Spy the Lie: Former CIA Officers Teach You How to Detect Deception

Houston, Floyd, and Carnicero introduce the concept of “unintended messages” or “truth in the lie” (105)—instances where deceptive individuals inadvertently reveal truthful information while attempting to deceive. The authors demonstrate this phenomenon through multiple case studies that illustrate how people can betray themselves through their own words, even when they believe they are successfully lying.

The first case involves Computer Associates CEO Sanjay Kumar, who appeared on CNBC in 2001 to deny accounting fraud allegations. His statements inadvertently confirmed the accusations: He mentioned a “new way of counting revenue” (admitting to questionable practices), called his response “perfectly plausible” (suggesting he was more concerned with being believed than telling the truth), and insisted the company did nothing “fundamentally” wrong (suggesting that something was indeed wrong) (106). Kumar was later sentenced to 12 years for $2.2 billion in accounting fraud.

The second case examines Herman Cain’s 2011 CNN interview during his presidential campaign. He claimed that sexual harassment charges against him were “baseless” because accusers “couldn’t prove it” (107); he was focused on the fact that his accusers wouldn’t be believed, rather than stating that he didn’t commit the sexual harassment in the first place. His evasive response about not wanting to be “pinned down on some things” essentially conveyed that he couldn’t call his accuser a liar (110).