What do you think?
Rate this book
Spyfail: Foreign Spies, Moles, Saboteurs, and the Collapse of America’s Counterintelligence
James Bamford, the bestselling author of The Puzzle Palace and Body of Secrets , unveils a hidden cabal of foreign powers that have spied against America to reveal the incredible spygames, secrets, and cyberweapons they’ve hatched, unlocked, and stolen--and how U.S. intelligence has utterly failed to stop them.
SPYFAIL is about the highly dangerous and growing capability of foreign countries to conduct large-scale espionage within the United States and how the FBI and other agencies have failed to prevent it. These covert operations involve a variety of foreign countries—North Korea, Russia, Israel, China, and others—and include cyberattacks, espionage, psychological warfare, the infiltration of presidential campaigns, the smuggling of nuclear weapons components, and other incredibly nefarious actions.
With his trademark deep investigative style, James Bamford digs as deep as one can go into these clandestine invasions and attacks, uncovering who’s involved, how these spygames were carried out, and why none of this was stopped. Full of revelations, SPYFAIL includes access to previously secret and withheld documents, such as never-before-seen parts of the Mueller Report, and interviews with confidential sources.
Throughout this stunning, eye-opening account, SPYFAIL demonstrates again and again how large a role politics, special interests, and corruption play in allowing these shocking foreign intrusions to continue—leaving America and its secrets vulnerable and undefended.
SPYFAIL is about the highly dangerous and growing capability of foreign countries to conduct large-scale espionage within the United States and how the FBI and other agencies have failed to prevent it. These covert operations involve a variety of foreign countries—North Korea, Russia, Israel, China, and others—and include cyberattacks, espionage, psychological warfare, the infiltration of presidential campaigns, the smuggling of nuclear weapons components, and other incredibly nefarious actions.
With his trademark deep investigative style, James Bamford digs as deep as one can go into these clandestine invasions and attacks, uncovering who’s involved, how these spygames were carried out, and why none of this was stopped. Full of revelations, SPYFAIL includes access to previously secret and withheld documents, such as never-before-seen parts of the Mueller Report, and interviews with confidential sources.
Throughout this stunning, eye-opening account, SPYFAIL demonstrates again and again how large a role politics, special interests, and corruption play in allowing these shocking foreign intrusions to continue—leaving America and its secrets vulnerable and undefended.
496 pages, Hardcover
Published January 17, 2023
About the author
James Bamford
43 books156 followersJames Bamford (born September 15, 1946) is an American bestselling author, journalist and documentary producer widely noted for his writing about United States intelligence agencies, especially the National Security Agency (NSA).
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
February 16, 2023
Spyfail is disappointing. Bamford's reputation and the title of the book suggest a thoroughly investigated account of the US intelligence community's failures to catch some of the most notorious spies in US history, such as Ames and Hanssen and, implicitly, how the digital age of Snowden and Manning have introduced new failures and challenges. I had expected Bamford to tie these different generations of counterintelligence failures together to ultimately argue that the US has done an inadequate job of learning from the failures and lessons of these previous cases, and others, and recommend a few courses of action.
Instead, Bamford offers us a completely different book on US / Israel relations and international politics. It is in this context that Bamford connects generations of Israeli spies to the present digital age in suggesting that, per the title, the failure of the US to confront the full scope of Israel's operations in the US is the result of the failure of counterintelligence professionals. However, Bamford is clear in his book that the intelligence community lacks political support to treat Israeli foreign agents in the same manner as foreign agents of other countries, and thus undercommitts resources, personnel and money, to confronting Israeli spies and agents in the US.
In writing one book on the US political challenge of confronting Israel while framing the story in the context of the failure of counterintelligence professionals Bamford does an inadequate job of covering either narrative. Bamford's coverage of US counterintelligence has gaps, lacks nuance, and misses entire aspects of this narrative entirely, such as how changes to security clearances have been inadequate at preventing major leaks. Bamford's narrative of Israeli foreign influence has too much detail. Ironically, Bamford also offers too many side comments reflecting his own personal emotions and opinions that make it easy to be dismissive of his arguments, which is precisely the political goal of the Israeli agents opposed to the Boycott, Divest, Sanction movement, for example. One only has to look at the other reviews on this page to see how easily many readers dismiss Bamford's case studies without actually addressing the factual circumstances he presented or the actual laws that Israeli agents broke, such as tax evasion and acting as unregistered foreign agents, while in the US.
Despite these weaknesses in his book, Bamford actually does present compelling case studies and does not undermine either the thesis presented in the title (that the US has continued to inadequately address counterintelligence failures) or the thesis that he ultimately, and accidentally, covers (that US politics prevents the US from confronting counterintelligence risks related to Israel). Although flawed, this book filled in gaps of my knowledge on the history of Israeli intelligence operations in the US and is worth reading if you are somebody that can see past the flaws, such as at title designed more to sell copies than hint at the actual narrative.
Instead, Bamford offers us a completely different book on US / Israel relations and international politics. It is in this context that Bamford connects generations of Israeli spies to the present digital age in suggesting that, per the title, the failure of the US to confront the full scope of Israel's operations in the US is the result of the failure of counterintelligence professionals. However, Bamford is clear in his book that the intelligence community lacks political support to treat Israeli foreign agents in the same manner as foreign agents of other countries, and thus undercommitts resources, personnel and money, to confronting Israeli spies and agents in the US.
In writing one book on the US political challenge of confronting Israel while framing the story in the context of the failure of counterintelligence professionals Bamford does an inadequate job of covering either narrative. Bamford's coverage of US counterintelligence has gaps, lacks nuance, and misses entire aspects of this narrative entirely, such as how changes to security clearances have been inadequate at preventing major leaks. Bamford's narrative of Israeli foreign influence has too much detail. Ironically, Bamford also offers too many side comments reflecting his own personal emotions and opinions that make it easy to be dismissive of his arguments, which is precisely the political goal of the Israeli agents opposed to the Boycott, Divest, Sanction movement, for example. One only has to look at the other reviews on this page to see how easily many readers dismiss Bamford's case studies without actually addressing the factual circumstances he presented or the actual laws that Israeli agents broke, such as tax evasion and acting as unregistered foreign agents, while in the US.
Despite these weaknesses in his book, Bamford actually does present compelling case studies and does not undermine either the thesis presented in the title (that the US has continued to inadequately address counterintelligence failures) or the thesis that he ultimately, and accidentally, covers (that US politics prevents the US from confronting counterintelligence risks related to Israel). Although flawed, this book filled in gaps of my knowledge on the history of Israeli intelligence operations in the US and is worth reading if you are somebody that can see past the flaws, such as at title designed more to sell copies than hint at the actual narrative.
November 22, 2024
Well, well well. Turns out Russiagate was not the main event of the 2016 elections. The author posits that it was actually the Israelis who were seeking to undermine democracy. The book was a broad overview of the intelligence failures of the new millennium. While it was good, I thought more space could have been devoted to Hunter Biden's missing laptop and also to the Steele dossier. Other than that, it was an awesome book.
July 4, 2023
Title does not reflect contents of book. Very amusing and gripping anecdotes of international intrigue from the 1970s onward. None of these stories are at all outrageous or unbelievable, but all are absurd. The producer of the 1990 film Pretty Woman is responsible for Israel getting nukes. A prolific pedophile working on behalf of the UAE got several face to face meetings with Hillary Clinton during her campaign. The ruling party of Israel’s government provided just as much, if not more material support to Trump’s 2016 election than the Russian government did. And the CEO of Overstock.com worked with the FBI to entrap the sexiest Russian lady they could find to blame. Hellworld, geohell, etc. The way I felt reading this book is the way guys with aircraft carrier hats feel when they read Tom Clancy.
April 10, 2023
The title has almost nothing to do with the book
I’ve enjoyed Mr. Bamford’s earlier work — especially Puzzle Palace. I even met the author a couple decades ago and told him as much. This one, though… is a lot of politics and not much more. It didn’t take long to figure out this was more a vehicle to attack people he doesn’t like (Clapper, Brennan and a lot of Israelis, among others) with a couple CI failure situations weaved in. It seemed like half the book was about Israel, when the intelligence failure piece of it could have been told in great detail in 1/4 as much space.
I was super disappointed, because I expected a lot more substance and not as much personal attacking.
I’ve enjoyed Mr. Bamford’s earlier work — especially Puzzle Palace. I even met the author a couple decades ago and told him as much. This one, though… is a lot of politics and not much more. It didn’t take long to figure out this was more a vehicle to attack people he doesn’t like (Clapper, Brennan and a lot of Israelis, among others) with a couple CI failure situations weaved in. It seemed like half the book was about Israel, when the intelligence failure piece of it could have been told in great detail in 1/4 as much space.
I was super disappointed, because I expected a lot more substance and not as much personal attacking.
March 12, 2023
While being an interesting book in general, this book is not Bamford’s best book - I was expecting more on the latest state of cyberwarfare, SIGINT, and ELINT given Bamford’s previous focus on NSA and his contacts in the community. There is some of that in this book ( the intelligence loss due to the 2001 EP-3 affair deserves a book of its own), but most of the book is dedicated to the story of Israeli spy/Hollywood producer Milchan and the Butina affair. Still, recommended to anyone with an interest in what’s going on in the intelligence and counterintelligence world.
May 17, 2023
An eye-opening and we’ll-documented account of numerous U.S. intelligence failures. “These covert operations involve a variety of foreign countries-North Korea, Russia, Israel, China, and others-and include cyberattacks, espionage, psychological warfare, the infiltration of presidential campaigns, the smuggling of nuclear weapons components, and other incredibly nefarious actions.” Politics, domestic context, and complex international relationships are part of the fabric upending the ability of the U.S. to get things right much of the time.
September 2, 2023
I’ve read Bamford*’s previous books, and have been a fan, but this one is in many ways by far the most revelatory and disturbing.
It is not an easy read even for foreign policy aficionados. Its perspective doesn’t fit neatly into the received preconceptions of either major US political party, and it doesn’t have a happy ending.
But if you had to pick just one non-fiction book that would help you understand a crucial dimension of our struggle to retain some semblance of a liberal democracy untainted by foreign influence, this is it.
You will be astounded.
A few pages in, you realize that Bamford* has dared to investigate key elements of the recent history of a subject that has in many ways become the Third Rail of US politics.
His treatment of the topic is necessarily a bit selective and somewhat choppy and foreshortened; we could obviously use a whole series of such investigations by serious historians . But he has opened the door — an Explorer indeed.
Like most Explorers, he’s also probably had a somewhat thankless, frustrating experience. Ironically, the book’s uneven initial reception is evidence of its value. You won’t find it reviewed in many leading mainstream publications — unlike Bamford’s previous investigations. Nor has he been interviewed on many mainstream media — despite the fact that SpyGlass breaks new ground not only on important spy tales, but on a whole system of self-blinding.
I haven’t done a systematic literature search — which ought to be done — but for an otherwise highly-regarded author to receive this treatment suggests either an organized blackout, or, less conspiratorially and in some ways even more disturbingly, a pandemic of self-censorship among our literati.
Read the book.
BTW: here is Bamford’s NYT 2007 bio: “Dr. Bamford is one of the country's leading writers on intelligence and national security issues. His books include "The Puzzle Palace" and "Body of Secrets," the only two books on the National Security Agency, and most recently "A Pretext for War: 9/11, Iraq and the Abuse of America's Intelligence Agencies," which Time called "probably the best one-volume companion to the harrowing events in the war on terrorism since 1996." Mr. Bamford has also written for many magazines, including investigative cover stories for The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine and The Los Angeles Times Magazine, and is a contributing writer for Rolling Stone. He also spent a decade as the Washington investigative producer for the ABC News program, World News Tonight with Peter Jennings, and taught at the University of California, Berkeley, as a distinguished visiting professor.”
It is not an easy read even for foreign policy aficionados. Its perspective doesn’t fit neatly into the received preconceptions of either major US political party, and it doesn’t have a happy ending.
But if you had to pick just one non-fiction book that would help you understand a crucial dimension of our struggle to retain some semblance of a liberal democracy untainted by foreign influence, this is it.
You will be astounded.
A few pages in, you realize that Bamford* has dared to investigate key elements of the recent history of a subject that has in many ways become the Third Rail of US politics.
His treatment of the topic is necessarily a bit selective and somewhat choppy and foreshortened; we could obviously use a whole series of such investigations by serious historians . But he has opened the door — an Explorer indeed.
Like most Explorers, he’s also probably had a somewhat thankless, frustrating experience. Ironically, the book’s uneven initial reception is evidence of its value. You won’t find it reviewed in many leading mainstream publications — unlike Bamford’s previous investigations. Nor has he been interviewed on many mainstream media — despite the fact that SpyGlass breaks new ground not only on important spy tales, but on a whole system of self-blinding.
I haven’t done a systematic literature search — which ought to be done — but for an otherwise highly-regarded author to receive this treatment suggests either an organized blackout, or, less conspiratorially and in some ways even more disturbingly, a pandemic of self-censorship among our literati.
Read the book.
BTW: here is Bamford’s NYT 2007 bio: “Dr. Bamford is one of the country's leading writers on intelligence and national security issues. His books include "The Puzzle Palace" and "Body of Secrets," the only two books on the National Security Agency, and most recently "A Pretext for War: 9/11, Iraq and the Abuse of America's Intelligence Agencies," which Time called "probably the best one-volume companion to the harrowing events in the war on terrorism since 1996." Mr. Bamford has also written for many magazines, including investigative cover stories for The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine and The Los Angeles Times Magazine, and is a contributing writer for Rolling Stone. He also spent a decade as the Washington investigative producer for the ABC News program, World News Tonight with Peter Jennings, and taught at the University of California, Berkeley, as a distinguished visiting professor.”
January 20, 2026
First and only JB book I've read.
Surprised how few reviews this has.
Really dense and informative. I didn't find it repetitive at all.
Worth noting that like 70% of this book is about the Israel.
Aiming to read Body of Secrets next.
Surprised how few reviews this has.
Really dense and informative. I didn't find it repetitive at all.
Worth noting that like 70% of this book is about the Israel.
Aiming to read Body of Secrets next.
April 2, 2023
(Audiobook) This work is a brutal takedown of America’s counterintelligence capabilities, or lack thereof. While America tends to focus its counterintelligence efforts against the big rivals, such as Russia and China, perhaps the more dangerous threats come more from our “friends”. A significant portion of this work looks at the relationship between Israel and the US. For while the US is considered the strongest ally of Israel on the international scene, and woe to the politician that crosses the Israeli lobbies, Israel does not always reciprocate that relationship. To paraphrase a line from the Godfather Part II: “The US respects Israel, the US made money with Israel, the but the US shouldn’t trust Israel”
There seemingly are a few axes Bamford wants to grind in this work. His previous works on the NSA have already turned him into a major cynic of the Agency, and that carries over in spades. The perspectives on the Sony Hack, the long-standing Israeli leveraging of Hollywood producers and the collateral damage they cause, the persecution of a now Russian politician…this reads as personal with him. This work came out before Netanyahu came back into power, so it would be interesting to hear Bamford’s perspective now, but I wouldn’t bet all the whiskey in Scotland that Bamford will ever receive an invitation to Israel.
There is much to learn in this book, and it is infuriating at times. However, this work, as opposed to other Bamford works, feels like a personally bitter man, who is as much lashing out at being wronged as much as highlighting US counter-intel shortfalls. He does not offer a lot of solutions per se, but just highlights lack of accountability and incompetence. Take the work for what it is worth, but maybe not one to read outside of library checkout.
There seemingly are a few axes Bamford wants to grind in this work. His previous works on the NSA have already turned him into a major cynic of the Agency, and that carries over in spades. The perspectives on the Sony Hack, the long-standing Israeli leveraging of Hollywood producers and the collateral damage they cause, the persecution of a now Russian politician…this reads as personal with him. This work came out before Netanyahu came back into power, so it would be interesting to hear Bamford’s perspective now, but I wouldn’t bet all the whiskey in Scotland that Bamford will ever receive an invitation to Israel.
There is much to learn in this book, and it is infuriating at times. However, this work, as opposed to other Bamford works, feels like a personally bitter man, who is as much lashing out at being wronged as much as highlighting US counter-intel shortfalls. He does not offer a lot of solutions per se, but just highlights lack of accountability and incompetence. Take the work for what it is worth, but maybe not one to read outside of library checkout.
October 7, 2024
This was not my favorite book. At one point I thought the author was pro Palestine and bashed Israel a lot.
February 17, 2024
Very informative on the actual stories behind the headlines. A part of the book was on the sad episode of an innocent Russian, Maria Butina studying in the USA, who became a pawn in the sticky hands of political yahoos looking for scapegoats during the Trump/Russia collusion hysteria.
The book also reveals the hundreds, if not thousands of Jewish dual citizenship holders spying on Americans on behalf of Israel. There are also revelations about Chinese spies in the alphabet agencies working on behalf of China with nobody ever suspecting them for decades.
All in all, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in politics.
The book also reveals the hundreds, if not thousands of Jewish dual citizenship holders spying on Americans on behalf of Israel. There are also revelations about Chinese spies in the alphabet agencies working on behalf of China with nobody ever suspecting them for decades.
All in all, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in politics.
March 6, 2024
Profoundly interesting and troubling.
August 2, 2023
Frankly, not a joy to read, but I learned a great deal from it about the tragic decline of democracy in the USA. I mean I knew that before by Bamford has some very interesting if excruciatingly detailed stories.
The final one about Maria Butina was really sad and infuriating. I had not been aware of that one.
The opening and closing pieces being the most interesting to me.
The final one about Maria Butina was really sad and infuriating. I had not been aware of that one.
The opening and closing pieces being the most interesting to me.
May 11, 2024
Memorable and impressive
The bibliography and citations display the breadth and depth of Bamford's exploration and analysis. The dramatic way this all gets tied together keeps me questioning what I thought I understood. This book offers plausible plots for fiction writers. Today I thanked my friend for recommending SpyFail.
The bibliography and citations display the breadth and depth of Bamford's exploration and analysis. The dramatic way this all gets tied together keeps me questioning what I thought I understood. This book offers plausible plots for fiction writers. Today I thanked my friend for recommending SpyFail.
April 3, 2023
A book with a political agenda maybe buy it is definitely one that will make you angry as an American. The inept actions of all of our federal alphabet soup intelligence organizations is just unbelievable, unlawful and unnecessary.
June 4, 2023
I knew things in DC were bad but I think it could be argued the state of intelligence in the US has never been worse.
December 29, 2025
If you need proof that life is stranger than fiction, read this.
January 22, 2023
My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Twelve Books for an advanced copy of this new book on the world of espionage, global politics and the billions of dollars that are spent tying to learn and kept governmental secrets, some of it well spent, most of it just wasted.
I remember once reading in a book on espionage, that there was an acronym for why people turned traitor. MICE, meaning Money, Ideology, Coercion or Ego. Money and Ego seem to be far ahead of coercion or ideology, even using people ideology, or forcing them to do things so that one person can make lots of money. This book has well to paraphrase a popular movie, you will never find a more wretched hive of scum nor villainy. Except for the author who makes an appearance or two, and some other notables whose careers are probably destroyed for making a stand, and or doing their jobs. Spyfail: Foreign Spies, Moles, Saboteurs, and the Collapse of America’s Counterintelligence is another study of the world of espionage by James Bamford whose The Puzzle Palace is one of my favorite books. Bamford looks at the last almost forty years of American politics and world history and reveals that as bad as some people thought America was at keeping secrets, things are a whole lot worse.
The book starts in Hollywood where a studio that needs a hit has a great idea. A project with a guy known for stoner comedies about killing a real world leader. A leader who is not known for a sense of humor, who is not happy to hear that his face will be shot with a tank round, melting and or exploding depending on the CGI. An idea that is not only thought brilliant by the studio but also by government experts who think this Seth Rogan and James Franco movie can bring about regime change in North Korea. Instead it lead to the biggest hacking scandal in business history, aired out the numerous secrets of a film studio, including nasty emails, and brought down studio heads, and ruined a 100 million dollar movie. This act emboldened North Korea as the Americans had no idea this was going to happen. Get used to reading that. What follows are more stories about Hollywood, nuclear secrets being traded, spies being betrayed, prosecutions overplayed, or made up. Foreign allies, enemies and people all looking to make a buck all seem to be getting away with technology, intellectual property, and more. And billions of dollars being spent without any real results to stop any of this.
A book that is both fascinating, depressing and even more depressing as it goes on. There seems to be no accountability, nor even shame with how bad things are going, or how things have been allowed. Money talks and spies walk, well some do, some go into exile, or prison, while others dine with world leaders, produce movies, and have mansions all over the world. Our govenment needs money to run elections, so various governments are allowed to do what they want, as long as those checks clear. Simple arrests become big shows with SWAT teams, stun grenades, US Attorneys all showing up, but forgetting to Miranda the suspects. The NSA is robbed, and still doesn't know by who, and also can't fight their own hacker programs. The list goes on. Bamford is a very good writer, making everything, Hollywood, film production, nuclear triggers, political motivations, all clear and easy to follow. There are some good guys, but honestly not enough. Money and Ego rule, and it doesn't look good.
I have enjoyed Bamford since reading Puzzle Palace, and this one is just as good. A very large scope and story, with a large list of villains and even sadder incompetents. A book guaranteed to make one angry and depressed. A very eye opening look at a scary future.
I remember once reading in a book on espionage, that there was an acronym for why people turned traitor. MICE, meaning Money, Ideology, Coercion or Ego. Money and Ego seem to be far ahead of coercion or ideology, even using people ideology, or forcing them to do things so that one person can make lots of money. This book has well to paraphrase a popular movie, you will never find a more wretched hive of scum nor villainy. Except for the author who makes an appearance or two, and some other notables whose careers are probably destroyed for making a stand, and or doing their jobs. Spyfail: Foreign Spies, Moles, Saboteurs, and the Collapse of America’s Counterintelligence is another study of the world of espionage by James Bamford whose The Puzzle Palace is one of my favorite books. Bamford looks at the last almost forty years of American politics and world history and reveals that as bad as some people thought America was at keeping secrets, things are a whole lot worse.
The book starts in Hollywood where a studio that needs a hit has a great idea. A project with a guy known for stoner comedies about killing a real world leader. A leader who is not known for a sense of humor, who is not happy to hear that his face will be shot with a tank round, melting and or exploding depending on the CGI. An idea that is not only thought brilliant by the studio but also by government experts who think this Seth Rogan and James Franco movie can bring about regime change in North Korea. Instead it lead to the biggest hacking scandal in business history, aired out the numerous secrets of a film studio, including nasty emails, and brought down studio heads, and ruined a 100 million dollar movie. This act emboldened North Korea as the Americans had no idea this was going to happen. Get used to reading that. What follows are more stories about Hollywood, nuclear secrets being traded, spies being betrayed, prosecutions overplayed, or made up. Foreign allies, enemies and people all looking to make a buck all seem to be getting away with technology, intellectual property, and more. And billions of dollars being spent without any real results to stop any of this.
A book that is both fascinating, depressing and even more depressing as it goes on. There seems to be no accountability, nor even shame with how bad things are going, or how things have been allowed. Money talks and spies walk, well some do, some go into exile, or prison, while others dine with world leaders, produce movies, and have mansions all over the world. Our govenment needs money to run elections, so various governments are allowed to do what they want, as long as those checks clear. Simple arrests become big shows with SWAT teams, stun grenades, US Attorneys all showing up, but forgetting to Miranda the suspects. The NSA is robbed, and still doesn't know by who, and also can't fight their own hacker programs. The list goes on. Bamford is a very good writer, making everything, Hollywood, film production, nuclear triggers, political motivations, all clear and easy to follow. There are some good guys, but honestly not enough. Money and Ego rule, and it doesn't look good.
I have enjoyed Bamford since reading Puzzle Palace, and this one is just as good. A very large scope and story, with a large list of villains and even sadder incompetents. A book guaranteed to make one angry and depressed. A very eye opening look at a scary future.
October 3, 2023
MUST read if you're not in the US duopoly political box
The book is great, but with a semi-incorrect title. It’s really about “government fail” much more than “spy fail.” (OTOH, it's not fully incorrect, and it is eye-grabbing.) Much of the book is about Israeli snooping in the US, detected by the FBI or others, and then presidents of both political parties, going back to Jimmy Carter refusing to call an Israeli-aided South African nuke test what it was, not doing anything.
Even before getting to the first actual “Spy Fail,” we have Sony execs going racist on Obama in text messages, and worse, they’re Jewish Sony execs.
Also before this, Bamford notes that North Korea was NOT a giant Potemkin village, let alone one without a façade.
Re the Israeli spying, I had not heard any of the story of Arnon Milchan's various nefarious actions before.
I didn’t realize Adam Schiff (who I don’t care for, for other reasons) was a handpicked protégé of Howard Berman and Henry Waxman.
The biggie is something related to Russiagate, a biggie, and real, and largely suppressed in discussion, and seemingly largely ignored by BlueAnon Russiagate detectives like Marcy Wheeler. And, that was Israel’s involvement. Apparently, its Unit 8200 had hacked Wikileaks and/or Guccifer 2.0’s home, the GRU. And Bibi’s personal man Friday, Isaac Moho, was feeding this to Roger Stone. Israel knew about the DNC hacks before anybody outside Russia, Bamford notes.
Per what I just posted, I searched Emptywheel’s site and got zero hits for “Isaac Molho.” Nor did I get any for Bibi’s important minister without portfolio at this time, Tzachi Hanegbi.
Back to Adam Schiff. On the House Intelligence Committee. Ranking member 2015-19. Chair, 2019-23. Did he know about any of the #Israelgate issues in real time? Bamford doesn't speculate.
That said, it wasn’t all Israel in 2016. The UAE, Bamford shows, in terms of buying influence, was running its own string of polo ponies with both Clinton and Trump.
But, here, we’re back to Spy Fail. Bamford notes FBI and Secret Service were bush league on not uncovering United Arab Emirates bagman George Nader earlier. Nader first plumped for Clinton, then, seeing Trump start to surge, played both sides of the street while working more and more the Trump side. Nader was only nailed because of having juvenile sex porn on a smartphone, even though having previous felony conviction on this ground.
Bamford then pivots back to Russiagate to close. Here, the “Spy Fail” is not missing something, but inventing something out of nothing, and we’re talking about Maria Butina, and the desire of the FBI to nail some Russian coonskin to a wall, mixed with an odious fame-lusting DC prosecutor. Before that, of course, Bamford reminds us of #BlueAnon media like David Corn hounding and hassling Butina, the same David Corn who’s a warmonger as I type. Bamford closes by reminding us that Butina now sits in the Duma.
Outside the covers of the book, literally? I note all the blurbs are for "James Bamford and his bestselling books," and NOT this book. I think the reason is obvious, and frankly, I wonder how hard it was to get this published.
And, if you thought THAT was blistering? This is one of those books I’ll blog a longer review about.
The book is great, but with a semi-incorrect title. It’s really about “government fail” much more than “spy fail.” (OTOH, it's not fully incorrect, and it is eye-grabbing.) Much of the book is about Israeli snooping in the US, detected by the FBI or others, and then presidents of both political parties, going back to Jimmy Carter refusing to call an Israeli-aided South African nuke test what it was, not doing anything.
Even before getting to the first actual “Spy Fail,” we have Sony execs going racist on Obama in text messages, and worse, they’re Jewish Sony execs.
Also before this, Bamford notes that North Korea was NOT a giant Potemkin village, let alone one without a façade.
Re the Israeli spying, I had not heard any of the story of Arnon Milchan's various nefarious actions before.
I didn’t realize Adam Schiff (who I don’t care for, for other reasons) was a handpicked protégé of Howard Berman and Henry Waxman.
The biggie is something related to Russiagate, a biggie, and real, and largely suppressed in discussion, and seemingly largely ignored by BlueAnon Russiagate detectives like Marcy Wheeler. And, that was Israel’s involvement. Apparently, its Unit 8200 had hacked Wikileaks and/or Guccifer 2.0’s home, the GRU. And Bibi’s personal man Friday, Isaac Moho, was feeding this to Roger Stone. Israel knew about the DNC hacks before anybody outside Russia, Bamford notes.
Per what I just posted, I searched Emptywheel’s site and got zero hits for “Isaac Molho.” Nor did I get any for Bibi’s important minister without portfolio at this time, Tzachi Hanegbi.
Back to Adam Schiff. On the House Intelligence Committee. Ranking member 2015-19. Chair, 2019-23. Did he know about any of the #Israelgate issues in real time? Bamford doesn't speculate.
That said, it wasn’t all Israel in 2016. The UAE, Bamford shows, in terms of buying influence, was running its own string of polo ponies with both Clinton and Trump.
But, here, we’re back to Spy Fail. Bamford notes FBI and Secret Service were bush league on not uncovering United Arab Emirates bagman George Nader earlier. Nader first plumped for Clinton, then, seeing Trump start to surge, played both sides of the street while working more and more the Trump side. Nader was only nailed because of having juvenile sex porn on a smartphone, even though having previous felony conviction on this ground.
Bamford then pivots back to Russiagate to close. Here, the “Spy Fail” is not missing something, but inventing something out of nothing, and we’re talking about Maria Butina, and the desire of the FBI to nail some Russian coonskin to a wall, mixed with an odious fame-lusting DC prosecutor. Before that, of course, Bamford reminds us of #BlueAnon media like David Corn hounding and hassling Butina, the same David Corn who’s a warmonger as I type. Bamford closes by reminding us that Butina now sits in the Duma.
Outside the covers of the book, literally? I note all the blurbs are for "James Bamford and his bestselling books," and NOT this book. I think the reason is obvious, and frankly, I wonder how hard it was to get this published.
And, if you thought THAT was blistering? This is one of those books I’ll blog a longer review about.
May 14, 2023
I’ve read all of the author’s previous books, so I was very interested in picking up his latest installment about real spies. Here, the two main focuses are North Korea and Israel. Both flow through the movie industry. Hollywood annoyed the North Koreans so much they hacked the studio. Then an agent of Israel uses the movie industry to exert influence on people who can help his cause.
In both parts, there is a lot of detail. Also in both, the author’s frustration comes through at the US government’s inability to curb or address the gaping holes in the country’s counter-intelligence capabilities. Recent events with dumps of classified documents underscores just how lax things are.
The Israel portion was the most fascinating. I had read about the nuclear test done by Israel in the waters south of South Africa during the Carter administration. Here, more details leading up to the test are provided. The intelligence community knew it was the Israelis, but Carter didn’t want it known. The satellite confirmed what the acoustic recordings proved: nuclear detonation. I didn’t realize it was the movie mogul who used cutouts to obtain the triggers for Israel’s nuclear weapons. Or that the US provided the material through lax security at a plutonium plant (material lost through normal production process should have been a red flag when dealing with plutonium). As shown in previous books, the author paints a picture of Israel able to control US policy and actions to their liking. As said in the book, if it was Russia doing this, it would be big news.
We need to take a serious look at our internal and external policies with regards to anything within the sphere of national security. As our adversaries continue to learn how to manipulate us via hacks of our computers & our minds, our methods need to adapt too. Our allies will continue to lose trust in us if we can’t keep secrets. From the book, a lot of what is there was more of an open secret, but no one was willing to act.
In both parts, there is a lot of detail. Also in both, the author’s frustration comes through at the US government’s inability to curb or address the gaping holes in the country’s counter-intelligence capabilities. Recent events with dumps of classified documents underscores just how lax things are.
The Israel portion was the most fascinating. I had read about the nuclear test done by Israel in the waters south of South Africa during the Carter administration. Here, more details leading up to the test are provided. The intelligence community knew it was the Israelis, but Carter didn’t want it known. The satellite confirmed what the acoustic recordings proved: nuclear detonation. I didn’t realize it was the movie mogul who used cutouts to obtain the triggers for Israel’s nuclear weapons. Or that the US provided the material through lax security at a plutonium plant (material lost through normal production process should have been a red flag when dealing with plutonium). As shown in previous books, the author paints a picture of Israel able to control US policy and actions to their liking. As said in the book, if it was Russia doing this, it would be big news.
We need to take a serious look at our internal and external policies with regards to anything within the sphere of national security. As our adversaries continue to learn how to manipulate us via hacks of our computers & our minds, our methods need to adapt too. Our allies will continue to lose trust in us if we can’t keep secrets. From the book, a lot of what is there was more of an open secret, but no one was willing to act.
dnf-did-not-finish
June 1, 2023 Did not finish book. Stopped at 1%.
This book is a 1 star book, but I wasn't going to waste more than 20 hours of my life just to submit a 1 star rating.
I wanted to read this book in order to study operational security.
The introduction is super nationalist using we/ours pronouns on the basis of nationality when we live under a racial capitalist patriarchy. (And it already conflates the populace with the government, etc.) He doesn't even acknowledge how the public/private sector divide is a myth. Who the hell is his audience? -- is this for people in the military?
Further I don't like Hollywood movies, so using that as a framing device in addition to the 2016 election & its aftermath, just felt like it was propping up the same mechanisms that brought Donald Trump to office.
I'm using an audiobook, so I wouldn't have access to citations anyways & this book is more than 20 hours. So then when I saw a review say this book doesn't have citations, that's when I called it DNF. I have access to books with citations & that don't use class collaborationism.
Seriously, he thinks USA would've stopped the Russian invasion of Ukraine even though the military industrial complex during USA's invasion of Iraq & Afghanistan involved businesses/donors making money on feeding soldiers, etc?
Also the blurb uses antisemitic imagery, which when combined with the bullshit framing of how the dictatorship of the Racial Capitalist Patriarchy works is a red flag. Like russiagate was already tinged with Nazi canards of judeo-bolshevism. Further when he says he doesn't take political sides but only where the facts lead him, it's like making sense of the facts is inherently political, so it reminds me how fascists call themselves apolitical & conspiracy theorists call themselves lateral thinkers.
This book is a 1 star book, but I wasn't going to waste more than 20 hours of my life just to submit a 1 star rating.
I wanted to read this book in order to study operational security.
The introduction is super nationalist using we/ours pronouns on the basis of nationality when we live under a racial capitalist patriarchy. (And it already conflates the populace with the government, etc.) He doesn't even acknowledge how the public/private sector divide is a myth. Who the hell is his audience? -- is this for people in the military?
Further I don't like Hollywood movies, so using that as a framing device in addition to the 2016 election & its aftermath, just felt like it was propping up the same mechanisms that brought Donald Trump to office.
I'm using an audiobook, so I wouldn't have access to citations anyways & this book is more than 20 hours. So then when I saw a review say this book doesn't have citations, that's when I called it DNF. I have access to books with citations & that don't use class collaborationism.
Seriously, he thinks USA would've stopped the Russian invasion of Ukraine even though the military industrial complex during USA's invasion of Iraq & Afghanistan involved businesses/donors making money on feeding soldiers, etc?
Also the blurb uses antisemitic imagery, which when combined with the bullshit framing of how the dictatorship of the Racial Capitalist Patriarchy works is a red flag. Like russiagate was already tinged with Nazi canards of judeo-bolshevism. Further when he says he doesn't take political sides but only where the facts lead him, it's like making sense of the facts is inherently political, so it reminds me how fascists call themselves apolitical & conspiracy theorists call themselves lateral thinkers.
March 30, 2023
This is an extremely hard book to review for me. I am not a close follower of the author James Bamford, so I can only speak to his veracity from my own sense of what goes on the intelligence world. If Bamford is to be believed in full, then we in the USA ought to be furious at the level of incompetence and the huge waste that goes along with it. I suppose at a minimum I ought to look into his other work and see if he is reliable.
If Bamford is NOT believable as a reporter of fact, then one has to wonder why he has written as he has. Is he the dupe of some particularly nefarious practitioners of the intelligence art? This would certain lead down a path to conspiracy theories of multiple levels and for twisted reasons. Are there people who would do so? Certainly, but it is unlikely they could do so repeatedly with any level of success at pulling the wool over everybody's eyes. How many successful ops does it take to keep people in the dark about most of this? It's not hard to imagine we are frequently thus deluded, but not likely day after day, year after year.
Or has Bamford written a brilliant novel that just happens to fit our understanding of the way the world works in the intelligence community. Enjoy the work, and if you have any insights I'd love to hear them.
If Bamford is NOT believable as a reporter of fact, then one has to wonder why he has written as he has. Is he the dupe of some particularly nefarious practitioners of the intelligence art? This would certain lead down a path to conspiracy theories of multiple levels and for twisted reasons. Are there people who would do so? Certainly, but it is unlikely they could do so repeatedly with any level of success at pulling the wool over everybody's eyes. How many successful ops does it take to keep people in the dark about most of this? It's not hard to imagine we are frequently thus deluded, but not likely day after day, year after year.
Or has Bamford written a brilliant novel that just happens to fit our understanding of the way the world works in the intelligence community. Enjoy the work, and if you have any insights I'd love to hear them.
March 17, 2026
In Spyfail, James Bamford does a deep dive into America’s intelligence agencies, showing how espionage has developed and evolved over time and how the NSA, FBI, and CIA have repeatedly failed to keep up. Through numerous examples involving foreign affairs– America’s cyberwar with North Korea, Israel’s continued influence over American politics, stolen secrets that have fallen into the hands of China, and Russia’s involvement in the 2016 U.S. election– Bamford did an excellent job illustrating how America’s intelligence agencies always seem to fall short of protecting the country.
This book was very dense and took a long time for me to read. I still thoroughly enjoyed it; it was fascinating to learn about the operations of American intelligence agencies, a few major examples of catastrophes that they have been involved in, and some of the key players from the U.S. and any foreign country they were dealing with. I think Bamford demonstrated why Americans should maintain a healthy distrust of these organizations, as they are nowhere near perfect and have made a plethora of mistakes in the past. Overall, it was a tremendous book and I will be looking into more Bamford books in the future.
This book was very dense and took a long time for me to read. I still thoroughly enjoyed it; it was fascinating to learn about the operations of American intelligence agencies, a few major examples of catastrophes that they have been involved in, and some of the key players from the U.S. and any foreign country they were dealing with. I think Bamford demonstrated why Americans should maintain a healthy distrust of these organizations, as they are nowhere near perfect and have made a plethora of mistakes in the past. Overall, it was a tremendous book and I will be looking into more Bamford books in the future.
October 29, 2024
I appreciate the need for Bamford's work, here. I did not enjoy his style, nor his complete distaste for great American institutions, such as the FBI and CIA. Further, the book is much too long. I agree with one of his themes that Israeli spying and espionage in the United States has long been ignored. The entire Israeli nuclear program, fissionable material and triggers were flat out stolen from the U.S. The U.S. justice system has no stomach for prosecuting blatant Israeli influencing because there is no political will to engage. The entire Israeli indictment of Benjamin Netanyahu could well have been done in the U.S, if there was the courage to do so. Bamford details corrupt actions by U.S. persons to buy influence from Netanyahu.
I thought the detailing of the corrupt actions by Netanyahu to be new and interesting as there was next to zero coverage of his trial. Bramford makes a big stretch when trying to throw mud at the FBI, alleging infiltration of Stagehand at the FBI. He just did not make a solid case.
Overall, though some aspects of the book were new and interesting, the entire work was tedious and boring.
I thought the detailing of the corrupt actions by Netanyahu to be new and interesting as there was next to zero coverage of his trial. Bramford makes a big stretch when trying to throw mud at the FBI, alleging infiltration of Stagehand at the FBI. He just did not make a solid case.
Overall, though some aspects of the book were new and interesting, the entire work was tedious and boring.
February 16, 2023
I have enjoyed all of Bamford’s books over the past several years. Unfortunately, I have to disagree with his message on this book. I understand his position on the State of Israel in terms of the Palestinian settlement issue and what the state has been doing to displace the people who live there. It is a very bad situation and I feel sorry for the Palestinian people. However, Israel has the right to protect themselves and are doing what they think is necessary to ensure the safety and welfare of its people. The history of the PLO and other enemies of Israel is well known as violence and hate against the Jewish nation continues. The attacks against Israel has been made worse by the media and numerous hate groups led by George Soros and others. Israel is in a precarious position in the Middle East surrounded by Muslim countries who want to destroy Israel and push it into the Sea. The author further points out the efforts of groups who support Israel, such as Sheldon Adelson, an American Jew who has chosen to use his wealth and position to assist Israel in their efforts to live in safety in a hostile part of the world. I applauded him and others who have stood up to the hateful entities that continue to attack Israel and foment hate and violence. A two national solution is no longer a viable option for Israel who had to do everything possible to secure their existence. Again, I have enjoyed the authors many books but I think he missed the mark on this one but I will unequivocally support his right to express his opinion and views.
April 18, 2026
Spyfail by James Bamford is an incredible deep dive into the repeated failures of U.S. intelligence — and, in some cases, how those systems were exposed to manipulation by external actors.
What struck me most is how meticulously documented everything feels. This isn’t sensationalism — it’s layered, investigative journalism that builds a picture of systemic blind spots, internal dysfunction, and missed warning signs.
Some of the revelations are genuinely shocking, especially the sections suggesting that while public discourse was dominated by “Russiagate,” other potential foreign influences — particularly involving actors linked to Israel and the UAE — received far less attention literraly in the same period. Whether you agree with every implication or not, the book forces you to question dominant narratives and look deeper.
It reads almost like a thriller, but with the weight of real-world consequences behind it. A fascinating, sometimes disturbing look at intelligence, power, and failure. Absolutely 5 stars.
What struck me most is how meticulously documented everything feels. This isn’t sensationalism — it’s layered, investigative journalism that builds a picture of systemic blind spots, internal dysfunction, and missed warning signs.
Some of the revelations are genuinely shocking, especially the sections suggesting that while public discourse was dominated by “Russiagate,” other potential foreign influences — particularly involving actors linked to Israel and the UAE — received far less attention literraly in the same period. Whether you agree with every implication or not, the book forces you to question dominant narratives and look deeper.
It reads almost like a thriller, but with the weight of real-world consequences behind it. A fascinating, sometimes disturbing look at intelligence, power, and failure. Absolutely 5 stars.
February 26, 2023
I love books that make you a fly on the wall and then the books by fail that is exactly what you become all the things the government doesn’t want you to know and things from all the governments are told in this book. I wish I was one of those people that could name names and give dates and say that was so great but unfortunately I am just a humble reader who loves these types of books and I highly recommend you read this one. If you love intrigues buys moles and those whose jobs could end in death at any time you need to read this book I think James Bamford did a wonderful job and it’s a total five-star read. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.
April 16, 2023
Alarming survey of the continued efforts by Israeli intelligence and Israeli-backed intelligence assets to undermine the US in sectors such as media, nuclear secrets, and elections. Also provides an overview of Chinese and Russian events within the 2010s to present. A very eye-opening treatise which, in my opinion, should be part of a larger required reading list for anyone in the US intelligence community and working in any kind of counterintelligence capacity.
The author pulls no punches and backs up all claims with well-referenced and solid sources. One of the things I like most about nonfiction is the sources/references section contained in each, especially this one.
If you're on the fence - get it.
The author pulls no punches and backs up all claims with well-referenced and solid sources. One of the things I like most about nonfiction is the sources/references section contained in each, especially this one.
If you're on the fence - get it.
March 29, 2023
This book is incredibly compelling and well-written. However, I am concerned that the author doesn’t really appear to cite anything throughout this book and it presents conjecture and speculation rather than journalism. The topic itself is critical and this book does hone in on the fact that the US is and has been continually missing foreign surveillance apparatus for years and years, but the lack of citations makes parts of the book hard to believe and leads me to wonder if some of it was exaggerated. I am hesitant to trust this book as a source of truth fully, but the picture it paints is compelling and certainly warrants further analysis.
April 11, 2023
The title is a bit misleading - the majority of the book highlights political level failures, especially with regard to Israeli activities in the US that have been glossed over. There are, however, significant examples of unintentional and intentional fails by the intelligence organs (e.g. FBI vs. Maria Butina, the NSA/USN spy plane forced to land intact in China due to incompetence, and spyware grabbed by North Korea).
It would be interesting to see corresponding wins by US counterintelligence and intelligence agencies, and fails by opposing countries' intelligence organs.
It would be interesting to see corresponding wins by US counterintelligence and intelligence agencies, and fails by opposing countries' intelligence organs.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews