An alleged operative fails spy 101.

Russia’s Federal Security Service have announced that they caught a CIA officer trying to flip a Russian agent.

The agency made note of the “special technical equipment” the man was carrying when they picked him up. His spy stash included a couple of wigs, some sunglasses, and a stack of euros.

The man, identified as US diplomat Ryan Christopher Fogle, was also carrying a letter packed with all sorts of super-secret communication tips and big pay-off promises for the future double agent.

Among Fogle’s possessions was a letter with instructions for setting up a Gmail account without personal information, and a list of mobile devices that one should avoid using if registered to their real identity.

When contacted, Michael McFaul, US Ambassador to Russia, had no comment on the activities of his subordinate.

Of course, real spies do still exist, and in some cases it’s a family business.

A Russian spy ring that was taken down by the US federal government in 2010 apparently had plans to recruit their own children within the ring as secret agents for “mother Russia.” The ring was comprised of at least ten Russians who were in the United States illegally under assumed identities.