IARPA Wants to Rethink Intelligence Collection

As the House deliberates on measures to end the National Security Agency's bulk data collection, intelligence community researchers are searching for new ways to collect more relevant information and less bulk.  

Emerging tech agency the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity's Office of Smart Collection is soliciting proposals for "means for collecting information from previously inaccessible sources" and "ways to ensure the veracity of data collected from a variety of sources," according to a new announcement. 

While it's not clear what this technology will actually look like, the solicitation specifically seeks "innovative approaches to gain access to denied environments," which could include, among others:

• Tagging and tracking techniques such as "electrically small antennas and other advanced radio frequency (RF) concepts"
• Ways to use sensors to acquire more targeted information instead of bulk collection
• And  technology that could protect signal streams and records, especially those containing personal information, "to avoid unauthorized collection and dissemination."

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