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TICOM (Target Intelligence Committee) was a project formed immediately after the end of World War II by the United States to find and seize German intelligence assets, particularly cryptographic ones. The project was stimulated chiefly by the US military cryptography organizations, but had support from the highest levels.
Several teams were sent into the field immediately behind the fighting front. Captured German cryptographic personnel revealed that, amongst the cryptographers anyway, the Enigma was clearly recognized as breakable. They had simply believed, it seems, that no one would go to the immense trouble required for the only attacks they could see.
A similar effort was made to find and seize German atomic weapon research personnel and assets (the ALSOS project in which Moe Berg participated; it was led (in part) by Samuel Goudsmit) and to find and seize German rocketry personnel and assets.
Further Reading
- Body of Secrets, by James Bamford (includes material on the TICOM take)
- Heisenberg's War, by Thomas Powers (has an ALSOS overview)
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