US Special Ops CommandOutsourcing Interrogation, Drone & Psychological Ops to Private Corporations

[KoKo]

New research shows how US Special Operations Command is outsourcing many of its most sensitive information activities, including interrogation, drone and psychological operations.

Private military contractors are reaping billions of dollars in profitable rewards from the U.S. government's global network of clandestine counter-terrorism and other overseas operations, according to a new report that examines the high-levels of integration between for-profit corporations and the Pentagon's global military and surveillance apparatus.

The new report—titled US Special Operations Command Contracting: Data-Mining the Public Record—written by researcher Crofton Black and commissioned by the U.K.-based Remote Control Project, shows that "corporations are integrated into some of the most sensitive aspects" of operations conducted by the U.S. Special Operations Command (or USSOCOM). Those activities, according to the report include: flying drones and overseeing target acquisition, facilitating communications between forward operating locations and central command hubs, interrogating prisoners, translating captured material, and managing the flow of information between regional populations and the US military.

"[USSOCOM] is outsourcing many of its most sensitive information activities, including interrogation, drone and psychological operations," explained Black in a statement. "Remote warfare is increasingly being shaped by the private sector.”

And Caroline Donnellan, manager of the Remote Control project, said, “This report is distinctive in that it mines data from the generally classified world of US special operations. It reveals the extent to which remote control activity is expanding in all its facets, with corporations becoming more and more integrated into very sensitive elements of warfare. The report’s findings are of concern given the challenges remote warfare poses for effective investigation, transparency, accountability and oversight. This highlights the difficulties in assessing the impact and consequences of remote control activity.”

Reviewing its contents for The Intercept on Monday, journalist Ryan Gallagher observed how the unprecedented research documents troubling ways in which these private corporations have engaged in overseas operations. Describing it as a "corporate bonanza" for these contractor, Gallagher reports:

USSOCOM tendered a $1.5 billion contract that required support with “Psychological Operations related to intelligence and information operations.” Prospective contractors were told they would have to provide “military and civilian persuasive communications planning, produce commercial quality products for unlimited foreign public broadcast, and develop lines of persuasion, themes, and designs for multi-media products.” The contract suggested that aim of these “persuasion” operations was to “engage local populations and counter nefarious influences” in parts of Europe and Africa.

A separate document related to the same contract noted that one purpose of the effort was to conduct “market research” of al-Qaida and its affiliates in Libya, Tunisia, Mali, Northern Nigeria, and Somalia. Four American companies eventually won the $1.5 billion contract: Tennessee-based Jacobs Technology and Virginia-based Booz Allen Hamilton, CACI-WGI, and SRA International.

Notably, while some 3,000 contractors provided service in some capacity to USSOCOM, just eight of the contractors earned more than 50 percent of the $13 billion total identified in Black’s report. Those were: Lockheed Martin, L-3 Communications, Boeing, Harris Corporation, Jacobs Engineering Group, MA Federal, Raytheon, and ITT Corporation.

Read the executive summary of the report here

http://remotecontrolproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/CroftonBlack_ExecutiveSummary.pdf

http://remotecontrolproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/CroftonBlack_ExecutiveSummary.pdf
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[adirondacker]

1. Military wartime economics persists.

Sad

[blkmusclmachine]

2. How about Google's satellite and street views of the world? I know Google backs ALEC.

[KoKo]

3. I think Google goes too far with that invasion of our privacies....but...

better they make it accessible to all of us...because otherwise the NSA, CIA, FBI...and other interests would have the only access to do what they will with the mapping and data in secret. At least we know how vulnerable we are to surveillance as more is revealed.

Not much consolation there, though, when our privacy walking the dog down the street, our children playing in supposed privacy of their yard is subjected to satellite view and eventually to facial recognition profiling as the technology advances. Like having "Peeping Toms" in our skies with no prospect of being us being able to hold them accountable for privacy invasion. There's even some technology talked about where the surveillance can see through walls into our homes and places of work. That is supposedly to catch criminals,terrorists and find hidden WMD or stocks of ammunition and will be justified by authorities as legitimate use of "targeted surveillance" to save lives. No search warrants will be needed.