National Security Agency

Thesaurus

Noun

National Security Agency - the United States cryptologic organization that coordinates and directs highly specialized activities to protect United States information systems and to produce foreign intelligence informationNSADefense Department, Department of Defense, DoD, United States Department of Defense, Defense - the federal department responsible for safeguarding national security of the United States; created in 1947United States intelligence agency - an intelligence service in the United StatesIC, Intelligence Community, National Intelligence Community, United States Intelligence Community - a group of government agencies and organizations that carry out intelligence activities for the United States government; headed by the Director of Central Intelligence

National Security Agency

(NSA), an independent agency within the U.S. Dept. of Defense. Founded by presidential order in 1952, its primary functions are to collect and analyze communications intelligence information and data and to protect the security of U.S. national security systems and information. The NSA also engages in antiterrorist computer network operations. The agency includes the Central Security Service, established in 1972 to promote a full partnership between the NSA and the cryptological elements of the armed forces, and the National Cryptologic School. As a result of 9/119/11,
the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, in the United States, and the associated events and impact of those attacks.

The attacks, which were carried out by agents of Al Qaeda (a militant Islamic terrorist group led by Osama bin Laden) used three hijacked commercial
..... Click the link for more information. , the agency significantly expanded its collection and analysis of communications in an effort to thwart terrorist organizations and attacks; some of the NSA's resulting programs, such as the mass collection of the domestic telecommunications records (later banned by Congress), were controversial. In 2009 the U.S. Cyber Command was established under the Strategic Command (see under Strategic Air CommandStrategic Air Command
(SAC), former command of the U.S. air force (see Air Force, United States Department of the) charged with organizing, training, equipping, administering, and preparing strategic air forces for combat; it was headquartered at Offutt Air Force Base.
..... Click the link for more information. ) with the head of the NSA as its head. Headquartered in Fort Meade, Md., the NSA is the largest employer of mathematicians in the country. Its director must be a military officer. For many years the NSA was the most hidden of U.S. intelligence agencies; its large budget was secret and its existence barely acknowledged. In addition to its Fort Meade headquarters, the NSA has facilities in a number of other states and countries.

Bibliography

See J. Bamford, The Puzzle Palace (1982) and Body of Secrets (2001).

National Security Agency

National Security Agency