Military espionage is the act of collecting secret military information from enemy countries or groups. It is a serious offense that is punishable by law in most countries. Synonyms for military espionage include spying, intelligence gathering, covert operations, surveillance, reconnaissance, and subterfuge. Spying is perhaps the most common synonym and can refer to both military and non-military intelligence gathering. Intelligence gathering, on the other hand, is a term used to describe gathering information on military or political targets. Covert operations refer to activities that are carried out secretly by a government or military agency. Lastly, surveillance, reconnaissance, and subterfuge refer to specific methods of information gathering.