According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, eleven men and women, including four married couples, three with children, were arrested for crimes connected to, but (surprisingly) not including, espionage. These men and women worked for more than a decade to blend in to American society. Far from the gripping ‘James Bond’ image, they lived mundane lives in normal neighborhoods. In no case did their neighbors suspect that they were anything but what they said they were, but in fact their orders were clear: “You were sent to the USA for a long-term service trip. Your education, bank accounts, car, house etc. – all these serve one goal: fulfill your main mission, i.e, to search and develop ties in policymaking circles in US and send intels [intelligence reports] to C [Center]”, according to the FBI affidavit describing intercepted messages.

A historical OPSEC note

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, it makes me think of my family when I was coming up. We’d spend all day cooking the turkey, and the yams with those tiny marshmallows, and then we’d all sit around the table and watch George C. Scott in Patton.
 
No, not really. But it was a convenient way [...]