The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency is helping paint a clearer picture on the muddied Crimean Peninsula that was annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014.
Cardillo told the Committee that the U.S. must utilize other forms of collection to track the “non-traditional aspect of Russian aggression.” These include using social media, open sources, press reporting and identifications gathered from partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He also explained how NGA partners with others in the intelligence and defense communities to use social media and other resources for anticipatory reporting describing it as an open process. “If I\u2019m exploring a social media stream in eastern Ukraine\u00a0\u2014\u00a0because we\u2019re trying to find out what\u2019s really going on inside that opposition held territory\u00a0\u2014\u00a0I\u2019m going to do that with the Defense Intelligence Agency, with the Central Intelligence Agency, with the Army to make sure that we\u2019re not all doing the same thing at the same time,” he explained. “I won\u2019t kid you, though, this is an evolving tradecraft and under this tradecraft, John Brennan has the community responsibility. I just to one of his board of governors meetings to make sure we are in fact sharing so that we\u2019re not inefficiently or redundantly applying our assets.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Crimea is easier to understand Russia\u2019s actions as they operate more openly there, he said. Eastern Ukraine, however, is “quite different,” Cardillo asserted noting that the Russian narrative is one attempting to point the situation as a local uprising indigenously produced without their involvement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“In an open session what I\u2019d like to be able to assure you and the American people that we are applying non-traditional capabilities to expose that to you and to our customers,” he said adding he\u2019d prefer not elaborate because “if I explain it to you then I\u2019d be explaining it to the Russians.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cardillo also told the committee that he is disappointed with the human-machine teaming at NGA saying some of the problems are due to technology, while others are due to science. The biggest inhibitor, he said, is mindset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“We\u2019re quite comfortable with that human path\u00a0\u2014\u00a0we all know it, we\u2019ve lived it, we\u2019ve learned it, etc.\u00a0\u2014\u00a0turning over, if you will, to an algorithm gets us a little anxious. So part of my mantra has been to establish pilots and test beds so that we can gain some, obliviously technical experience, but also that cultural experience that I\u2019d like to build,” he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He provided an example in which an analyst physically counted 25,000 buildings in a particular area as there was no algorithm designed to do this for them. “Think of the hours he had to spend to do that,” Cardillo exclaimed. “I turned to my head of research and I said don\u2019t let that happen again.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added that he wants to do better in this area and the agency is on a path to do so.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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