Spy Satellite Expert Breaks Down Surveillance Scenes From Movies & TV

Spy Satellite Expert Breaks Down Surveillance Scenes From Movies & TV | WIRED

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Күн бұрын

Keith Masback, former director of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance integration for the US Army, takes a look at spy satellite and surveillance scenes from a variety of television shows and movies and breaks down how accurate they really are.
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Spy Satellite Expert Breaks Down Surveillance Scenes From Movies & TV | WIRED

Пікірлер: 474

@fajarsetiawan8665 3 жыл бұрын

This Wired series is the OG of technique critiques and the featured experts here are just top notch.

@user-nb5vy7ni6y 2 жыл бұрын

There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله

@SnailHatan 2 жыл бұрын

@@user-nb5vy7ni6y go blow up a hospital or something

@LeKami 2 жыл бұрын

@@SnailHatan Well that's just racist

@SnailHatan 2 жыл бұрын

@@LeKami Ah, yes, because religion is the same thing as race. Try harder.

@AlwaysBolttheBird 3 жыл бұрын

I’m super happy they put Arrested Development in there. “Those are balls”

@EmrutoSynths 3 жыл бұрын

It was the LAST thing I was expecting... and now I just have so much more respect for whoever decided to include it 😂

@riversider2506 2 жыл бұрын

Lmaooo 😂 FACTS 🤣

@maryclaremayo6157 2 жыл бұрын

@Brad C "It's all about context."

@MD-bf2ce 2 жыл бұрын

"That satellite looks like something you'd make out of a lego set" Loads KSP.

@rvxn 2 жыл бұрын

" We replicate the movies because that's what we should look like " lmao

@user-nb5vy7ni6y 2 жыл бұрын

There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله

@009Daft600 2 жыл бұрын

@@user-nb5vy7ni6y stfu

@009Daft600 2 жыл бұрын

@@user-nb5vy7ni6yget some help

@arturomillan 2 жыл бұрын

Ikr I found that amazing, really

@traviskeller3641 2 жыл бұрын

It probably all goes back on those room setups such as the NASA control room or possibly a control center used for nuclear testing prior to NASA

@BlackCeII 3 жыл бұрын

As a former US intelligence analyst myself, I can attest that this video and commentary is spot-on in every way. A lot of times these videos are annoying to me because they're talking to somebody who only has peripheral knowledge about some of the things they're talking about, but this guy was absolutely right

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for your kind words & thanks for your service.

@penname8441 3 жыл бұрын

@busfahrer09 2 жыл бұрын

@@keithm.402 Hey Keith, can you tell us how realistic the 'space cowboys' satellite scene is? Did the Russians or maybe the US built these kind of stations?

@ZesPak 2 жыл бұрын

I think the Wired series generally has a very good stack of experts coming on!

@OldNew45 2 жыл бұрын

As a former "guy on the ground", I also agree. Things like not knowing capabilities, or things like four digit lat-longs. Four digit coordinates get you within a square kilometer at best. Another favorite of mine that wasn't covered is that thermal optics can most definitely not look through things. Even windows.

@davebaker9128 2 жыл бұрын

My father was the head of the space surveillance program at aerojet for decades, he was also one of the two (Baker-Nunn) that developed the first high altitude high resolution camera that was launched in a satellite in 1958, I'm very proud of my dad

@Ohzeeyay 2 жыл бұрын

That’s a good flex!

@wyskass861 3 жыл бұрын

"At 300 miles away it's kind of tough to get a heat signature of a human being" Neither confirming nor denying that it's in common secret use as such.

@ZesPak 2 жыл бұрын

He's saying it's kind of tough. Like opening a well-tightened jar. Kind of tough, hardly impossible :D.

@Valery0p5 2 жыл бұрын

Basically a summary of this video.

@OlDirtySam 2 жыл бұрын

I think its their way to say: Super easy, barely an inconvenience!

@looteverybody 3 жыл бұрын

Was hoping we'd get "Eagle Eye", but this guest was great! Maybe to do a second round of movies!

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks; I’d love to do another round! KM

@cynomyS 3 жыл бұрын

@@keithm.402 You did a great job, keep it up!

@user-nb5vy7ni6y 2 жыл бұрын

There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله

@user-nb5vy7ni6y 2 жыл бұрын

@@cynomyS There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله

@ATGG 3 жыл бұрын

What a great Gentleman and professional analyst. Sounds like he was good at his job…!!

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

You’re very kind; thanks!

@jessicab2202 3 жыл бұрын

Agreed, he was so precise in his language, and gave such great context around the reality of these situations and decisions. Really great to watch!

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks!

@dewickmeeewe613 3 жыл бұрын

Besides the osama bin laden what other big things where u involved in?

@megaraph5551 2 жыл бұрын

@@dewickmeeewe613 If he were to tell you would you agree to be killed?

@bur2576 3 жыл бұрын

even in spy satellite i still think the same thing.. "enhance...enhance..enhance.."

@ProudPapaJD 3 жыл бұрын

Beat me to it.... enhance.... lol

@anomilumiimulimona2924 2 жыл бұрын

Ahhh, the supertroopers reference. GIVE ME THE DAMMED BAR OF SOAP.

@4Core100 3 жыл бұрын

Over the top movies: Do something. Spy guy: Haha no thats stupid. Body of lies: Do the neat trick with dust and spliting cars. Spy guy: Eeeh I need to protect sources and methods *sweats profusely*

@David-sq2en 2 жыл бұрын

It sounded like they can follow multiple vehicles at the same time, but don't want to say how it is done?

@xelario 2 жыл бұрын

@@David-sq2en I don't think so. The scene shows that bad guys know they could be watched by a drone and that it can only follow one car. That's what the expert refers to - knowing what drones can and can't do helped baddies figure out how to evade it, that's all.

@FrancSchiphorst 2 жыл бұрын

@@xelario infra red can probably look through the dust and follow the heat signature of the person they are watching into one of the cars

@xelario 2 жыл бұрын

@@FrancSchiphorst So you believe he's "probably" trying to hide the true capabilities of the drone by implying there is something to hide, thus revealing his hand... But you already know what he's trying to hide, so there was no point in hiding anything? :) Yeah, I'll stay with my opinion that he just explained what went wrong in the scene - you can have the best surveillance capability, but if your enemies know about it, they can figure out how to avoid it.

@ZesPak 2 жыл бұрын

@@FrancSchiphorst This is what I was thinking. As he said it sounded more like "yes, let them think that works". Part of that could be because we tend to think in optical. Just as the "behind enemy lines" clip is the reverse. If the "baddies" were looking for him with thermal images (like his allies), his hiding in a stack of bodies would be futile. Tracking the right car/person with infrared, they'd probably hardly register the dust cloud.

@BaghaShams 2 жыл бұрын

This guy is hilarious! He's so serious and professional and genuinely annoyed at badly done Hollywood scenes. Get them out of his face! I could watch him take down movie scenes all day 😂

@davids1716 2 жыл бұрын

Absolutely the best episode of this series to date. KM is a fantastic communicator and seems like a guy who’d be a hoot over a beer…provided you don’t start asking questions you shouldn’t! A consummate professional. Good job Wired

@hawsrulebegin7768 2 жыл бұрын

Could listen to this guy’s knowledge for hours. More please

@riversider2506 2 жыл бұрын

This guy is SOO *GREAT* at his job that when he breaks down these scenes , pointing out their faults , he makes it seem as if its "common sense" when in actuality , its rather difficult! That's a *PRO!!* Makes something that is difficult AF , seem as if it's a walk in a park 🥇💯

@scarr8262 3 жыл бұрын

His examination of "gods eye" in the fast and furious franchise would be interesting.

@KelticTim 2 жыл бұрын

Well would you look at the insane likeness between the Archer analyst and the analyst speaking. It’s uncanny.

@zootboot124 2 жыл бұрын

Exactly what I thought. 😁

@Archamfer 3 жыл бұрын

also on the Lat Long thing, the precision he gave was and area over a square kilometre

@olamsoevik 3 жыл бұрын

"There was someone who was 'affectionately' known as the pacer" LMAO

@user-nb5vy7ni6y 2 жыл бұрын

There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله

@dejiimole 3 жыл бұрын

Why doesn't this have more views ?

@kevinsundelin8639 3 жыл бұрын

Very interesting topic and person, I would love to see more surrounding this topic.

@JaeSwift 2 жыл бұрын

What a great guest, I could listen to him all day. Please have him back for more chats. If you're reading this, have you not thought of hosting an AMA (Ask Me Anything) on Reddit?

@MicahPotts 3 жыл бұрын

Enemy of the State was the FIRST movie I thought of and happy to see that was the case here too.

@devinedwards5847 2 жыл бұрын

This was a very nice rundown. I appreciate and feel much more informed about this subject through the speakers sharing of knowledge. Thank you very much.

@lxvideostuff7200 Жыл бұрын

sigh...🥸

@Rattenhoofd 3 жыл бұрын

1:26 his reaction to Battleship is absolutely glorious.

@erdemmemisyazici3950 3 жыл бұрын

Who's willing to bet this man has seen some, "am I the only one?" memes.

@ZesPak 2 жыл бұрын

I don't get it?

@Googledybunker 3 жыл бұрын

We don't tell people what we can do or how we do it. Make sure you keep in mind what's actually possible.

@BenjiQ575 3 жыл бұрын

lmao "we" like you speak for intelligence organizations.

@reid.7680 3 жыл бұрын

John Goodman's cousin works in surveillance

@user-nb5vy7ni6y 2 жыл бұрын

There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله

@nidalflame8894 2 жыл бұрын

O M G, I knew he looked familiar but I couldn't figure out who he looked like (yes I know he isn't actually his cousin)

@sailcat9 3 жыл бұрын

This was a great video! I'd like to see more of them featuring Mr. Masback. Well done!

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks…it was fun to do!

@just_some_bigfoot_hacking_you 3 жыл бұрын

11:25 Great logical explanation there. The more information you get, the more options you can create. The same principle in hacking, we call it "enumeration" wherein gathering intel and create the methodology as well as backups (Ex. Plan A, Plan B, Plan C, etc). And I like how he mentioned the importance of time management cuz that's your number 1 enemy. Time is your number 1 enemy. The actual enemy (person or group) you pursuing is number 2.

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for recognizing and expanding this point.

@JoeJ94611 2 жыл бұрын

I recall in WW2,the Germans tried painting bomb craters on runways to deceive the Allied air reconnaissance photo analyzers.

@24flyingcats84 2 жыл бұрын

And the British made inflatable fake tanks to fool the German's reconnaissance.

@ramnexus 3 жыл бұрын

Brilliant vid. Informative and entertaining! Thanks Mr Masback.

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

You’re v welcome!

@enzov9772 3 жыл бұрын

Notice how on the Body of Lies clip he didn’t elaborate on the scene so I’m guessing he’s seen what was depicted in the movie before.

@CAP198462 3 жыл бұрын

Or maybe he chose the scene to discuss a concept rather than a specific set of circumstances.

@4Core100 3 жыл бұрын

Nah, Body of Lies (great spy movie) trick would actually trick him but he didnt want to tell terrorists how to :D

@smidgethead8501 2 жыл бұрын

@@CAP198462 Yeah it's more about the concept since on that scene they can just use infrared to see through the smoke. That's why you don't want the enemy to know what you're capable of so that they won't be able to counter your surveilance.

@CAP198462 2 жыл бұрын

@@smidgethead8501 ah, I thought so, the intelligence community is very into S&M (sources and methods). Thanks for confirming.

@coalblack666 3 жыл бұрын

great episode! i could've listened to Mr Masback for 20 more minutes easy

@azeraeth 3 жыл бұрын

This was fascinating

@jonathanjay2594 3 жыл бұрын

You just blew my mind

@andrewlevine4398 3 жыл бұрын

In addition to thanks to Keith for his service, I would love to have Keith help me with my cable, DVR and when I cut the cord to streaming :)

@danrichman1 3 жыл бұрын

Great video. If there's more done on this, I'd love to see his assessment of the technology in "Fauda," a (fantastic) series that relies heavily on surveillance.

@TamadorStoneskin 3 жыл бұрын

Given the history of the directors of the show and the quality of their consultants, I would bet that it’s pretty spot on.

@rakasin 2 жыл бұрын

One of the best videos in the series. I could listen to this dude all day

@akiva2112 3 жыл бұрын

Body of lies was a great movie. Definitely underrated

@a_shuchu_601 3 жыл бұрын

No. That generic pile of crap is right where it should be

@alwaysdisputin9930 3 жыл бұрын

7.1 out of 10 on IMDB. released 2008. I can't remember what happened. Think I'll watch it again.

@robertschlesinger1342 2 жыл бұрын

Very interesting and worthwhile video.

@charleyedwards2121 3 жыл бұрын

love these "technique critique" episodes

@Go-ah-oold 2 жыл бұрын

I would like to see him again.

@katep973 3 жыл бұрын

I love how this series is either, its 100% wrong in the movies, or its surprisingly right. Like the pickpocket one was like 90% correct and I was totally expecting it all to be like "yeah... no!" haha

@LurkerPatrol5 2 жыл бұрын

Can't believe Bad Boys was more accurate than some of these other dedicated films

@TheDanaYiShow 3 жыл бұрын

Really interesting!

@jonathanjollimore7156 3 жыл бұрын

Is the resolution high enough now if I flip it the bird it can make out my middle finger. ONLY important question

@ATGG 3 жыл бұрын

ONLY Answer. YES.

@seigeengine 3 жыл бұрын

I'm definitely not an expert, but I'm reasonably confident in saying that, no, they're not going to be able to resolve details that fine.

@lejibus 2 жыл бұрын

Using google maps I can see a ~10 inch landscaping rock in my yard. I'm guessing governments can do better.

@mgsbigdog9079 3 жыл бұрын

12:42 does he know he's already been caricatured in an Archer episode?

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks - my kids will certainly use that on me, LOL.

@gjones9842 3 жыл бұрын

Great video. Most unassuming are usually the most dangerous

@PrincipledUncertainty 2 жыл бұрын

He is by far the best contributor to this series. What an interesting guy.

@dustin628 2 жыл бұрын

He's great please have him on again!

@mnfrench7603 3 жыл бұрын

1. Never, ever, ever, ever target off of a single source INT. Always confirm/deny WTF is going on with the other INT’s. 2. When you tell the boss they are wrong, you better be right. 3. At the end of the day, it’s always the commander who; commands. Not you.

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

Yes, yes, and yes! (I’ve served in both capacities, as an Army infantry officer and as an intelligence officer / professional.)

@hopebobhartley3812 2 жыл бұрын

Great job

@shayneweyker 2 жыл бұрын

Wish he'd have said something about some command center scenes in the Pine Gap series.

@kalix86 3 жыл бұрын

The guy at 16:00 looks just like Keith himself! xD

@jamesstevens2362 Жыл бұрын

Super interesting and really great details and info!! Thank you! One bit I found a little funny was the bit about imaging a house using LiDAR in Bad Boys II. I’m typing this on an iPad Pro 12 which has LiDAR built in and an app that can do exactly this. Back in 2003 when this movie came out, it would have been cutting edge tech. Now, any mug like me that owns an iPad Pro can do this.

@simptrix007 3 жыл бұрын

Fast and Furious? Contact? Id like to listen to this guy another 20 minutes!

@Stewbular 2 жыл бұрын

Love this expert videos

@palanthis 3 жыл бұрын

Just remember that every war room needs a big board.

@truttman 2 жыл бұрын

Hollywood hires consultants to get this stuff right, then pretty much ignores most of their advice in the name of creative license.

@Mr.Deleterious 2 жыл бұрын

Major Wilbur Doug Pearson was the pilot in the F-15 Eagle who conducted the ASAT test in 1985. Operation Cosmic Eagle.

@davidberan9612 2 жыл бұрын

This is sick, wow. And kudos for commenting on Bridge Too Far. There actually is a great documentary on Market Garden (the op) and the Victoria Cross by Jeremy Clarkson. I highly recommend it to anyone with 45 minutes to spare.

@user-nb5vy7ni6y 2 жыл бұрын

There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله

@onkelpappkov2666 3 жыл бұрын

Mike Stoklasa's twin brother who never liked fantasy.

@cinnabeard 2 жыл бұрын

I know my dad works for NASIC (National Air & Space Intelligence Center) in the area of satellite imagery. He's been there for decades and I still have no real idea what he does other than travelling all over the world doing field ops, lol.

@Reticuli 2 жыл бұрын

what a treat

@kyleo8909 3 жыл бұрын

They really got Austin Powers in this and I love it

@keithm.402 3 жыл бұрын

I was happy to see it as well…though I had to be careful to avoid commenting on the other ‘stuff’ related to that part of the movie, LOL.

@krishnansrinivasan830 3 жыл бұрын

Awesome :)

@paintballalcopone Жыл бұрын

I wish SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) was explained and talked about more. A 3D image can be captured without a camera. Mindblowing

@markhutchison5157 2 жыл бұрын

Come on Wired! The Homeland episode featured here is "Drone Queen"! How could you get that wrong? Awesome video nonetheless 😊

@wilson2455 2 жыл бұрын

' Eye in the Sky ' was a great movie in the way military personnel have to put up with politicians & their BS...

@mexicanchinese 2 жыл бұрын

This is so cool.

@gabrielmiller9517 2 жыл бұрын

Still waiting for them to hit me up for the "expert depressed procrastinator breaks down coach potato scenes" video

@intercat4907 2 жыл бұрын

I'd watch it. Until I started another screen and began worrying about all the stuff I was behind on and called somebody on the phone. But I'd leave your video on ...

@Redmanticore 2 жыл бұрын

"Nah, he couldn't talk and entertain like that with a girl immediately after being a year alone inside, unrealistic. " "look at how clean his apartment is, please. when you are alone you don't clean your apartment for yourself every week. what would be the point?"

@turbotj99 2 жыл бұрын

17:20 - the structure is not THAT big. Take a look at solar sails. The harder part is controlling the vehicle against solar pressure (torque) and I would guess, maintaining the parabolic (or spherical?) shape. It’s a really interesting idea. Also, at LEO (where it appears to be), it would by flying over every 90 minutes, have extreme atmospheric drag, and spend ~30minutes/orbit in earth’s shadow.

@PersonalityMalfunction 2 жыл бұрын

Loved this, but one small point about it being top priority to ensure a satellite can’t be ‘hacked’. I’m pretty sure the first iterations of unarmed Predator drones had to be grounded for a period of time because they realised the remote control systems were completely uncoded and unshielded!

@okhera1 2 жыл бұрын

Very Nice!

@saky83 2 жыл бұрын

@Wired... Love your content

@xusmico187 Жыл бұрын

nice, an insider gives real info. i know what USI could do until 1994. cannot even think what USI can do now

@MrKajithecat 3 жыл бұрын

Well I wasn't planning on watching this all the way but hey I did and I learned some interesting stuff too.

@CdA_Native 2 жыл бұрын

As a former intel guy, I could watch this stuff 24/7.

@anonymous34779 3 жыл бұрын

Live these. Please keep doing these.. maybe SAS troops?

@aSpyIntheHaus 2 жыл бұрын

I'm so gald the mentioned Patriot games.... I had youtubed patriot games satellite scene ready to comment if it wasn't mentioned. :) :)

@tubadoom 2 жыл бұрын

9:03 I am pretty sure I built that in Kerbal Space Program.

@Cartho8236 2 жыл бұрын

This dude was cool, hope to see him again. 👍

@MidnightSt 2 жыл бұрын

the ground stations thing: i think it's a case of convergent evolution - movies are designing their stations in a way that it can best convey what's going on for the audience. ...an actual ground station wants the same thing - be designed in a way that best conveys to whoever present in it what's going on. so the two completely separate lines of thinking and design have the same goal, so they will converge to the same design which is most efficient in fulfilling that goal.

@Ithirahad 2 жыл бұрын

17:13 that thing looks like one of those signals intelligence dishes, just with a membrane on it... They get BIG, and they deploy in one launch... Doesn't take years to put them there, either. :P 19:27 If they'd just put foil on that satellite it would be weirdly the roughly correct shape for a KH or something, though the solars and greebly bits are all wrong of course

@jmsmith1767 2 жыл бұрын

This guy is awesome

@Redmanticore 2 жыл бұрын

4:31 "perfect intelligence delivered one minute too late is absolutely worthless" depends. sometimes whole wars don't get waged, like Iraq, if you had the right intel.

@oldjohnny9341 Жыл бұрын

Very good👍

@andypotanin 2 жыл бұрын

3:00 "intelligence is at it's best when it's combining different multiple sources"

@jacoprinsloo199 3 жыл бұрын

Diamonds are forever was made in 1971. Satellites were futuristic vessels at that stage, so have some sympathy with the filmmakers.

@A0A4ful 3 жыл бұрын

Yeah! - and he made fun of the Bond movie budget! 16:21 - "Looks like their budget was a hundred bucks!" :)

@VisibleAssets 2 жыл бұрын

These Keith Masback videos are very impressive: Maybe movies are overstated and dramatized but these movies had a real big effect on people in charge - e.g. Reagan - star wars was created as a result of him seeing "fake movie drama" at camp David.

@cryptout 2 жыл бұрын

I could watch this all day

@rajeevjan22 2 жыл бұрын

Spy satellite expert with a lapel pin that says "SPY" :D

@PWN_Nation 2 жыл бұрын

Educate and advocate - the 2 biggest responsibilities of any decent collection manager.

@traviskeller3641 2 жыл бұрын

It probably all goes back on those room setups to a NASA control room or possibly a control center used for nuclear testing prior to NASA

@GiuseppeCasey 2 жыл бұрын

Bad Boys II: how's the LIDAR finding his secret tunnel...?

@ottopotomas 2 жыл бұрын

'it has nothing to do with communications with other galaxies' this is exactly what someone who sits on the landsat advisory group would say

@BeaglefreilaufKalkar 2 жыл бұрын

landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov Here you can see all the images Landsat makes. Take a look, maybe there is a picture of you with a aluminium foil hat.

@ottopotomas 2 жыл бұрын

@@BeaglefreilaufKalkar it was quite obviously a joke

@BeaglefreilaufKalkar 2 жыл бұрын

@@ottopotomas You parodied aluminium hat wearers too perfectly

@ottopotomas 2 жыл бұрын

@@BeaglefreilaufKalkar 😂😂

@Keyur-Suthar 3 жыл бұрын

Great episode

@PAZacademy 3 жыл бұрын

Nice Cimena Intro ;D !

@abelingaw5070 3 жыл бұрын

I was hoping to see that "satellite drop bomb/missile" scene in Steel Rain and see his reaction if that was possible.

@gerardhughes 3 жыл бұрын

He mostly never says what is actually possible. He's very good at seeming specific about things while leaving the actual capabilities completely unstated.