The Counterintelligence Division (CD) is a division of the
National Security Branch
The National Security Branch (NSB) is a service within the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The NSB is responsible for protecting the United States from weapons of mass destruction, acts of terrorism, and foreign intelligence operations and e ...
of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...
. The division protects the United States against
foreign intelligence operations and
espionage
Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
. It accomplishes its mission of hunting spies and preventing espionage through the use of investigation and interaction with local law enforcement and other members of the
United States Intelligence Community
United may refer to:
Places
* United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community
* United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community
Arts and entertainment Films
* ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film
* ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...
. In the wake of the
September 11, 2001 attacks, the division's funding and manpower have significantly increased.
Leadership
The Counterintelligence Division is headed by an assistant director, who reports to the executive assistant director (EAD) of the
FBI National Security Branch
The National Security Branch (NSB) is a service within the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The NSB is responsible for protecting the United States from weapons of mass destruction, acts of terrorism, and foreign intelligence operations and e ...
(NSB).
The current NSB EAD is Jill Sanborn, who has been leading the NSB since May 7, 2021.
FBI Director
The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a United States' federal law enforcement agency, and is responsible for its day-to-day operations. The FBI Director is appointed for a single ...
Christopher A. Wray
Christopher Asher Wray (born December 17, 1966) is an American attorney who is the eighth Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, serving since 2017. From 2003 to 2005, Wray served as Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Crimin ...
appointed Sanborn EAD.
On December 21, 2015
FBI Director
The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a United States' federal law enforcement agency, and is responsible for its day-to-day operations. The FBI Director is appointed for a single ...
James B. Comey named
E. W. Priestap, also known as Bill Priestap, assistant director of the Counterintelligence Division. Mr. Priestap most recently was deputy assistant director of the Intelligence Operations Branch in the Directorate of Intelligence at FBIHQ.
On February 19, 2019,
FBI Director
The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a United States' federal law enforcement agency, and is responsible for its day-to-day operations. The FBI Director is appointed for a single ...
Christopher A. Wray
Christopher Asher Wray (born December 17, 1966) is an American attorney who is the eighth Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, serving since 2017. From 2003 to 2005, Wray served as Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Crimin ...
named John Brown assistant director of the FBI Counterintelligence Division.
On April 24, 2020,
FBI Director
The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a United States' federal law enforcement agency, and is responsible for its day-to-day operations. The FBI Director is appointed for a single ...
Christopher A. Wray
Christopher Asher Wray (born December 17, 1966) is an American attorney who is the eighth Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, serving since 2017. From 2003 to 2005, Wray served as Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Crimin ...
named Alan E. Kohler Jr. assistant director of the FBI Counterintelligence Division.
Organization
The Counterintelligence Division has three branches, each headed by a Deputy Assistant Director:
* Intelligence Branch
* Operations Branch I
* Operations Branch II
Each branch oversees various sections, each headed by a Section Chief. Some sections include:
* Counterespionage (CE) Section – prevents foreign
intelligence agencies
An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law enforcement, national security, military, public safety, and foreign policy objectives.
Means of informatio ...
from gathering and collecting intelligence. Investigation of media leaks and insider threats
* Counterproliferation (CP) Section – detect, deter, and defeat the threat posed by state-sponsored groups, individuals, and organizations attempting to acquire weapons of mass destruction or other sensitive technologies
* Counterintelligence Strategy and Domain (CSD) Section – coordinates all FBI counterintelligence outreach to the
United States Intelligence Community
United may refer to:
Places
* United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community
* United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community
Arts and entertainment Films
* ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film
* ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...
, academia, and the private sector
* Economic Espionage (EE) Section – investigating
economic espionage
Industrial espionage, economic espionage, corporate spying, or corporate espionage is a form of espionage conducted for commercial purposes instead of purely national security.
While political espionage is conducted or orchestrated by governme ...
under the
Economic Espionage Act
* Cyber Counterintelligence Coordination (C3S) Section – Leading the integration of Cyber and Counterintelligence Programs.
* Global Section – Responsible for counterintelligence matters related to all countries except Russia and China.
* China Operations (COS3) Section
* China Counterespionage and Technology Transfer (C2T2) Section
* Counterintelligence Training Center (CITC) Section
* Foreign Investment (FIU) Unit
* National Counterintelligence Task Force (NCITF) Section
* China Intelligence Section
* Russia Operations Section
* Foreign Influence Task Force Section
* Counterintelligence Analysis Section
* Counterintelligence Cyberspace Operations Section
* Clandestine Operations Section
History
The division was first established by
FBI Director
The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a United States' federal law enforcement agency, and is responsible for its day-to-day operations. The FBI Director is appointed for a single ...
J. Edgar Hoover
John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 – May 2, 1972) was an American law enforcement administrator who served as the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). He was appointed director of the Bureau of Investigation â ...
in 1939 as the General Intelligence Division, to handle foreign counterintelligence and other intelligence related investigations. In 1941, the unit was renamed the National Defense Division. In 1943, the division's name was once again changed, this time to Security Division. After 10 years of operating as the Security Division, the unit was renamed as the Domestic Security Division in 1953. In 1973, the organization became the Intelligence Division and in 1976 transferred some of its responsibilities, including domestic terrorism investigations, to the FBI's
Criminal Investigative Division. In 1993, the unit was renamed the National Security Division (NSD). The following year, the responsibility for domestic terrorism moved back to the NSD. In 1999, the FBI's
Counterterrorism Division was created and took over responsibility for terrorism related investigations. In 2001, the NSD was renamed the Counterintelligence Division and three other units were branched off, the Security Division,
Cyber Division and the Office of Intelligence (later the
Directorate of Intelligence).
See also
*Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
*MI5
The Security Service, also known as MI5 ( Military Intelligence, Section 5), is the United Kingdom's domestic counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), G ...
*Counter Terrorism Command
Counter Terrorism Command (CTC) or SO15 is a Specialist Operations branch within London's Metropolitan Police Service. The Counter Terrorism Command was established as a result of the merging of the Anti-Terrorist Branch (SO13) and Special Bra ...
(SO15)
*Direction de la surveillance du territoire
The Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire (DST; en, Directorate of Territorial Surveillance) was a directorate of the French National Police operating as a domestic intelligence agency. It was responsible for counterespionage, counterterro ...
(DST)
*General Commissariat of Information
The General Commissariat of Information (, CGI) is an intelligence service within the National Police Corps of Spain responsible for the collection, analysis and distribution of information relevant to domestic security, as well as its exploitatio ...
(CGI)
*Civil Guard Information Service
The Civil Guard Information Service (, SIGC) is an intelligence service within the Spanish Civil Guard responsible for the collection, analysis and distribution of information relevant to domestic security, as well as its exploitation or operation ...
(SIGC)
*Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department Public Security Bureau
The is a bureau of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department (TMPD) in charge of public security with jurisdiction over the Tokyo metropolis. It has a force of more than 2,000 officers. The bureau reports to the Deputy Superintendent General.
In ...
* Intelligence Bureau
*INTERPOL
The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...
References
External links
Federal Bureau of Investigation website
National Security Branch Website
*
FBI Counterintelligence website
{{FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Counterintelligence agencies