{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.espionage","code":"thing-q165950","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q165950/","name":"espionage","alternateNames":["military intelligence","Unit Hatzav","open-source intelligence","naval intelligence","sanitary and epidemiological reconnaissance","imagery intelligence","visual intelligence","geospatial intelligence","Intelligence in the American Revolutionary War","open-source defense intelligence","open-source intelligence in the Russian invasion of Ukraine","digital investigation"],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.2.0-wave.3","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Activities and processes","entryKind":"thing","plane":"ACT","domain":["ACT.ACT"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"The practice of obtaining secret or confidential information without the permission of its holder, typically by governments through intelligence agencies and by companies through industrial espionage, using human sources, interception and other means; its legality depends on jurisdiction, authorization and the conduct involved, while states practise it against one another, and it is studied in history, law and international relations.","purpose":"Let an agent describe espionage as a historical, legal and political phenomenon with attribution, distinguish it from lawful intelligence disciplines such as open-source intelligence and from security work, relay law and notable cases from reliable sources, and give no operational tradecraft.","scope":{"in":[],"out":[],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["Espionage involves secrecy and lack of the information holder's consent.","Espionage has state and corporate forms.","Its legality depends on jurisdiction, authorization and the conduct involved.","Espionage has a long history and a rich cultural presence."],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"concept","name":"Concept","description":"What espionage is.","layers":[{"id":"definition","name":"Definition","description":"Definition and distinctions.","findings":[{"id":"definition-finding","name":"Definition","description":"Definition.","questions":[{"text":"What is espionage, and how does it differ from open-source intelligence, lawful surveillance and security work?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Is the user asking for operational tradecraft, which the model does not give?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"forms","name":"Forms","description":"Forms.","findings":[{"id":"forms-finding","name":"Forms","description":"Forms.","questions":[{"text":"What forms does espionage take, from state to industrial and cyber?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which entry fits the related discipline?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"law","name":"Law","description":"Law and oversight.","layers":[{"id":"national","name":"National","description":"National law.","findings":[{"id":"national-finding","name":"National","description":"National.","questions":[{"text":"How do national laws define and punish espionage, in general terms?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the user asking about a specific case, which needs a lawyer?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"international","name":"International","description":"International dimension.","findings":[{"id":"international-finding","name":"International","description":"International.","questions":[{"text":"How do international law and diplomacy treat espionage between states?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits intelligence oversight?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"history","name":"History","description":"History and cases.","layers":[{"id":"history","name":"History","description":"History.","findings":[{"id":"history-finding","name":"History","description":"History.","questions":[{"text":"How has espionage developed through history, and which cases are notable, with sources?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which references are standard?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"agencies","name":"Agencies","description":"Agencies.","findings":[{"id":"agencies-finding","name":"Agencies","description":"Agencies.","questions":[{"text":"Which intelligence agencies exist, and how are they organised and overseen, from official sources?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits a specific agency?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"debate","name":"Debate","description":"Ethics and culture.","layers":[{"id":"ethics","name":"Ethics","description":"Ethical debates.","findings":[{"id":"ethics-finding","name":"Ethics","description":"Ethics.","questions":[{"text":"What debates exist about the ethics and oversight of espionage, with positions attributed?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the presentation neutral?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"culture","name":"Culture","description":"Espionage in culture.","findings":[{"id":"culture-finding","name":"Culture","description":"Culture.","questions":[{"text":"How is espionage portrayed in literature and film, and how does that differ from practice?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits spy fiction?","kind":"action"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Explain espionage, its history and how laws treat it, citing sources.","Distinguish espionage from journalism, open-source research and lawful competitive analysis.","Relay public records of espionage cases with dates and outcomes."],"mustNot":["Provide operational tradecraft for covertly obtaining secret information.","Assist in obtaining confidential information without the holder's permission.","Identify or expose intelligence sources or their families.","Label journalists, researchers or minorities as spies without evidence."],"requiresHuman":["Reporting suspected espionage to authorities.","Publishing material that may contain classified information."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Espionage can endanger sources' lives and national security.","Accusations of spying have been used to persecute journalists and minorities."],"affectedParties":["Sources and their families","Journalists and researchers","Organisations holding secrets"]},"owners":{"steward":"Nobody owns the practice; national law defines and prosecutes it.","roles":[],"masterSystems":[]},"relations":[{"target":"Q1456832","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Q3782242","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"violation of law","type":"related","note":"in national law"},{"target":"intelligence activity","type":"related","note":"the wider field"},{"target":"open-source intelligence","type":"related","note":"lawful collection from public sources"},{"target":"counterintelligence","type":"related","note":"the defensive activity"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.espionage","Wikidata: Q165950 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q165950)"]},"properties":{"applicability":"not-applicable","items":[]},"recognition":{"applicability":"optional","items":["Covert acquisition of secrets without permission","By states, companies and individuals","Open-source intelligence and lawful surveillance under warrant are distinct","Not visible; known through history, trials, memoirs and fiction."]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["explain the concept and its history","distinguish espionage from related intelligence disciplines","relay law and notable cases","present debates with attribution"]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Prosecution and diplomatic incidents","Harm to sources","Agents giving operational tradecraft","Conflating journalism or research with espionage"]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["National espionage and official secrets laws","International law, which does not regulate espionage directly but governs diplomatic conduct","Trade secret and economic espionage laws","Oversight regimes for intelligence agencies"]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["Not applicable; a practice of states and organisations.","state espionage by intelligence agencies","human intelligence as a discipline","signals and imagery intelligence, related disciplines","industrial and economic espionage","cyber espionage","counter-espionage"]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q165950: espionage","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q165950","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: Espionage","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espionage","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Should intelligence disciplines be separate entries?","How should case law be linked?","The registry entry has merged aliases naming intelligence disciplines and a specific unit; should they be split off?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q165950/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q165950/spec.json"],"providers":["Claude"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-09-12T21:24:54Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"not-applicable","interaction.recognition":"filled","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-07T10:10:26+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass","interaction.properties":"Plane ACT: no invented physical properties."},"score":1.0}}