> The question is, why did they need an informal communication channel? What made this easy, and why was using a correct channel considered too difficult? My u

> The question is, why did they need an informal communication channel? What made this easy, and why was using a correct channel considered too difficult? My understanding is that this channel was used for "un-vetted" sources, which I take to mean sources the CIA didn't yet fully trust with their main communications systems. I'm sure they're constantly approached by double-agents looking for information about how they communicate with their sources, so they need more "throwaway" systems for people who potentially could be double agents to use. The original reporting is better than this Register summary: https://www.yahoo.com/news/cias-communications-suffered-catastrophic-compromise-started-iran-090018710.html https://www.yahoo.com/news/cias-communications-suffered-cata.... I think Ars Technica had a better summary: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/11/how-did-iran-find-cia-spies-they-googled-it/ https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/11/how-did-iran-fin....