superspy
Covert action expert
A superspy is an elite spy, often one with exceptional skills, advanced gadgets, or near-superhuman abilities.
The term evokes fictional characters like James Bond more than real intelligence operatives: The movie features a superspy who can defeat entire armies single-handedly.
It can also describe someone exceptionally skilled at gathering information: She's the office superspy—she knows everyone's business.
U.S. foreign intelligence service
Identity-concealing alteration
- safehouseSecure secret shelter
- aliasAdopted false name
- brush passSurreptitious walking exchange
- cutoutShape removed from material
cipher · microdot · exfiltration · extraction · handler · signaling · surveillance · countersurveillance
Slavic given name
- 007Secret agent designation
- operativeCovert field agent
- handlerOne who manages something
- sleeperOne at rest
asset · mole · liquidator
Systematic observation of subjects
- eavesdroppingSecretly listening to others
- wiretapHidden listening device
- encryptionConverting data into code
- codebreakingSolving secret communications
interception · honeytrap · informant · recruitment · debriefing · reconnaissance · photographing · infiltration
Breaking of trust
- conspiracyClandestine coordinated scheming
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
- treacheryDeliberate violation of trust
defection · turncoat · mole · sleeper · blackmail · compromise · honeypot · duplicity
CIA
U.S. foreign intelligence service
NSA · Langley · Vauxhall · counterintelligence · wetwork
disguise
Identity-concealing alteration
- safehouseSecure secret shelter
- aliasAdopted false name
- brush passSurreptitious walking exchange
cutout · cipher · microdot · exfiltration · extraction · handler · signaling · surveillance · countersurveillance · codeword
Nikita
Slavic given name
sleeper · asset · mole · liquidator
surveillance
Systematic observation of subjects
- eavesdroppingSecretly listening to others
- wiretapHidden listening device
- encryptionConverting data into code
codebreaking · interception · honeytrap · informant · recruitment · debriefing · reconnaissance · photographing · infiltration
betrayal
Breaking of trust
- conspiracyClandestine coordinated scheming
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
treachery · defection · turncoat · mole · sleeper · blackmail · compromise · honeypot · duplicity · scheming
wristwatch
Portable timekeeping accessory
- jetpackBack-mounted flying apparatus
superspypublic figure
Prominent, widely recognized person
celebrity · diplomat · public official · ambassador · known quantity
superspydouble agent
Spy betraying their side
traitor · mole · turncoat · supervillain · Blofeld