a guard, who happened to be a fan of Skinny Puppy and could not understand how his favorite music was being used in such a manner: "[Skinny Puppy's] songs are characterized by ... lyrics that call out corporate wrongdoing. The songs I heard at GTMO were heavily distorted, almost to the point of inaudibility. Even so, I would never have imagined that Skinny Puppy's music would, or could, be used for enhanced interrogation". The officer conducting interrogation sessions allegedly stating that the Canadian group's songs—which are "characterized by relentless drumbeats, panicked, convulsive riffs, synth samples"—were very effective for "enhanced interrogation."{{citation needed|date=January 2019}}

=== Attempts to expand domestic activities ===
Since mid-2000s, DIA has come under scrutiny for requesting new powers "to covertly approach and cultivate 'U.S. persons' and even recruit them as informants" without disclosing they are doing so on behalf of the U.S. government.<ref>Michael Isikoff & Mark Hosenball. {{cite web |url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9602401/site/newsweek/site/newsweek/ |title=Terror Watch: New Domestic Spying for Pentagon? - Newsweek National News - MSNBC.com |access-date=2013-08-25 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061025194945/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9602401/site/newsweek/site/newsweek/ |archive-date=October 25, 2006 |df=mdy-all }} ''[[Newsweek]]'', October 5, 2005</ref> George Peirce, DIA's general counsel, told ''The Washington Post'' that his agency is "not asking for the moon" and that DIA officers "only want to assess their [individual U.S. citizens'] suitability as a source, person to person", while protecting the ID and security of the agency operatives.<ref>Pincus, Walter. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/07/AR2005100701807.html "Request for Domestic Covert Role Is Defended"], ''The Washington Post'', October 8, 2005</ref> The provision allowing DIA to covertly approach U.S. citizens was reportedly removed from the bill at the request of Senator [[Ron Wyden]].<ref>Pincus, Walter. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/26/AR2005112600857.html "Pentagon Expanding Its Domestic Surveillance Activity"] ''The Washington Post'', November 27, 2005</ref> It is unclear if the agency has received any additional powers since but it is known that until at least 2005 and possibly later, DIA's "personnel stationed in major U.S. cities [have been] ... monitoring the movements and activities—through high-tech equipment—of individuals and vehicles"; this occurred parallel to the [[NSA warrantless surveillance (2001–07)|NSA's warrantless surveillance]] that was of similarly dubious legality.<ref>Eggen, Dan. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/16/AR2005121600021.html "Bush Authorized Domestic Spying"], ''The Washington Post'', December 16, 2005</ref>

In 2008, with the consolidation of the new [[Defense Counterintelligence and Human Intelligence Center]] (DCHC), DIA secured an additional authority to conduct "offensive counterintelligence", which entails conducting clandestine operations, domestically and abroad, "to thwart what the opposition is trying to do to us and to learn more about what they're trying to get from us."<ref>Pincus, Walter. [https://web.archive.org/web/20130311043512/http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2008-08-18/politics/36873808_1_counterintelligence-field-activity-dia-officers-james-r-clapper "New Unit of DIA Will Take the Offensive On Counterintelligence"] ''The Washington Post'', August 18, 2008</ref> While the agency remained vague about the exact meaning of offensive counterintelligence, experts opined that it "could include planting a mole in a foreign intelligence service, passing disinformation to mislead the other side, or even disrupting enemy information systems", suggesting strong overlap between CI and traditional HUMINT operations.<ref name="Fox News">Hess, Pamela. [http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Aug05/0,4670,PentagonSpyvsSpy,00.html "DIA's new mission adds to intel arsenal"] [[Associated Press]] via [[Fox News]], August 5, 2008</ref>

According to the agency, Americans spying for a foreign intelligence service would not be covered under this mechanism and that DIA would coordinate in such cases with the FBI which, unlike any DIA components at the time, is designated a [[law enforcement agency]]. The media showed particular interest in the domestic aspect of DIA's counterintelligence efforts due to the fact that agency's newly created DCHC had absorbed the former [[Counterintelligence Field Activity]], which had become infamous for storing data on American peace activists in the controversial [[TALON (database)|TALON]] database that was eventually shut down.<ref name="Fox News" />

=== 9/11 and Able Danger ===
[[Anthony Shaffer (intelligence officer)|Anthony Shaffer]], a former DIA officer, has claimed that DIA was aware of and failed to adequately act against one of the organizers of the [[September 11 attacks]] prior to the event, in what became known as the [[Able Danger]] controversy. Shaffer's claims were rejected and later his security clearance was revoked, with the Pentagon denying any wrongdoing. Later Shaffer published his book ''[[Operation Dark Heart]]'' but, upon complaints from DIA and NSA that it included national security information, the Defense Department went as far as to buy and destroy the initial 10,000 copies of the book, causing the [[Streisand effect]].<ref name="Shane2010-09-10">{{cite news|title=Pentagon Plan: Buying Books to Keep Secrets |first=Scott |last=Shane |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/10/us/10books.html?_r=2& |newspaper=The New York Times |page=A16 |issn=0362-4331 |date=September 10, 2010 |access-date=April 19, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150211211508/http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/10/us/10books.html?_r=2 |archive-date=February 11, 2015 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref>

=== German Neo-Nazi murders ===
In 2011, the German government uncovered a [[Far right in Germany|far-right]] [[terrorism|terrorist group]] named [[National Socialist Underground]], which was linked to a [[Bosphorus serial murders|series of murders]], including the murder of a police officer. A report by ''[[Stern (magazine)|Stern]]'' claimed German [[Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution|BfV]] and DIA officers witnessed the murder of a policewoman during their surveillance of the [[2007 bomb plot in Germany|"Sauerland" group]]—an Islamist organization that planned attacks on [[List of United States Army installations in Germany|U.S. military installations]] in Germany—but that neither of the agencies reported it, thus enabling subsequent violent acts by the same criminal entities. The magazine cited an unverified DIA report that confirmed the agency's officers were at the site of the incident.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stern.de/politik/deutschland/heilbronner-polizistinnenmord-waren-verfassungsschuetzer-zeuge-beim-mord-an-michele-kiesewetter-1757092.html |title=Heilbronner Polizistinnenmord: Waren Verfassungsschützer Zeuge beim Mord an Michèle Kiesewetter? |work=Stern |date=November 30, 2011 |access-date=September 11, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Florian Rötzer |url=http://www.heise.de/tp/artikel/35/35979/1.html |title=Verbindung zwischen rechter Terrorzelle und Sauerland-Gruppe? |access-date=September 11, 2012|website=Heise.de|date=December 2011 }}</ref> The authenticity of the alleged DIA observation protocol, on which ''Stern'' based its report, was swiftly denied by the BfV, while DIA refused to comment. An unnamed U.S. "insider expert" for intelligence matters told ''[[Der Spiegel]]'' he deemed it unlikely that DIA could be involved in that type of operation.<ref name="DIA Germany Incident">Diehl, Jörg. Musharbash, Yassin. [http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/justiz/tatort-heilbronn-verfassungsschuetzer-dementieren-praesenz-bei-polizistenmord-a-800945.html Verfassungsschützer dementieren Präsenz bei Polizistenmord] ''[[Der Spiegel]]''. Retrieved August 5, 2012.</ref>

=== Buying data without a warrant ===
According to Representative [[Ron Wyden]], publicly available government contracts show the DIA along with [[U.S. Cyber Command]], the [[United States Army|Army]], the [[Naval Criminal Investigative Service]], the [[Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency]], the [[FBI]] and the [[US Secret Service]] have purchased data without a warrant.<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 Sep 2022 |title=Wyden: Government Watchdogs Must Investigate Warrantless Purchases of Americans’ Internet Browsing Data by Federal Agencies |url=https://www.wyden.senate.gov/news/press-releases/wyden-government-watchdogs-must-investigate-warrantless-purchases-of-americans-internet-browsing-data-by-federal-agencies |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221118053908/https://www.wyden.senate.gov/news/press-releases/wyden-government-watchdogs-must-investigate-warrantless-purchases-of-americans-internet-browsing-data-by-federal-agencies |archive-date=November 18, 2022 |access-date= |website=wyden.senate.gov |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Cameron |first=Dell |date=Jan 26, 2024 |title=The Pentagon Tried to Hide That It Bought Americans’ Data Without a Warrant |url=https://www.wired.com/story/pentagon-data-purchases-wyden-letter/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240126225927/https://www.wired.com/story/pentagon-data-purchases-wyden-letter/ |archive-date=26 Jan 2024 |access-date= |work=[[Wired.com]] |language=en-US |issn=1059-1028}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=ODNI report on IC buying data |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230609170224/https://www.dni.gov/files/ODNI/documents/assessments/ODNI-Declassified-Report-on-CAI-January2022.pdf |website=[[archive.org]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Morrison |first=Sara |date=2023-06-16 |title=The US government is buying your data to spy on you |url=https://www.vox.com/technology/2023/6/16/23762403/data-odni-report-wyden |access-date= |website=[[Vox.com]] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Clark |first=Mitchell |date=2021-01-22 |title=US Defense Intelligence Agency admits to buying citizens’ location data |url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/22/22244848/us-intelligence-memo-admits-buying-smartphone-location-data |access-date= |website=[[The Verge]] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Collier |first=Kevin |date=2023-06-13 |title=U.S. government buys data on Americans with little oversight, report finds |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/us-government-buys-data-americans-little-oversight-report-finds-rcna89035 |access-date= |website=[[NBC News]] |language=en}}</ref>