Real spies had and have at their disposal a whole range of "toys" that James Bond could only dream of. What did the intelligence agents really use? Some items surprised us completely. And the others were just ... repulsive.
A jet backpack, a flying car, a sniper rifle hidden in a camera, glasses with a binocular function or a handheld watch with a fax machine - we probably cannot imagine the famous 007 agent without his "toys". Without their help, he would be just another well-trained but otherwise unremarkable spy.
But are you sure? It is hard to believe that intelligence agencies from around the world send their employees into the field empty-handed. After all, who needs a spy who cannot photograph secret documentation, drop encrypted information, record overheard conversations and - if necessary - discreetly get rid of the enemy?
No matter what it looks like, it's important that it works
What then do spies have in real life? “Certainly not as much of the gadget arsenal as James Bond had. But there were quite a few of them. For example buttons with hidden compartments, lipsticks with a second bottom. Poison pens . All this was used by spies all over the world, not only Americans (...), Poles also "- says the former agent, hiding under the pseudonym Bruno Kowalsky, in the book " How much do they know about you? Spies and wiretaps in Poland ” .
The list of intelligence devices does not end there. Miniature cameras (such as the infamous Minox) and cameras were hidden wherever they could:in buttons, pens, cigarette cases, and even matchboxes. Any object of everyday use could become a secret hiding place for smuggling documents and codes:a shaving brush, a cuff clip, a counterfeit coin or ... a nail.
In the world of intelligence, every item is suspect. The photo shows a prop from the movie "Specter", the next installment of James Bond's adventures.
There were also - literally - explosive gadgets. When hanging around with intelligence agents, you could never be sure that a pencil, a fountain pen, a flashlight, or a pack of cigarettes lying innocently on the table were about to explode.
The CIA, in particular, was especially fanciful about the equipment for its employees. The Americans wanted their spies to be prepared for any circumstance. However, they could not just arm the victim with a Swiss army knife, so they prepared a set of tools especially for the needs of the interview. There would be nothing special about it, were it not for the fact that the entire set of knives, drills, files and screwdrivers was contained in a suppository-shaped capsule, which the agent getting ready for action placed ... in the anus .
The anal fixation of the American agency was also expressed in a highly specialized device for radio data transmission, developed in the 1970s. It was definitely not the most attractive piece of spy equipment, although it proved to be extremely effective. Using the Morse code, a dog poop radio informed U.S. soldiers Army on Vietcong movements.
But not all CIA ideas were equally successful. The design of the T-13 Beano grenade, resembling a baseball shape, turned out to be flaky. The gadget was innovative because it exploded only when it hit something. However, as Bruno Kowalsky comments:“The T-13 Beano was eventually abandoned. The grenades turned out to be highly unreliable, and the statistics rounded off the bitterness… it turned out that these explosive baseballs injured and killed more of their own than their enemies! ” Fortunately, the vast majority of secret agent "toys" were more effective.
Your spy. What's a secret agent hiding in her purse?
For example, there was a huge base of perfectly functioning espionage devices designed specifically for women. It is hardly surprising. According to the declassified documents of the US Central Intelligence Agency as early as 1953 women constituted as much as 40 percent of the staff of this organization . Also in other countries, representatives of the fair sex have made a significant contribution to the acquisition and dissemination of secret information. What gadgets did they take with them on missions?
For decades, intelligence workers paraded in boots with pointed heels that could be used as a knife if necessary, and in underwear bristling with cleverly hidden daggers . Sharp tools were also hidden in their umbrellas. Moreover, for personal defense, agents could use the so-called pepper shakers, i.e. miniature beam revolvers. They took various forms - around 1870, one that resembled an ordinary ring was constructed. This deadly signet ring with the telling name Femme Fatale allowed seven shots to be fired.
Moreover, apart from the lipsticks with secret compartments mentioned by Bruno Kowalsky, the agents had at their disposal lipsticks with a camera or a single-shot pistol installed inside. For example, the KGB equipped his employees with 4.5 mm lipsticks. The spy woman's purse also had a compact case - because you never know when you will need to powder your nose and look at the code engraved on the mirror.
Watches for special tasks are not only an invention of films about the adventures of Agent 007.
The more expensive accessories include Swiss watches, manufactured by the Favre-Leuba company as early as the 1920s. The spy version of the timer differed from the standard one in that it had two additional knobs, seemingly having only a decorative function. After opening the watch case, however, it turned out that there was a hiding place under the mechanism, in which you could put a roll of paper with top secret data. The knobs, on the other hand, made it easy to scroll through the document.
In turn, the CIA designed an spy (because recording sound and image) evening dress for its subordinates of the fair sex . The American intelligence took care of the smallest details:in a set with a little black agent, they received a set of jewelry, a matching handbag and a fashionable hat. The agency did not reveal in which items of clothing it hid the listening devices, so it is possible that the design - of course tailored to the latest trends - is still being used today.
For a rainy day - "toys" of Polish spies
Polish intelligence also had quite an impressive arsenal of gadgets. Our services used listening devices hidden in heels of shoes and thermos flasks to obtain secret information (in the times of the People's Republic of Poland also about their own citizens). Cameras - the so-called dots - were mounted in umbrellas and ... prayer books.
And when you had to record someone's conversation in the woods or in the park? And there was a way! It was enough to put a miniature battery-operated tape recorder inside a hollow log. Pniak recorded the words of unsuspecting objects of interest of the agency, and the officer responsible for collecting the data quietly listened to them later in the comfort of his home or office.
The agents of the People's Republic of Poland did not shy away from dressing up. Men pretended to be women, women, men, and sometimes - regardless of gender - old men leaning on walking sticks equipped with a microphone and recorder. The dressing room generally gave the intelligence a wide range of possibilities. As Bruno Kowalsky relates in his book How much do they know about you? Spies and wiretaps in Poland ” :
Polish spies very often had cameras hidden in their ties. It was enough to cut a small hole for the lens. It was similar with the buttons on the coat. There, too, the lenses of small spy cameras were masked. Lenses were even hidden in nesting boxes. From a distance, no one had any idea that apart from, let's say, a family of a family, there was a camera hidden in the house, and you could attach such gems wherever you wanted. Even in front of the embassy.
The eavesdropping devices were installed even ... in trees. The photo shows the dummy used in the movie "Specter".
But the work of an agent also had a dark side. Sometimes - especially in the face of mishaps - the spy had to resort to the last resort. One of the available solutions were gloves worn by Polish intelligence agents, in which a gun was hidden. The pattern of operation of the weapon was very simple:it was enough to hit the enemy with a fist and the deadly covering of the hand would burn out. The problem arose when it was not possible to eliminate the opponent the first time. The glove could only fire one shot. There was no chance for a repeat.
On the other hand, once a spy was caught, his choice was very limited. Facing brutal interrogations, often "sprinkled" with torture, many intelligence officials reached for their glasses and began nervously chewing on the temple. Not to calm down, but to figure out a cyanide ampoule hidden in the frames . How many have used this gadget for rainy days? It's hard to say…