5 Famous Spies and their Tech Ties

5 Famous Spies and their Tech Ties
They betrayed the United States –
and here’s how technology played a role.
Ellen Messmer, Network World, 2009





Ethel & Julius Rosenberg
Born 1918, Died 1953
An electrical engineer, Rosenberg, a Communist activist with his wife Ethel,
began by stealing manuals of radar tubes and fuses for the Soviets but by the late '40s
had two apartments set up as microfilm laboratories for espionage.
In '49, FBI learned the secret of the construction of the atom bomb had been stolen.
Case broken through "Venona Project." Executed 1953. (Network World)


Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, convicted of passing nuclear weapons secrets to the Soviet Union,
were the first American civilians executed for espionage.
Ethel's brother, David Greenglass, was an employee of the Los Alamos atomic bomb project.
He passed secrets to Julius and Ethel, who then funneled them to the Soviets.
They were executed in the electric chair on June 19, 1953. (atomicarchive.com )





John Anthony Walker
Born 1937
Ex-Navy communications specialist began spying for the Russians in '67,
eventually deciphering more than 200,000 classified encrypted messages and earning a weekly salary.
Started with a classified document of a radio cipher card.
Pleaded guilty in '85; serving 30 years. (Network World)

John Walker, along with his best friend Jerry Whitworth, his brother Arthur,
and his son Michael were all arrested for espionage in May 1985.
He and eventually his network had spied for the KGB since December 1967.
(cicentre.com)





Aldrich Hazen Ames
Born 1941
Ex-CIA counter-intelligence officer compromised at least 100 U.S. intelligence operations.
Wrote espionage notes on his own PC using WordPerfect, supplying password-protected disks to Russian sources.
Told investigators the Russian operatives, who had few computer skills, were "rather proud" to learn
to turn on a PC and "get my message on it."
Convicted in 1994; serving life. (Network World)


Aldrich Hazen Ames was pretty much born a CIA agent. His father spied for the CIA in Burma
during the 1950’s, and at age 16, Aldrich went to “The Farm,” a CIA training facility,
to learn the ropes himself. Ames was the most damaging mole in CIA history.
Beginning in 1985, he sold out every spy the CIA and FBI had in the then-USSR.
(mentalfloss.com)




Robert Philip Hannsen
Born 1944
Ex-FBI agent spied for Russians for 20 years, giving up U.S. plans for spy satellites, radar and
signal intercepts, as well as FBI wiretaps. Used password-cracking program to hack FBI computers.
Arrested in 2001, serving life. (Network World)






Clyde Lee Conrad
Born 1948, Died 1998 or 1999 ?
U.S. military officer from '74 until '88, when he was arrested. During height of Cold War sold
top-secret NATO plans and illegally exported thousands of advanced computer chips to East Bloc.
Died in German prison. (Network World)

Retired U.S. Army sergeant Clyde Lee Conrad, accused of selling NATO defense secrets
to the Eastern bloc for several years, awaits the verdict in his trial in a West German court.
Conrad was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison; Judge Ferdinand Schuth said
"Conrad's high treason could have prompted a war"
and called him the worst traitor since the end of World War II.
Conrad died in prison in 1999.
(Stars and Stripes)

i don't see boris and natasha

DOH! At first glance, I read the subject as "5 Famous Spies and their Neck Ties"

Wallstone wrote:

DOH! At first glance, I read the subject as "5 Famous Spies and their Neck Ties"

Hannsen definitely has the best neck tie of any of them.

Point to ponder:
Why are they called neckties? We already know they go around the neck. Its not like we have to differentiate them from arm ties or leg ties. We dont say foot shoes or boob bras.....we know where those items go without being told.

BMG wrote:

Wallstone wrote:

DOH! At first glance, I read the subject as "5 Famous Spies and their Neck Ties"

Hannsen definitely has the best neck tie of any of them.

Point to ponder:
Why are they called neckties? We already know they go around the neck. Its not like we have to differentiate them from arm ties or leg ties. We dont say foot shoes or boob bras.....we know where those items go without being told.

boob bras... Car's have bras, too, tho. :winky:

Giada wrote:

BMG wrote:

Wallstone wrote:

DOH! At first glance, I read the subject as "5 Famous Spies and their Neck Ties"

Hannsen definitely has the best neck tie of any of them.

Point to ponder:
Why are they called neckties? We already know they go around the neck. Its not like we have to differentiate them from arm ties or leg ties. We dont say foot shoes or boob bras.....we know where those items go without being told.

boob bras... Car's have bras, too, tho. :winky:

Good point. I forgot about those. We can replace that one with nut jockstraps.