Svitlana Medunytsia
Member of the Board of the All-Ukrainian Association of Polygraph Examiners

The more than 12-year-long Russian-Ukrainian war involves not only the use of military force but also the active operations of the enemy’s intelligence and sabotage groups. The adversary’s special services seek to gain access to locations of military units, equipment and air defense systems, as well as to information held by defense enterprises, state authorities, and other critically important facilities. Under such conditions, the system of personnel security becomes of particular importance.

One of the key instruments for ensuring personnel security is polygraph examinations, which make it possible to detect cooperation with the enemy, prevent agent infiltration, and increase the level of trust in personnel who have access to strategically important information. The use of polygraph testing in combination with modern personnel security methods, analytical screening, and operational activities of special services significantly strengthens the country’s defense capability [1].

The war against the aggressor is fought not only on the battlefield. In order to gain access to critically important information and to induce unlawful actions, enemy intelligence services constantly employ various recruitment methods targeting citizens: blackmail, financial incentives, and ideological influence.

Among the most common recruitment mechanisms identified during polygraph examinations are the following:

– manipulation through financial dependency and debts;
– blackmail involving relatives residing in temporarily occupied territories;
– exploitation of adherence to Soviet ideology and Russian chauvinism;
– compromising personal information;
– “friendly” approaches through communication in online games, social networks, and messaging applications.

Even a single employee cooperating with the enemy can pose a significant security threat to an enterprise or institution. This concerns not only information leaks but also sabotage, covert hostile propaganda, and facilitation of subversive activities. For this reason, pre-employment polygraph screening has become one of the key elements of national security.

Use of Polygraph Testing to Identify Collaborators and Agents of Influence
In the defense sector, polygraph examinations are used to address the following critically important tasks:

Screening of job candidates
Such examinations focus on identifying:
– cooperation with foreign intelligence services;
– concealed contacts with representatives of the aggressor state;
– participation in activities directed against national security (including involvement in the so-called “referendums” in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the self-proclaimed “DPR/LPR”);
– involvement in illegal armed formations;
– obtaining a Russian Federation passport based on ideological beliefs;
– support for Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine;
– existence of compromising circumstances that may serve as grounds for blackmail.

Periodic monitoring of current personnel
Screening of active employees is an important tool for monitoring personnel who have access to state secrets, weapons, technologies, or other strategic information.

Such examinations focus on identifying:
– establishment of contacts with representatives of foreign intelligence services;
– disclosure or deliberate transfer of information to third parties;
– execution of tasks assigned by external actors aimed at undermining the security of critical infrastructure facilities;
– signs of recruitment or preparation for cooperation with the enemy;
– support for Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine;
– emergence of compromising circumstances that may be used for blackmail.

Internal investigations

In cases of confidential information leaks, sabotage, theft, corruption, etc., polygraph examinations are used as an auxiliary tool within internal reviews and investigations.

The use of polygraph testing allows:

– clarification of the circumstances of events;
– determination of the respondent’s level of awareness regarding the incident;
– narrowing down the circle of potentially involved individuals;
– focusing the investigation on more promising leads;
– establishing the location of concealed or illegally distributed assets.

Importantly, in many cases, the results of polygraph examinations help to quickly obtain additional information that can prevent more serious consequences and contribute to building an evidentiary base.

Ukrainian polygraph science has undergone significant development precisely during the Russian-Ukrainian war that has been ongoing since 2014. Today, our experience is unique on a global scale, and the All-Ukrainian Association of Polygraph Examiners (UAPE), along with the Concealed Information Detection Methodology (CIDM), are at the forefront of these processes. I am proud to belong to a community of worthy patriotic professionals.

References
Morozov O. M. Terrorism. Systemic War. State Security. Heroism and Psychophysiology. Kyiv, 2019. 64 p.