We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Technology

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What is the National Security Agency?

Tricia Christensen
By
Updated: May 17, 2024
Views: 17,018
References
Share

The National Security Agency (NSA) is a part of the United States federal government that works specifically to protect information sent from the US, and to decode information that may be sent out by other countries. Usually, such information is encrypted, and the agency has many employees who specialize in decoding material, also called cryptanalysis. The agency has become much better known in the mid 2000s for its expanded role in domestic surveillance of things like telephone calls, what some refer to as “domestic spying.” This has led to serious debate on the degree to which the NSA should be empowered to evaluate the communications of private citizens who may have suspected but unproven associations with terrorist organizations.

Unlike other security agencies of the US, the NSA is limited by charter to the analysis of communications in other countries. Since the attacks on 11 September 2001, more power has been given to the agency to carry out domestic surveillance, however. This was not the initial intent of the agency.

The organization was formed in 1952. Before this, various agencies of the military used cryptanalysis to evaluate signals and communications of other countries, but many experts felt that an overhead organization was needed so that the data collected could be better coordinated. A review of the collection and organization efforts of several military intelligence units, called the Brownell Committee Report, recommended such an organization in 1951, resulting in the creation of the National Security Agency the following year.

The agency has several functions. It analyzes communications via phone, radio, television, and Internet; collects information and organizes it; and reports to and shares information with the Department of Defense, which is its overhead agency. A branch of the NSA called the Signals Intelligence Directorate (SID) carries out this work. It plays a vital role in the US intelligence community.

The other aspect of the NSA that has become increasingly important in the computer age is researching and studying how information in the US, especially classified information, is held and disseminated. One branch, the National Computer Security Center, also sometimes works with private companies to help them develop the best information systems to protect the privacy of their customers and communications. All work dedicated to the protection of information in the US is conducted under the second main branch of the National Security Agency, called the Information Assurance Directorate (IAD).

Not all work conducted by the NSA is known about by the public because the agency, as part of military operations, is able to maintain high levels of secrecy. Even the specific number of employees and the extent of the operation are kept closely guarded. The main building that houses much of the operations of the agency is located in Maryland, and the organization is always overseen by a high ranking officer of the military, usually a lieutenant general or vice admiral. The name of the person who heads the National Security Agency is not private information, and there have been many directors, made by presidential appointment. Deputy directors tend to be civilians with significant experience in the field of information collection and protection.

Share
WiseGeek is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.
Link to Sources
Tricia Christensen
By Tricia Christensen
With a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and years of experience as a WiseGeek contributor, Tricia Christensen is based in Northern California and brings a wealth of knowledge and passion to her writing. Her wide-ranging interests include reading, writing, medicine, art, film, history, politics, ethics, and religion, all of which she incorporates into her informative articles. Tricia is currently working on her first novel.

Editors' Picks

Discussion Comments
By irontoenail — On Dec 16, 2012

@pastanaga - Yeah, one of the interesting things I discovered about the codes used in, I think, World War One was that they realized the best ones were actual, obscure languages, without any relation to English, rather than trying to muddle up English in a code. The problem was that they had no way to truly generate random numbers back then, it all depended on people and people will almost always eventually start favoring particular numbers or letters.

Anyway, they would use Native American speakers to send and receive coded messages because the language was so different in both sentence structure and form to anything else that there was no way for the bad guys to easily translate it. Interesting, huh? I guess that's one way to get a National Security Agency career.

By pastanaga — On Dec 15, 2012

@anon76008 - I haven't read those, but the best one I've read dealing with code breaking and the development of that kind of agency was Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson. If you haven't read it, you're missing something amazing.

It has a lot of detail about the analysis of mathematical codes though, so it might be heavy going for someone just looking for the history of the NSA.

By anon76008 — On Apr 08, 2010

The best books about this extremely secret agency are the two books written by James Bamford. "The Puzzle Factory" and "The Crystal Palace."

Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen
With a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and years of experience as a WiseGeek contributor, Tricia...
Learn more
Share
https://www.wisegeek.net/what-is-the-national-security-agency.htm
Copy this link
WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.