Fig.: used to describe an exciting operation, which usually involves secrecy, mistery, espionage and things like that

I've always loved old cloak-and-dagger movies: Zorro is my favorite hero

Mi sono sempre piaciuti i film di cappa e spada: Zorro è il mio personaggio favorito

Drug enforcement agencies beefed up their cloak-and-dagger operations to spot would-be drug traffickers in airports. They have sent out undercover agents dressed in anything from blazing Bermuda shorts to sleazy T-shirts to hang around airports

I reparti antidroga della polizia hanno rinforzato le operazioni da cappa e spada per scoprire i potenziali trafficanti di droga negli aeroporti: hanno mandato a gironzolare negli aeroporti agenti in borghese vestiti con squillanti Bermuda o anonime magliette

The term dates from 17th-century Spain with the popular plays of Lope de Vega and Pedro Calderone, filled with duels, intrigue and betrayal. They were referred to as "comedias de capa y spada", which was loosely translated as "cloak-and-dagger" plays