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CIA Ops Moonlight for Corporations

Help hedge funds spot liars on corporate earnings calls
By Jane Yager,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 1, 2010 7:33 AM CST
CIA Ops Moonlight for Corporations
LANGLEY, VA - JULY 9: The CIA symbol is shown on the floor of CIA Headquarters, July 9, 2004 at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.   (Getty Images)

Apparently CIA operatives don't have enough on their plates fighting two wars and al Qaeda: Many operatives moonlight as consultants to financial firms and hedge funds, Eamon Javers writes in a book excerpt on Politico. Moonlighting in the private sector is generally allowed for federal employees if they follow strict guidelines; in the case of CIA agents, it's seen to counteract the problem of brain-drain to higher-paying private sector jobs.

CIA agents have especially strong ties to one consulting company, Boston-based Business Intelligence Advisors. BIA specializes in "tactical behavioral assessment," a sort of "human lie detector" analysis that seeks to detect whether people are lying without using a polygraph. The firm trains clients to conduct TBA themselves—or does it for them for a fee, often on quarterly corporate-earnings calls.

(More CIA stories.)

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