Some of our nation’s most essential roles are held by people whose names we will never know. Only a handful of people can identify these clandestine individuals, and keeping their identities private is vital to preserving their lives and ensuring they can do their jobs – and retire in peace once their days working for the government are over.
At least, that’s how it may work in theory. But in 1975, former CIA Officer Philip Agee published “Inside the Company: CIA Diary,” a book exposing hundreds of clandestine individuals and front companies for the United States. He continued exposing other intelligence officers and assets through additional books and articles, publicizing copious amounts of intelligence about people, operations, and more. He also encouraged other former agents to do the same.
The fallout was swift and severe, and the U.S. soon enacted the Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 (IIPA) to prevent similar situations in the future. This act provided criminal penalties for certain people who expose the identities of covert agents.
How much do you know about the Intelligence Identities Protection Act?
The IIPA has been under fire for many reasons. Some say it’s too limited in scope since it only applies to officers who operate internationally or have recently operated internationally, and even then it only applies under a certain set of circumstances. Others say it limits accountability and mostly protects the government, rather than the individuals it’s meant to protect.
Though the IIPA has only been used a handful of times, its existence is probably enough to make would-be informers think twice before blowing the covers of covert agents. It provides some assurance to intelligence operatives that their identities will remain secret, and that they can continue doing their job without adding unnecessary risk.
