UndercoverResearch Portal

investigating corporate and police spying on activists

Welcome to the UndercoverResearch Portal on Powerbase

In October 2010, Mark Kennedy was exposed as a police spy who had infiltrated environmental and anti-capitalist groups for the previous seven years. His was the beginning of a series of public exposures; most resulting from investigations by the people involved, supported by the work of Rob Evans and Paul Lewis at the Guardian. The Undercover Research Portal provides easy public access to the stories about the various undercover officers who have been exposed, the groups and movements they spied upon, and the wide-ranging official reviews since. We also look at the background context to them, including the various police officers involved and how they interconnect with some of the big stories around UK policing in the last two decades, as well as international and private security aspects. The portal is set up and edited by an independent group of activists involved in exposing infiltrators, and dedicated to investigating the wider context of political undercover operations. We can be reached by email - PGP key available on request. Both Powerbase and the Undercover Research Group have a policy of strict referencing. It is overseen by a managing editor, a Sysop and several associate portal editors. Please read the General Disclaimer.

Background The undercover operations exposed involve two Special Branch units that focused on protest groups and what would in the 2000s be given the name Domestic Extremism. These were the Special Demonstration Squad, operating since 1968, and the National Public Order Intelligence Unit. The lack of supervision and oversight of their undercover police operations has led to more than a dozen official inquiries, most of which are internal and confidential. Convictions of campaigners have been overturned, and declared unsafe because it had not been disclosed that undercover police officers were at the heart of activities, and it is highly likely that further convictions will be challenged. A number of court cases have been initiated by women tricked into intimate relationships with undercover agents (and in a few cases having children by them. Hearings in Parliament have questioned the more extreme methods employed, such as the use of death certificates of children to provide a false identity for the spies involved; while using Parliamentary Privilege, Green MP Caroline Lucas has accused one spy of being an agent provocateur, committing arson while an activist with the Animal Liberation Front. Elsewhere another officer, Peter Francis, came forward with details of how the undercover police were used to smear the Stephen Lawrence family. It has become apparent that a culture of abuse grew up around the units involved in covert policing and how that intelligence was used. So much so, that a public inquiry was announced in 2014. Where to Start? Follow the links below to learn about the secretive world of undercover policing, the shadowy units and the personalities involved, as well as context for the stories seen in the news. An A-Z list of articles on the people, groups and issues around undercover operations and policing of protest. Undercover Operations in Policing Protest and Dissent The Undercover Officers: profiles of known undercover police. The Covert Police Units: the units which spied on protests and protestors. Police Officers: the senior police who knew and had oversight International Surveillance and Undercover Groups Non-UK undercover police Corporate Spying Known Infiltrators Corporate Intelligence Agencies and Private Investigation Agencies: the private security firms who have spied on campaign groups. UndercoverResearch: Ex-Cops in the Security Industry: police officers who have taken their knowledge and experience to the corporate world. Issues/Case Studies/Background/Analysis Smearing of the Stephen Lawrence Campaign Use of Identities of Children Sexual Relations Domestic Extremism Convictions Overturned Consultancy Association Blacklist Far Right Holding Authorities to Account Official Inquiries Rules & Regulation on Undercover Policing Parliamentary Hearings and Questions Cases in Court Official Inquiries, Cases in Court & Questions - Abroad International Policy and Agreements on Undercover Operations Targets and Background Targeted Groups Targeted Events

What's New on UndercoverResearch What's New on UndercoverResearch Lawrence Review Team N81 - the undercover who spied on the Lawrence family. National Undercover Scrutiny Panel Bob Lambert and his Career Timeline Marco Jacobs, plus his Undercover Timeline and Bibliography Martin Hewitt 'responsible for the MPS response to the public inquiry on undercover policing’. Gordon Mills, member of NETCU National Co-ordinator for Special Branch National Co-ordinator Ports Policing, a Special Branch unit. National Domestic Extremism Database Domestic Extremism, a history of the term and its use. National Domestic Extremism Unit, a set of pages on these units. Undercovers Uncovered List of ‘confirmed’ undercover officers in the UK Peter Francis AKA Peter Daley or Pete Black Mark Kennedy AKA Mark Stone Lynn Watson Marco Jacobs (alias)' Jim Boyling AKA Jim Sutton Simon Wellings Robert Lambert AKA Bob Robinson John Dines AKA John Barker Mark Jenner AKA Mark Cassidy Officer 10 Officer 11 Rod Richardson Mike Chitty AKA Mike Blake Jason Bishop N81 For a list of all known officers see Exposed Undercover Officers (Full List). Undercover Police Officers & Agents - Abroad Simon Bromma AKA Simon Brenner (Germany) Christian Høibø (Norway) Further Reading our own blogs Bristling Badger BristleKRS Secret Manoeuvres collaborating with Police Spies Out of Lives Campaign Opposing Police Surveillance Network on Police Monitoring (NetPol) SpinWatch CorporateWatch StateWatch others of interest The Monitoring Group Hillsborough Justice Campaign Random Reflectons of a Domestic Extremist ActivistSecurity.org resources for further action FOIA Fighters NetPol guide to requesting your data from the police Exposing Infiltrators and Informers (pdf from ActivistSecurity.org) Activist Security Handbook (pdf from ActivistSecurity.org)