Warrenton Training Center ( WTC ) is a classified United States government communication complex located in the state of Virginia . Established in 1951, it comprises four discrete stations located in Fauquier and Culpeper counties.
125-444: WTC has served multiple roles, most notably as a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) signals intelligence facility, satellite relay , numbers station , data center , and communications laboratory. The center also houses at least one underground "relocation" bunker that serves U.S. continuity of government purposes, and is a communications and signals intelligence training school for various federal departments and agencies, including
250-432: A 2006 opinion, Judge Richard Posner wrote that FISA "retains value as a framework for monitoring the communications of known terrorists, but it is hopeless as a framework for detecting terrorists. [FISA] requires that surveillance be conducted pursuant to warrants based on probable cause to believe that the target of surveillance is a terrorist, when the desperate need is to find out who is a terrorist." The ACLU considers
375-583: A CIA paid mob led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini would spark what a U.S. embassy officer called "an almost spontaneous revolution" but Mosaddegh was protected by his new inner military circle, and the CIA had been unable to gain influence within the Iranian military. Their chosen man, former General Fazlollah Zahedi, had no troops to call on. After the failure of the first coup, Roosevelt paid demonstrators to pose as communists and deface public symbols associated with
500-642: A FISA order. The court affirmed the denial of the motion. There, the court flatly rejected claims that FISA violated Due process clause of the Fifth Amendment , Equal protection , Separation of powers , nor the Right to counsel provided by the Sixth Amendment . However, in a third case, the special review court for FISA, the equivalent of a Circuit Court of Appeals, opined differently. In In re Sealed Case , 310 F.3d 717, 742 (FISA Ct. Rev. 2002),
625-466: A Presidential military order issued by President Roosevelt on June 13, 1942. The idea for a centralized intelligence organization was first proposed by General William J. Donovan, who envisioned an intelligence service that could operate globally to counter communist threats and provide crucial intelligence directly to the President. Donovan proposed the idea to President Roosevelt in 1944, suggesting
750-642: A Russian translator and Soviet spy. However, the CIA was successful in influencing the 1948 Italian election in favor of the Christian Democrats . The $ 200 million Exchange Stabilization Fund (equivalent to $ 2.5 billion in 2023), earmarked for the reconstruction of Europe, was used to pay wealthy Americans of Italian heritage. Cash was then distributed to Catholic Action , the Vatican's political arm, and directly to Italian politicians. This tactic of using its large fund to purchase elections
875-508: A Soviet case officer told a CIA contact that the mole was stationed at Warrenton Training Center. Ames was stationed in Rome at the time. U.S. mole hunters investigated 90 employees at WTC for almost a year and came up with ten suspects, although the lead investigator noted that "there are so many problem personalities that no one stands out." WTC has continued its role as a communications training facility for various government agencies, including
1000-574: A foreign government, any faction of a foreign nation not substantially composed of U.S. persons , and any entity directed or controlled by a foreign government. The definition also includes groups engaged in international terrorism and foreign political organizations. The sections of FISA authorizing electronic surveillance and physical searches without a court order specifically exclude their application to groups engaged in international terrorism. A "U.S. person" includes citizens, lawfully admitted permanent resident aliens, and corporations incorporated in
1125-602: A form of that program in Section 702. The subchapters of FISA provide for: Generally, the statute permits electronic surveillance in two different scenarios. The President may authorize, through the Attorney General , electronic surveillance without a court order for the period of one year, provided that it is only to acquire foreign intelligence information, that it is solely directed at communications or property controlled exclusively by foreign powers, that there
1250-624: A government application to, and order issuing from, the FISA Court. The Act provides procedures for the government to "certify" the legality of an acquisition program, for the government to issue directives to providers to provide data or assistance under a particular program, and for the government and recipient of a directive to seek from the FISA Court, respectively, an order to compel provider compliance or relief from an unlawful directive. Providers receive costs and full immunity from civil suits for compliance with any directives issued pursuant to
1375-721: A member of the National Front , was elected Iranian prime-minister. As prime minister, he nationalized the Anglo-Persian Oil Company which his predecessor had supported. The nationalization of the British-funded Iranian oil industry, including the largest oil refinery in the world, was disastrous for Mosaddegh. A British naval embargo closed the British oil facilities, which Iran had no skilled workers to operate. In 1952, Mosaddegh resisted
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#17327876108341500-461: A number of subversive operations in the country, all of which failed due to the presence of double agents. Millions of dollars were spent in these efforts. These included a team of young CIA officers airdropped into China who were ambushed, and CIA funds being used to set up a global heroin empire in Burma's Golden Triangle following a betrayal by another double agent. In 1951, Mohammad Mosaddegh ,
1625-523: A variety of activities such as the CIA's drone fleet and anti- Iranian nuclear program activities, accounts for $ 2.6 billion. There were numerous previous attempts to obtain general information about the budget. As a result, reports revealed that CIA's annual budget in Fiscal Year 1963 was $ 550 million (inflation-adjusted US$ 5.5 billion in 2024), and the overall intelligence budget in FY 1997
1750-536: Is a United States federal law that establishes procedures for the surveillance and collection of foreign intelligence on domestic soil. FISA was enacted in response to revelations of widespread privacy violations by the federal government under president Richard Nixon . It requires federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies to obtain authorization for gathering "foreign intelligence information" between "foreign powers" and "agents of foreign powers" suspected of espionage or terrorism . The law established
1875-606: Is a node on a fiber-optic cable that runs from Stations C and D, and which also connects WTC with other facilities in the Washington, D.C. area, such as the Tysons Corner Communications Tower (also known as Site E). Station B also houses the Brushwood conference facility, constructed in the 1990s. According to Edward Snowden , who trained at WTC during his time with
2000-530: Is an administrative, training and residential compound. Numerous structures on site include both residential and office buildings. Station A is used as a training facility by multiple agencies, including the Department of State and the CIA's Directorate of Intelligence and Directorate of Support . Station B ( 38°44′01″N 77°49′47″W / 38.7335°N 77.8297°W / 38.7335; -77.8297 ), also near Warrenton, houses
2125-541: Is found under the subchapter pertaining to physical searches. In both cases, the statute creates an affirmative defense for law enforcement personnel acting within their official duties and pursuant to a valid court order. Presumably, such a defense is not available to those operating exclusively under presidential authorization. In 1967, the Supreme Court of the United States held that the requirements of
2250-666: Is headquartered in the George Bush Center for Intelligence in Langley, Virginia . As a principal member of the United States Intelligence Community (IC), the CIA reports to the director of national intelligence and is primarily focused on providing intelligence for the president and Cabinet . The agency's founding followed the dissolution of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) at
2375-459: Is mainly focused on intelligence gathering overseas, with only limited domestic intelligence collection . The CIA serves as the national manager for HUMINT, coordinating activities across the IC. It also carries out covert action at the behest of the president . The CIA exerts foreign political influence through its paramilitary operations units, including its Special Activities Center . The CIA
2500-828: Is necessary in order to understand the intelligence or believes that the person was committing a crime. The Attorney General is required to make a certification of these conditions under seal to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court , and report on their compliance to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence . Since 50 U.S.C. § 1802 (a)(1)(A) of this Act specifically limits warrantless surveillance to foreign powers as defined by 50 U.S.C. §1801(a) (1),(2),(3) and omits
2625-434: Is no substantial likelihood that it will acquire the contents of any communication to which a United States person is a party, and that it be conducted only in accordance with defined minimization procedures. The code defines "foreign intelligence information" to mean information necessary to protect the United States against actual or potential grave attack, sabotage or international terrorism . "Foreign powers" means
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#17327876108342750-431: Is requested is used or will be used by that foreign power or its agent. In addition, the court must find that the proposed surveillance meet certain "minimization requirements" for information pertaining to U.S. persons. If the foreign power's suspected agent communicates with Americans, the communications of U.S. citizens are incidentally intercepted even though they are not the targets of the surveillance. Depending on
2875-778: Is responsible for all matters pertaining to congressional interaction and oversight of US intelligence activities. It claims that it aims to: The CIA established its first training facility, the Office of Training and Education, in 1950. Following the end of the Cold War , the CIA's training budget was slashed, which had a negative effect on employee retention . In response, Director of Central Intelligence George Tenet established CIA University in 2002. CIA University holds between 200 and 300 courses each year, training both new hires and experienced intelligence officers, as well as CIA support staff. The facility works in partnership with
3000-402: Is responsible for collecting foreign intelligence (mainly from clandestine HUMINT sources), and for covert action. The name reflects its role as the coordinator of human intelligence activities between other elements of the wider U.S. intelligence community with their HUMINT operations. This directorate was created in an attempt to end years of rivalry over influence, philosophy, and budget between
3125-467: Is subject to both criminal penalties and civil liabilities. Under 50 U.S.C. § 1811, the President may also authorize warrantless surveillance at the beginning of a war. Specifically, he may authorize such surveillance "for a period not to exceed fifteen calendar days following a declaration of war by the Congress". Alternatively, the government may seek a court order permitting the surveillance using
3250-490: The Brookings Institution listed an unspecified WTC "relocation bunker" as a facility with an active nuclear weapons, weapons-related or naval nuclear propulsion mission. The CIA has used Warrenton Training Center as a communications facility since the 1950s. Short-wave radio enthusiasts have identified WTC antennas broadcasting suspected intelligence transmissions. In 1989, a WTC spokesperson acknowledged that
3375-656: The Bush administration and carried out by the National Security Agency since 2002; a subsequent Bloomberg article suggested this may have already begun by June 2000. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales later confirmed the existence of the program, which was codenamed Stellar Wind . Without obtaining a FISA warrant, the NSA monitored phone calls , Internet activities, text messages, and other forms of communication involving any party it believed to be outside
3500-491: The Church Committee that foreign intelligence surveillance legislation should include provisions for programmatically authorizing surveillance programs because of the particular needs of foreign intelligence where "virtually continuous surveillance, which by its nature does not have specifically predetermined targets" may be required. In these situations, "the efficiency of a warrant requirement would be minimal." In
3625-559: The Department of Justice . There is no provision for a release of information regarding such hearings, or for the record of information actually collected. The USA Freedom Act (Section 402), however, requires the government to declassify and publicly release "to the greatest extent practicable" each order, decision and opinion of the court if it contains a "significant construction or interpretation of law." FISC meets in secret, and approves or denies requests for search warrants . Only
3750-475: The Departments of State and War . The division lasted only a few months. The first public mention of the "Central Intelligence Agency" appeared on a command-restructuring proposal presented by Jim Forrestal and Arthur Radford to the U.S. Senate Military Affairs Committee at the end of 1945. Army Intelligence agent Colonel Sidney Mashbir and Commander Ellis Zacharias worked together for four months at
3875-711: The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Security Agency ) against suspected foreign intelligence agents inside the U.S. The court is located within the E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse in Washington, D.C. The court is staffed by eleven judges appointed by the Chief Justice of the United States to serve seven-year terms. Proceedings before the FISA court are ex parte and non-adversarial. The court hears evidence presented solely by
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4000-470: The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) to oversee requests for surveillance warrants. Although FISA was initially limited to government use of electronic surveillance, subsequent amendments have broadened the law to regulate other intelligence-gathering methods, including physical searches, pen register and trap and trace (PR/TT) devices, and compelling the production of certain types of business records. FISA has been repeatedly amended since
4125-592: The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Improvement and Enhancement Act of 2006 ( S. 3001 ) asserting FISA as the exclusive means to conduct foreign intelligence surveillance. All three competing bills were the subject of Judiciary Committee hearings throughout the summer. On September 13, 2006, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to approve all three mutually exclusive bills, thus, leaving it to
4250-595: The Fourth Amendment applied equally to electronic surveillance and to physical searches. Katz v. United States , 389 U.S. 347 (1967). The Court did not address whether such requirements apply to issues of national security . Shortly after, in 1972, the Court took up the issue again in United States v. United States District Court, Plamondon , 407 U.S. 297 (1972), where the court held that court approval
4375-682: The National Intelligence University , and includes the Sherman Kent School for Intelligence Analysis , the Directorate of Analysis' component of the university. For later stage training of student operations officers, there is at least one classified training area at Camp Peary , near Williamsburg, Virginia . Students are selected, and their progress evaluated, in ways derived from the OSS, published as
4500-540: The National Security Council issued Directive 10/2 calling for covert action against the Soviet Union , and granting the authority to carry out covert operations against "hostile foreign states or groups" that could, if needed, be denied by the U.S. government. To this end, the Office of Policy Coordination (OPC) was created inside the new CIA. The OPC was unique; Frank Wisner , the head of
4625-1003: The Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) in India , the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in Pakistan , the General Intelligence Service in Egypt , Mossad in Israel , and the National Intelligence Service (NIS) in South Korea . The CIA was instrumental in the establishment of intelligence services in several U.S. allied countries, including Germany's BND and Greece's EYP (then known as KYP). The closest links of
4750-641: The September 11 attacks , with several added provisions garnering political and public controversy due to privacy concerns. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) was introduced on May 18, 1977, by Senator Ted Kennedy and was signed into law by President Carter on 25 October 1978. The bill was cosponsored by nine Senators: Birch Bayh , James O. Eastland , Jake Garn , Walter Huddleston , Daniel Inouye , Charles Mathias , John L. McClellan , Gaylord Nelson , and Strom Thurmond . The FISA resulted from extensive investigations by Senate Committees into
4875-599: The Soviet atomic bomb project . In particular, the agency failed to predict the Chinese entry into the Korean War with 300,000 troops. The famous double agent Kim Philby was the British liaison to American Central Intelligence. Through him, the CIA coordinated hundreds of airdrops inside the iron curtain, all compromised by Philby. Arlington Hall , the nerve center of CIA cryptanalysis, was compromised by Bill Weisband ,
5000-431: The U.S. military , including the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command , by providing it with information it gathers, receiving information from military intelligence organizations, and cooperating with field activities. The associate deputy director of the CIA is in charge of the day-to-day operations of the agency. Each branch of the agency has its own director. The Office of Military Affairs (OMA), subordinate to
5125-797: The United States Department of Defense (DOD) and the CIA. In spite of this, the Department of Defense announced in 2012 its intention to organize its own global clandestine intelligence service, the Defense Clandestine Service (DCS), under the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). Contrary to some public and media misunderstanding, DCS is not a "new" intelligence agency but rather a consolidation, expansion and realignment of existing Defense HUMINT activities, which have been carried out by DIA for decades under various names, most recently as
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5250-522: The color of law or through disclosing information known to have been obtained through unauthorized surveillance. The penalties for either act are fines up to US$ 10,000, up to five years in jail, or both. In addition, the statute creates a cause of action for private individuals whose communications were unlawfully monitored. The statute permits actual damages of not less than $ 1,000 or $ 100 per day. In addition, that statute authorizes punitive damages and an award of attorney's fees . Similar liability
5375-547: The community of the same name , is the primary high frequency receiver facility for the CIA Office of Communications, and also hosts a variety of satellite communications ground station facilities. Station D is also a core regional relay facility for the Department of State's Diplomatic Telecommunications Service , a system of secure integrated networks that supports U.S. government departments and agencies operating from diplomatic missions and consulate facilities outside
5500-590: The defendants were members of the Irish Republican Army . They were convicted for various violations regarding the shipment of explosives and firearms . The court held that there were compelling considerations of national security in the distinction between the treatment of U.S. citizens and non-resident aliens. In the United States v. Nicholson , 955 F. Supp. 588 (E.D. Va. 1997), the defendant moved to suppress all evidence gathered under
5625-463: The president with Senate confirmation and reports directly to the director of national intelligence (DNI); in practice, the CIA director interfaces with the director of national intelligence (DNI), Congress , and the White House , while the deputy director (DD/CIA) is the internal executive of the CIA and the chief operating officer (COO/CIA), known as executive director until 2017, leads
5750-667: The 2020 case, United States v. Moalin , the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the federal government violated FISA, and possibly the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, when it collected the telephony metadata of millions of Americans. Both the subchapters covering physical searches and electronic surveillance provide for criminal and civil liability for violations of FISA. Criminal sanctions follows violations of electronic surveillance by intentionally engaging in electronic surveillance under
5875-526: The Agency , metonymously as Langley and historically as the Company , is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with gathering, processing, and analyzing national security information from around the world, primarily through the use of human intelligence (HUMINT) and conducting covert action through its Directorate of Operations . The agency
6000-524: The Agency's mission activities. It is the Agency's newest directorate. The Langley, Virginia -based office's mission is to streamline and integrate digital and cybersecurity capabilities into the CIA's espionage, counterintelligence, all-source analysis, open-source intelligence collection, and covert action operations. It provides operations personnel with tools and techniques to use in cyber operations. It works with information technology infrastructure and practices cyber tradecraft . This means retrofitting
6125-823: The Air Force. A DS&T organization analyzed imagery intelligence collected by the U-2 and reconnaissance satellites called the National Photointerpretation Center (NPIC), which had analysts from both the CIA and the military services. Subsequently, NPIC was transferred to the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). The Directorate of Support has organizational and administrative functions to significant units including: The Directorate of Digital Innovation (DDI) focuses on accelerating innovation across
6250-664: The Army as the executive agent for administration on behalf of the National Communications System (NCS). Under the NCS (dissolved and functions transferred to the United States Department of Homeland Security in 2012), the center is mandated to provide communication for the federal government under any circumstances, including a nuclear attack. Its underground bunkers house communications infrastructure that provides service for most major federal departments. In 2002,
6375-432: The CIA for cyberwarfare . DDI officers help accelerate the integration of innovative methods and tools to enhance the CIA's cyber and digital capabilities on a global scale and ultimately help safeguard the United States. They also apply technical expertise to exploit clandestine and publicly available information (also known as open-source data ) using specialized methodologies and digital tools to plan, initiate and support
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#17327876108346500-623: The CIA is organized under the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). Despite having had some of its powers transferred to the DNI, the CIA has grown in size following the September 11 attacks . In 2013, The Washington Post reported that in the fiscal year 2010, the CIA had the largest budget of all intelligence community agencies, exceeding prior estimates. The CIA's role has expanded since its creation, now including covert paramilitary operations. One of its largest divisions,
6625-485: The CIA was created, its purpose was to create a clearinghouse for foreign policy intelligence and analysis, collecting, analyzing, evaluating, and disseminating foreign intelligence, and carrying out covert operations. As of 2013, the CIA had five priorities: The CIA has an executive office and five major directorates: The director of the Central Intelligence Agency (D/CIA) is appointed by
6750-453: The CIA would corroborate Hart's findings. The CIA's station in Seoul had 200 officers, but not a single speaker of Korean . Hart reported to Washington that Seoul station was hopeless, and could not be salvaged. Loftus Becker, deputy director of intelligence, was sent personally to tell Hart that the CIA had to keep the station open to save face. Becker returned to Washington, D.C., pronouncing
6875-575: The CIA's computer network operations budget for fiscal year 2013 was $ 685.4 million. The NSA's budget was roughly $ 1 billion at the time. Rep. Adam Schiff , the California Democrat who served as the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee , endorsed the reorganization. "The director has challenged his workforce, the rest of the intelligence community, and the nation to consider how we conduct
7000-454: The CIA, National Security Agency (NSA), Department of Defense and Department of State . Additionally, it is a relay facility for the Department of State's Diplomatic Telecommunications Service . The United States Army administers WTC on behalf of the U.S. government. Warrenton Training Center was established on June 1, 1951, as part of a " Federal Relocation Arc " of hardened underground bunkers built to support continuity of government in
7125-536: The CIA, NSA, Department of Defense, and the Department of State’s Foreign Service Institute . In 1995, a former NSA employee told The Baltimore Sun that WTC's communications training included listening in on the phone calls of U.S. citizens, using a loophole in the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act that permitted domestic eavesdropping so long as the tapes were destroyed immediately afterward. In April 2013, Dominion Virginia Power representatives indicated that facility expansion plans at WTC had accelerated
7250-499: The CIA, Station B is nicknamed The Hill and administers the agency's overseas technical infrastructure. The United States Environmental Protection Agency classifies Station B as a superfund site due to the presence of an inactive landfill and two chemical pits that have released trichloroethylene into nearby residential drinking water wells. Station C ( 38°31′10″N 77°47′07″W / 38.5195°N 77.7852°W / 38.5195; -77.7852 )
7375-1113: The CIA. The role and functions of the CIA are roughly equivalent to those of the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) in Germany , MI6 in the United Kingdom , the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS) in Australia , the Directorate-General for External Security (DGSE) in France , the Foreign Intelligence Service in Russia , the Ministry of State Security (MSS) in China ,
7500-417: The Defense Human Intelligence Service. This Directorate is known to be organized by geographic regions and issues, but its precise organization is classified. The Directorate of Science & Technology was established to research, create, and manage technical collection disciplines and equipment. Many of its innovations were transferred to other intelligence organizations, or, as they became more overt, to
7625-400: The FIS court. This is called the traditional intelligence collection, because it is "the targeted monitoring of a suspected clandestine operative of a foreign power." Approval of a FISA application requires the court find probable cause that the target of the surveillance be a "foreign power" or an "agent of a foreign power" inside the United States and that the places at which surveillance
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#17327876108347750-418: The FISA Act to be unconstitutional for several reasons including: the law was designed to mainly address terrorism threats, but in fact intercepts communications that have nothing to do with terrorism or criminal activity of any kind; and that "the government can create huge databases that contain information about U.S. persons obtained without warrants and then search these databases at a later point." The Act
7875-409: The FISA courts to issue surveillance and physical search orders without having to find a connection between the "lone wolf" and a foreign government or terrorist group. However, "if the court authorizes such a surveillance or physical search using this new definition of 'agent of a foreign power', the FISC judge has to find, in pertinent part, that, based upon the information provided by the applicant for
8000-469: The FISC may be appealed to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review . The Court of Review is a three-judge panel. Since its creation, the court has come into session twice: in 2002 and 2008. In addition to electronic surveillance, FISA permits the "physical search" of the "premises, information, material, or property used exclusively by" a foreign power. The requirements and procedures are nearly identical to those for electronic surveillance. In
8125-432: The German Bundesnachrichtendienst is keeping contact to the CIA office in Wiesbaden . The success of the British Commandos during World War II prompted U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt to authorize the creation of an intelligence service modeled after the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), and Special Operations Executive . This led to the creation of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) by
8250-430: The Information Operations Center (IOC), has shifted from counterterrorism to offensive cyber operations . The agency has been the subject of several controversies , including its use of torture , domestic wiretapping , propaganda , and alleged human rights violations and drug trafficking . In 2022, a CIA domestic surveillance program was uncovered that had not been subject to congressional oversight. When
8375-418: The OPC, answered not to the CIA Director , but to the secretaries of defense, state, and the NSC. The OPC's actions were a secret even from the head of the CIA. Most CIA stations had two station chiefs, one working for the OSO, and one working for the OPC. With the agency unable to provide sufficient intelligence about the Soviet takeovers of Romania and Czechoslovakia , the Soviet blockade of Berlin , and
8500-414: The OSO was tasked with spying and subversion overseas with a budget of $ 15 million (equivalent to $ 190 million in 2023), the largesse of a small number of patrons in Congress. Vandenberg's goals were much like the ones set out by his predecessor: finding out "everything about the Soviet forces in Eastern and Central Europe – their movements, their capabilities, and their intentions." On June 18, 1948,
8625-424: The Office of Reports and Estimates, which drew its reports from a daily take of State Department telegrams, military dispatches, and other public documents. The CIA still lacked its intelligence-gathering abilities. On August 21, 1950, shortly after, Truman announced Walter Bedell Smith as the new Director of the CIA. The change in leadership took place shortly after the start of the Korean War in South Korea , as
8750-403: The Protect America Act of 2007, communications that begin or end in a foreign country may be wiretapped by the U.S. government without supervision by the FISA Court. The Act removes from the definition of "electronic surveillance" in FISA any surveillance directed at a person reasonably believed to be located outside the United States. As such, surveillance of these communications no longer requires
8875-429: The Shah to exercise his constitutional right to dismiss Mosaddegh. Mosaddegh launched a military coup , and the Shah fled the country. Under CIA Director Allen Dulles , Operation Ajax was put into motion. Its goal was to overthrow Mossadegh with military support from General Fazlollah Zahedi and install a pro-western regime headed by the Shah of Iran. Kermit Roosevelt Jr. oversaw the operation in Iran. On August 16,
9000-517: The Shah. This August 19 incident helped foster public support of the Shah and led gangs of citizens on a spree of violence intent on destroying Mossadegh. An attack on his house would force Mossadegh to flee. He surrendered the next day, and his coup came to an end. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 ( FISA , Pub. L. 95–511 , 92 Stat. 1783 , 50 U.S.C. ch. 36 )
9125-511: The U.S. intelligence community to other foreign intelligence agencies are to Anglophone countries: Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Special communications signals that intelligence-related messages can be shared with these four countries. An indication of the United States' close operational cooperation is the creation of a new message distribution label within the main U.S. military communications network. Previously,
9250-508: The U.S., regardless of whether part of the communication took place domestically. The Bush administration initially defended the program as an extension of executive authority ; amid public, political, and legal pressure, the program was ended in January 2007 and the government announced it would seek warrants from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC). Following the controversy over Stellar Wind , Congress later legalized
9375-510: The US. Thus the two areas of responsibility for the CIA were covert action and covert intelligence. One of the main targets for intelligence gathering was the Soviet Union , which had also been a priority of the CIA's predecessors. U.S. Air Force General Hoyt Vandenberg , the CIG's second director, created the Office of Special Operations (OSO) and the Office of Reports and Estimates (ORE). Initially,
9500-605: The United States subject to enhanced Congressional oversight. Also on March 16, 2006, Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) introduced the National Security Surveillance Act of 2006 ( S. 2453 ), which would amend FISA to grant retroactive amnesty for warrantless surveillance conducted under presidential authority and provide FISA court (FISC) jurisdiction to review, authorize, and oversight "electronic surveillance programs". On May 24, 2006, Senator Specter and Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) introduced
9625-418: The United States. "Minimization procedures" limit the collection of information concerning United States persons by protecting their identities and requiring a court order to retain the communications for longer than 72 hours. The communications can be retained without court order if there is evidence of a crime. Identification of a US person, known as "unmasking", may also be authorized if an agency believes it
9750-423: The United States. Station D has seen significant construction in recent years, including several large data center-like buildings, satellite dishes and radomes . 38°44′01″N 77°49′47″W / 38.7335°N 77.8297°W / 38.7335; -77.8297 Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency ( CIA / ˌ s iː . aɪ ˈ eɪ / ), known informally as
9875-554: The United States. Surveillance beyond the initial authorized period would require a FISA warrant or a presidential certification to Congress. On September 28, 2006, the House of Representatives passed Wilson's bill and it was referred to the Senate. On July 28, 2007, President Bush called on Congress to pass legislation to reform the FISA in order to ease restrictions on surveillance of terrorist suspects where one party (or both parties) to
10000-618: The associate deputy director, manages the relationship between the CIA and the Unified Combatant Commands , who produce and deliver regional and operational intelligence and consume national intelligence produced by the CIA. The Directorate of Analysis , through much of its history known as the Directorate of Intelligence (DI), is tasked with helping "the President and other policymakers make informed decisions about our country's national security" by looking "at all
10125-585: The available information on an issue and organiz[ing] it for policymakers". The directorate has four regional analytic groups, six groups for transnational issues, and three that focus on policy, collection, and staff support. There are regional analytical offices covering the Near East and South Asia , Russia , and Europe; and the Asia–Pacific , Latin America , and Africa . The Directorate of Operations
10250-405: The book Assessment of Men, Selection of Personnel for the Office of Strategic Services . Additional mission training is conducted at Harvey Point , North Carolina . The primary training facility for the Office of Communications is Warrenton Training Center , located near Warrenton, Virginia . The facility was established in 1951 and has been used by the CIA since at least 1955. Details of
10375-516: The business of intelligence in a world that is profoundly different from 1947 when the CIA was founded," Schiff said. The Office of Congressional Affairs ( OCA ) serves as the liaison between the CIA and the US Congress . The OCA states that it aims to ensures that Congress is fully and currently informed of intelligence activities. The office is the CIA's primary interface with Congressional oversight committees, leadership, and members. It
10500-442: The communication are located overseas. He asked that Congress pass the legislation before its August 2007 recess. On August 3, 2007, the Senate passed a Republican-sponsored version of FISA ( S. 1927 ) in a vote of 60 to 28. The House followed by passing the bill, 227–183. The Protect America Act of 2007 ( Pub. L. 110–55 (text) (PDF) , S. 1927 ) was then signed into law by George W. Bush on August 5, 2007. Under
10625-534: The courts upheld warrantless wiretaps. In Brown , a U.S. citizen's conversation was captured by a wiretap authorized by the Attorney General for foreign intelligence purposes. In Butenko , the court held a wiretap valid if the primary purpose was for gathering foreign intelligence information. A plurality opinion in Zweibon v. Mitchell , 516 F.2d 594 (D.C. Cir. 1975), held that a warrant was required for
10750-420: The creation of a "Central Intelligence Service" that would continue peacetime operations similar to those of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), which he led during World War II. Upon President Roosevelt's death, the new president Harry Truman inherited a presidency largely uninformed about key wartime projects and global intelligence activities. Truman's initial view of the proposed central intelligence agency
10875-421: The day-to-day work as the third-highest post of the CIA. The deputy director is formally appointed by the director without Senate confirmation, but as the president's opinion plays a great role in the decision, the deputy director is generally considered a political position, making the chief operating officer the most senior non-political position for CIA career officers. The Executive Office also supports
11000-474: The definitions contained in 50 U.S.C. §1801(a) (4),(5),(6) the act does not authorize the use of warrantless surveillance on: groups engaged in international terrorism or activities in preparation thereof; foreign-based political organizations, not substantially composed of United States persons; or entities that are directed and controlled by a foreign government or governments. Under FISA, anyone who engages in electronic surveillance except as authorized by statute
11125-562: The direction of Fleet Admiral Joseph Ernest King , and prepared the first draft and implementing directives for the creation of what would become the Central Intelligence Agency. Despite opposition from the military establishment, the State Department , and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Truman established the National Intelligence Authority in January 1946. Its operational extension
11250-467: The domestic surveillance of a domestic organization. In this case, the court found that the domestic organization was not a "foreign power or their agent", and "absent exigent circumstances, all warrantless electronic surveillance is unreasonable and therefore unconstitutional." There have been very few cases involving the constitutionality of FISA. Two lower court decisions found FISA constitutional. In United States v. Duggan , 743 F.2d 59 (2d Cir. 1984),
11375-574: The end of World War II by President Harry S. Truman , who created the Central Intelligence Group under the direction of a director of central intelligence by presidential directive on January 22, 1946. The agency's creation was authorized by the National Security Act of 1947 . Unlike the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which is a domestic security service, the CIA has no law enforcement function and
11500-480: The event of a nuclear attack on Washington, D.C. The center was ostensibly designated a Department of Defense Communication Training Activity and served as a communications training school. A " flying saucer " was reportedly observed above the site in 1952. The CIA listed personnel and other expenses at Warrenton Training Center in its fiscal year 1955 budget. Initially, the United States Army served as
11625-546: The executive agent for the administration and management of the center on behalf of the Department of Defense. In 1973, the center was transferred to the Department of the Army under the administration of its signals intelligence branch, the Army Security Agency , a subordinate to the NSA, and the base was renamed U.S. Army Training Group, Warrenton Training Center. In 1982, the center was restored its original name and reverted to Department of Defense control with
11750-567: The fiscal 2013 figure is $ 52.6 billion. According to the 2013 mass surveillance disclosures , the CIA's fiscal 2013 budget is $ 14.7 billion, 28% of the total and almost 50% more than the budget of the National Security Agency. CIA's HUMINT budget is $ 2.3 billion, the SIGINT budget is $ 1.7 billion, and spending for security and logistics of CIA missions is $ 2.5 billion. "Covert action programs," including
11875-527: The full Senate to resolve. On July 18, 2006, U.S. Representative Heather Wilson (R-NM) introduced the Electronic Surveillance Modernization Act ( H.R. 5825 ). Wilson's bill would give the President the authority to authorize electronic surveillance of international phone calls and e-mail linked specifically to identified terrorist groups immediately following or in anticipation of an armed or terrorist attack on
12000-451: The headquarters of WTC and, at 346 acres (140 ha), is the largest of the four facilities. It consists of several multi-story buildings concealed atop the heavily forested View Tree Mountain, two data center facilities, as well as underground bunkers that house communications infrastructure. Operations at Station B include a communications laboratory, communications training, electronics testing, and equipment maintenance. The facility
12125-469: The information they sent. In September 1952 Haney was replaced by John Limond Hart, a Europe veteran with a vivid memory for bitter experiences of misinformation. Hart was suspicious of the parade of successes reported by Tofte and Haney and launched an investigation which determined that the entirety of the information supplied by the Korean sources was false or misleading. After the war, internal reviews by
12250-523: The lack of a clear warning to the President and NSC about the imminent North Korean invasion was seen as a grave failure of intelligence. The CIA had different demands placed on it by the various bodies overseeing it. Truman wanted a centralized group to organize the information that reached him. The Department of Defense wanted military intelligence and covert action, and the State Department wanted to create global political change favorable to
12375-492: The legality of domestic intelligence activities. These investigations were led separately by Sam Ervin and Frank Church in 1978 as a response to President Richard Nixon 's usage of federal resources, including law enforcement agencies, to spy on political and activist groups. The law itself was crafted in large part in closed door meetings between legislators and members of the Justice Department . The act
12500-435: The marking of NOFORN (i.e., No Foreign Nationals) required the originator to specify which, if any, non-U.S. countries could receive the information. A new handling caveat, USA/AUS/CAN/GBR/NZL Five Eyes , used primarily on intelligence messages, gives an easier way to indicate that the material can be shared with Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and New Zealand. The task of the division called " Verbindungsstelle 61 " of
12625-540: The military services. The development of the U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft, for instance, was done in cooperation with the United States Air Force . The U-2's original mission was clandestine imagery intelligence over denied areas such as the Soviet Union . It was subsequently provided with signals intelligence and measurement and signature intelligence capabilities and is now operated by
12750-511: The need for electrical transmission line upgrades in the area, and in November 2015, Vadata, a subsidiary of Amazon , announced plans to build a $ 200 million Department of Defense data center on the Station B site near Warrenton. The center addresses a federal government requirement that the cloud infrastructure be entirely separate from the public cloud. In 2018, a second data center
12875-472: The non-military National Intelligence Program, including $ 4.8 billion for the CIA. After the Marshall Plan was approved, appropriating $ 13.7 billion over five years, 5% of those funds or $ 685 million were secretly made available to the CIA. A portion of the enormous M-fund, established by the U.S. government during the post-war period for reconstruction of Japan, was secretly steered to
13000-504: The number of warrants applied for, issued and denied, is reported. In 1980 (the first full year after its inception), it approved 322 warrants. This number has steadily grown to 2,224 warrants in 2006. In the period 1979–2006, a total of 22,990 applications for warrants were made to the Court of which 22,985 were approved (sometimes with modifications; or with the splitting up, or combining, of warrants for legal purposes), and only 5 were definitively rejected. Denials of FISA applications by
13125-538: The order, the target had engaged in or was engaging in international terrorism or activities in preparation therefor". On March 16, 2006, Senators Mike DeWine (R-OH), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Chuck Hagel (R-NE), and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) introduced the Terrorist Surveillance Act of 2006 (S.2455), under which the President would be given certain additional limited statutory authority to conduct electronic surveillance of suspected terrorists in
13250-566: The overall United States intelligence budget are classified. Under the Central Intelligence Agency Act of 1949, the Director of Central Intelligence is the only federal government employee who can spend "un-vouchered" government money . The government showed its 1997 budget was $ 26.6 billion for the fiscal year. The government has disclosed a total figure for all non-military intelligence spending since 2007;
13375-657: The royal refusal to approve his Minister of War and resigned in protest. The National Front took to the streets in protest. Fearing a loss of control, the military pulled its troops back five days later, and Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi gave in to Mosaddegh's demands. Mosaddegh quickly replaced military leaders loyal to the Shah with those loyal to him, giving him personal control over the military. Given six months of emergency powers, Mosaddegh unilaterally passed legislation. When that six months expired, his powers were extended for another year. In 1953, Mossadegh dismissed parliament and assumed dictatorial powers. This power grab triggered
13500-409: The situation to be "hopeless," and that, after touring the CIA's Far East operations, the CIA's ability to gather intelligence in the far east was "almost negligible". He then resigned. Air Force Colonel James Kallis stated that CIA director Allen Dulles continued to praise the CIA's Korean force, despite knowing that they were under enemy control. When China entered the war in 1950, the CIA attempted
13625-835: The special court stated "[A]ll the other courts to have decided the issue [have] held that the President did have inherent authority to conduct warrantless searches to obtain foreign intelligence information . ... We take for granted that the President does have that authority and, assuming that is so, FISA could not encroach on the President's constitutional power." K. A. Taipale of the World Policy Institute, James Jay Carafano of The Heritage Foundation , and Philip Bobbitt of Columbia Law School, among others, have argued that FISA may need to be amended to include, among other things, procedures for programmatic approvals, as it may no longer be adequate to address certain foreign intelligence needs and technology developments, including:
13750-575: The stations "are operated ... to communicate with embassies, and for espionage transmissions" to American intelligence agents in Cuba and Central America . In 1998, laboratories at WTC were reported to produce concealed radio equipment used to send and receive communications, typically in the form of furniture items. In 1986, the KGB threw U.S. investigators off the trail of CIA officer and Soviet mole Aldrich Ames by constructing an elaborate diversion whereby
13875-476: The technical and human-based operations of the CIA. Before the establishment of the new digital directorate, offensive cyber operations were undertaken by the CIA's Information Operations Center. Little is known about how the office specifically functions or if it deploys offensive cyber capabilities. The directorate had been covertly operating since approximately March 2015 but formally began operations on October 1, 2015. According to classified budget documents,
14000-595: The transition from circuit-based communications to packet-based communications; the globalization of telecommunication infrastructure; and the development of automated monitoring techniques, including data mining and traffic analysis . John R. Schmidt, associate attorney general (1994–1997) in the Justice Department under President Bill Clinton, expressed a need for programmatic approval of technology-enabled surveillance programs. He recalled early arguments made by then-Attorney General Edward Levi to
14125-499: The type of surveillance, approved orders or extensions of orders may be active for 90 days, 120 days, or a year. FISA warrants require renewal depending on the type of surveillance and type of warrant either every 90 days (if targeting a U.S. person) or 120 days (if targeting a non-U.S. person). The Act created the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) and enabled it to oversee requests for surveillance warrants by federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies (primarily
14250-530: The use of federal funds. The act also exempted the CIA from having to disclose its "organization, functions, officials, titles, salaries, or numbers of personnel employed," and created the program "PL-110" to handle defectors and other "essential aliens" who fell outside normal immigration procedures. At the outset of the Korean War , the CIA still only had a few thousand employees, around one thousand of whom worked in analysis. Intelligence primarily came from
14375-410: Was US$ 26.6 billion (inflation-adjusted US$ 50.5 billion in 2024). There have been accidental disclosures; for instance, Mary Margaret Graham , a former CIA official and deputy director of national intelligence for collection in 2005, said that the annual intelligence budget was $ 44 billion, and in 1994 Congress accidentally published a budget of $ 43.4 billion (in 2012 dollars) in 1994 for
14500-485: Was amended in 2001 by the USA PATRIOT Act , primarily to include terrorism on behalf of groups that are not specifically backed by a foreign government. In 2004, FISA was amended to include a "lone wolf" provision. 50 U.S.C. § 1801(b)(1)(C) . A "lone wolf" is a non-U.S. person who engages in or prepares for international terrorism. The provision amended the definition of "foreign power" to permit
14625-549: Was at one time a CIA numbers station , which transmitted coded signals to U.S. embassies overseas and intelligence agents in the field. Transmissions carried a female voice, dubbed "Cynthia" by radio hobbyists, that would recite groups of numbers in English. The transmissions were last heard in 2003. Station D ( 38°27′33″N 77°50′55″W / 38.4591°N 77.8487°W / 38.4591; -77.8487 ), also known as Brandy Station due to its proximity to
14750-532: Was created to provide judicial and congressional oversight of the government's covert surveillance activities of foreign entities and individuals in the United States, while maintaining the secrecy needed to protect national security. FISA came into public prominence in December 2005 following an article in The New York Times that described a program of warrantless domestic wiretapping ordered by
14875-412: Was frequently repeated in the subsequent years. At the beginning of the Korean War , CIA officer Hans Tofte claimed to have turned a thousand North Korean expatriates into a guerrilla force tasked with infiltration, guerrilla warfare, and pilot rescue. In 1952 the CIA sent 1,500 more expatriate agents north. Seoul station chief Albert Haney would openly celebrate the capabilities of those agents and
15000-428: Was instrumental in establishing intelligence services in many countries, such as Germany 's Federal Intelligence Service . It has also provided support to several foreign political groups and governments, including planning, coordinating, training in torture , and technical support. It was involved in many regime changes and carrying out terrorist attacks and planned assassinations of foreign leaders. Since 2004,
15125-595: Was known as the Central Intelligence Group (CIG), which was the direct predecessor of the CIA. The Central Intelligence Agency was created on July 26, 1947, when President Truman signed the National Security Act into law. A major impetus for the creation of the agency was growing tensions with the USSR following the end of World War II . Lawrence Houston, head counsel of the SSU , CIG, and, later CIA,
15250-473: Was principal draftsman of the National Security Act of 1947 , which dissolved the NIA and the CIG, and established both the National Security Council and the Central Intelligence Agency. In 1949, Houston helped to draft the Central Intelligence Agency Act ( Pub. L. 81–110 ), which authorized the agency to use confidential fiscal and administrative procedures, and exempted it from most limitations on
15375-587: Was proposed and then constructed by Amazon at Station B. Warrenton Training Center is spread across four separate facilities in two different counties. Station A, Station B and Station C are located in Fauquier County , while Station D is located in Culpeper County . Station A ( 38°42′14″N 77°48′40″W / 38.7040°N 77.8112°W / 38.7040; -77.8112 ), near Warrenton ,
15500-468: Was required in order for the domestic surveillance to satisfy the Fourth Amendment. Justice Powell wrote that the decision did not address this issue that "may be involved with respect to activities of foreign powers or their agents". Immediately preceding FISA, a number of courts squarely addressed the issue of "warrantless wiretaps". In both United States v. Brown , 484 F.2d 418 (5th Cir. 1973), and United States v. Butenko , 494 F.2d 593 (3rd Cir. 1974),
15625-481: Was that of a simple information gathering entity that would function more as a global news service rather than a spy network. His vision starkly contrasted with Donovan's, which focused on avoiding the creation of an American version of the Gestapo . On September 20, 1945, shortly after the end of World War II, Truman signed an executive order dissolving the OSS. By October 1945 its functions had been divided between
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