Øistein Strømnæs (28 June 1914 – 21 July 1980) was the head of XU, the main Norwegian intelligence organization from 1943 to 1945.
He studied biology at the University of Oslo and was working on a master's degree in botany when Norway was attacked in 1940.
To support his studies he also had a part-time job as a police constable, this proved very valuable when he got involved in intelligence.
Strømnæs focused on security to the point Defense Command in London, did not know the real identity of the chairman of the intelligence service.
[2] After the liberation of Norway Strømnæs received a scholarship and earned his doctor's degree at the University of California, Berkeley.