Who Spies?

The specific Act of gathering information from an enemy is rarely carried out by an intelligence officer in person. To accomplish this task, intelligence officers recruit agents who, perhaps by virtue of their position, have access to the information required. Officers who recruitand handle agents are known as case officers. Most work from an embassy under some form of official cover and are protected legally by diplomatic immunity. Others may operate without diplomatic immunity, perhaps living under an assumed identity, When recruiting agents, case officer are guided by the factors most likely to motivate people to become spies. These can be summed up by the acronym MICE - money, ideology, compromise and ego. [Source: Ultimate Spy by H.Keith Melton]