A person employed by a government or organization to discover and stop spies working against them.
From 'counter-' plus 'spy,' emerging in early 20th-century intelligence terminology. 'Spy' derives from Old French 'espier.' The term became formalized during WWI and WWII when counterintelligence became a major military discipline.
Counterspies often use a technique called 'false-flag recruitment' where they pose as enemy agents to trick real spies into revealing themselves—it's like being a spy who hunts spies, making it one of the most psychologically complex jobs in government.
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