Counter-Surveillance: Civilian Guide
How you (without CIA or military resources) can use operative-grade awareness and tradecraft to detect and deter unwanted surveillance.
Surveillance isn’t just for professionals tracking targets across hostile borders. These days, regular people deal with it more than they realize: nosy neighbors peeking out from behind blinds, obsessive exes keeping tabs, private investigators hired by people from your past, or corporate types trying to dig up leverage.
You’re probably not being tailed by foreign intel, but targeted surveillance isn’t always secret agents in the shadows. Sometimes it’s personal. Sometimes it’s about control. And if someone is watching you (physically or digitally) it’s on you to spot it and break the pattern. That’s where basic counter-surveillance comes in. This is essential personal security:
You don’t need agency training, a black passport, or a bug detector up your sleeve to keep yourself safe. All you need is awareness, consistency, and the willingness to see the world like an operative does: nothing is random, patterns matter, and the more predictable you are, the more vulnerable you become. Tradecraft is always staying at least one step ahead, even in your own neighborhood.
[INTEL : Surveillance Detection Route (SDR]
[OPTICS : New York City]