Agent motivation—why spies spy—is a complex subject. As in the case of Delilah, what seems at first sight to be the reason for betrayal is often not the sole one, or even the defining one. A short list of what appear to be the most common motivations—money, sex, revenge, love, hatred, patriotism, ideology, ego and fear—only scrapes the surface. The answer to the question of why spies spy is only rarely simple and straightforward. However, as with Samson and Delilah, sex can be an extremely powerful inducement, particularly when employed by a woman.

Daily coronavirus briefing



Colombia rejects taint of US secret agent sex scandal - BBC News
The US Secret Service said three employees will leave their jobs over the sex scandal in a hotel in Colombia which tarnished the elite presidential protection agency's image. Two leading congressmen meanwhile revealed in a letter to Secret Service chief Mark Sullivan obtained by ABC News that agents accused of consorting with prostitutes may have been careless with "sensitive security information. Representatives Darrell Issa and Elijah Cummings also warned that the party hijinks in the Caribbean resort of Cartagena before President Barack Obama's arrival last weekend brought the entire culture of the agency into question. The Secret Service said one "supervisory" employee will retire over the affair, a huge diplomatic embarrassment, another has been told he will be sacked and a third "non-supervisory" employee has resigned. Paul Morrissey, of the service's Office of Government and Public Affairs said a probe into the alleged scandal was still at an early stage, and that eight other agents remained under investigation, in a process which included the use of polygraph lie detector technology.


Secret Service Agents Sex Scandal
Subscriber Account active since. The Internet Movie Database Your boss is caught in the act of "going at it" with a junior colleague, and it's perfectly acceptable. For Gerecht, espionage is a loose culture, populated by "bottom feeders," and is better left alone if America wants good intelligence. When I was in the agency, my colleagues were amused, occasionally disappointed, but never shocked when married officers were discovered cavorting with their secretaries or other co-workers at the office, in parking lots, hotels, and safe-houses—which, of course, are not supposed to be used for trysts.




An embarrassing scandal involving prostitutes and US Secret Service agents deepened as 11 agents were placed on leave and the agency designed to protect President Barack Obama was forced to apologise. The controversy has also extended to the US military, which said five service members staying at the same hotel as the agents in Colombia may have been involved in misconduct. They were confined to their quarters in Colombia and ordered not to have contact with others.