No more secrets? De-monopolizing intelligence

Intelligence scholars have described the contemporary availability of Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) and the entrance of civil society actors into the field of intelligence as a “democratization of intelligence”, thereby portraying a fundamentally positive and inclusive enterprise. Assessing the implications of the recent explosion of OSINT groups and activists for traditional state intelligence actors, this article instead introduces the concept of de-monopolization. A turn to de-monopolization brings attention to the struggles arising when civil society actors enter the field of intelligence. The article outlines two different forms of struggle currently affecting state intelligence actors: a struggle over insights and a struggle over epistemic authority. Describing these contemporary tendencies and their impact on state intelligence work, the article then discusses how an increase in OSINT by civil society actors generates new tasks for intelligence actors, introduces new ideals, and pushes state intelligence agencies to defend their expertise in public.