Espionage

Espionage or, casually, spying involves a spy ring, government and company/firm or individual obtaining information considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, as it is by definition unwelcome and in many cases illegal and punishable by law. Espionage is a subset of "intelligence" gathering, which includes espionage as well as information gathering from public sources.

Espionage is often part of an institutional effort by a government or commercial concern. However, the term is generally associated with state spying on potential or actual enemies primarily for military purposes. Spying involving corporations is known as industrial espionage.

One of the most effective ways to gather data and information about the enemy (or potential enemy) is by infiltrating the enemy's ranks. This is the job of the spy (espionage agent). Spies can bring back all sorts of information concerning the size and strength of enemy forces. They can also find dissidents within the enemy's forces and influence them to defect. In times of crisis, spies can also be used to steal technology and to sabotage the enemy in various ways. Counterintelligence operatives can feed false information to enemy spies, protecting important domestic secrets, and preventing attempts at subversion. Nearly every country has very strict laws concerning espionage, and the penalty for being caught is often severe. However, the benefits that can be gained through espionage are generally great enough that most governments and many large corporations make use of it to varying degrees.

Spy (disambiguation)

A spy is a person engaged in espionage, obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential.

Spy or The Spy may also refer to:

Books and magazines

Film

Television

Spy (Carly Simon album)

Spy is singer-songwriter Carly Simon's ninth album, and eighth studio album, released in 1979. It is also her last album for Elektra Records. The title of the album is a tribute to Anaïs Nin, whose quote “I am an international spy in the house of love”, is written across the top on the inside jacket. Simon dedicated the album to producer Arif Mardin, in which she wrote in the liner notes, "Dedicated to Arif who is himself fantastic."

Although Spy did not yield any major hit singles, "Vengeance" earned Simon a Grammy Award nomination for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female in early 1980, the first year to feature this new category. It peaked at #48 on the Billboard Pop singles chart. Simon made a music video for the song, and MTV later used a clip from it in a commercial that tried to entice viewers to get stereo sound on their TV sets. The promotional clip was also chosen by Pioneer Electronics to be part of their first demo disc for its then-new Laserdisc player.

The album also features a track entitled "Never Been Gone", which has gone on to become a fan favorite, as well as one of Simon's personal favorites. In 2009, she would release an album entitled after the track.

Portis

Portis may refer to:

People

Places

Systems

Codename (TV series)

Codename was a short-lived British television series produced by the BBC in 1970.

An espionage thriller series, Codename recounted the activities of a secret organisation, MI17, being run from a residential hall at Cambridge University. The programme, lasting for one series of thirteen episodes, was produced by Gerard Glaister and starred Clifford Evans, Alexandra Bastedo, Anthony Valentine and Brian Peck. It was preceded by a one-off pilot play, with a different cast.

The leads were well known from other series when this series was originally transmitted, Valentine from Callan, Bastedo from The Champions and Evans from The Power Game, and the first episode featured on the cover of the Radio Times. However, the show failed to capture the public imagination, and no further series were made.

No episodes survive in the BBC archive, though there is a recording of the pilot.

External links

Hitman: Codename 47

Hitman: Codename 47 is a 2000 action-adventure stealth video game developed by IO Interactive and published by Eidos Interactive. It is the first entry in the Hitman series, and was followed by Hitman 2: Silent Assassin.

The story centers on Agent 47, a genetically enhanced human clone branded with a barcode tattooed on the back of his head, who is rigorously trained in methods of murder. Upon escaping from a test facility, 47 is hired by the Agency, a European contract killing organization. His mission takes him to several locations in Asia and Europe to assassinate wealthy and decadent criminals.

Gameplay

Hitman: Codename 47 takes place from a third-person perspective, but the control setup is similar to a first-person shooter as 47's movements are restricted to turning, strafing and moving forward. Each level takes place in an open environment which is populated with non-player characters such as civilians and armed guards. Although mission criteria may vary, the goal is generally to find 47's assigned target and kill them by any means possible. Though the path may appear linear, it is possible through various ways to accomplish the mission and approach a target directly without eliciting a violent reprisal. The game essentially emphasises stealth and silent kills without raising alerts, giving the player a higher financial reward for doing so. Penalties in the form of financial deductments are given, for example if the player kills civilians, but none if guards are slain. As the money is used to purchase weapons and ammo during the course of the game, this pressures the player to utilise stealth, disguise and melee based mechanics for the most cost-effective method to take out targets.