, headquarters =

Phoenix Park The Phoenix Park ( ga, Páirc an Fhionnuisce) is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and t ...

, Dublin (D8) , formed = , picture = File:Badge of An Garda Síochána.svg , picture_width = , picture_caption = , preceding1 = C3 , preceding2 = , jurisdiction = Ireland , employees = Undisclosed , budget = Undisclosed (part of ''Garda Síochána'' budget, €1.34 billion in 2014) , minister1_name =

Helen McEntee Helen McEntee (born 8 June 1986) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Minister for Justice from June 2020 to November 2022. From April to November 2021, she became a minister without portfolio during a period of maternity leave. ...

, TD , minister1_pfo =

Minister for Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry. Lists of current ministries of justice Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia) * Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Justi ...

, chief1_name = Drew Harris , chief1_position = Garda Commissioner , chief2_name = John O'Mahoney , chief2_position = Assistant Commissioner of Crime and Security , parent_agency = Badge of An Garda Síochána

Garda Síochána (; meaning "the Guardian(s) of the Peace"), more commonly referred to as the Gardaí (; "Guardians") or "the Guards", is the national police service of Ireland. The service is headed by the Garda Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Gove ...

'' , website
Official website
The Crime and Security Branch (CSB) ( ga, Brainse Coireachta agus Slándála) – previously known as C3 – is responsible for the administration of

national security National security, or national defence, is the security and defence of a sovereign state, including its citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of government. Originally conceived as protection against military att ...

, counter terrorism and serious crime investigations within the ''

'', the national police force of Ireland. The section oversees

intelligence Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. More generally, it can ...

relating to

subversive Subversion () refers to a process by which the values and principles of a system in place are contradicted or reversed in an attempt to transform the established social order and its structures of power, authority, hierarchy, and social norms. Sub ...

, paramilitary and terrorism matters, conducts

counter-intelligence Counterintelligence is an activity aimed at protecting an agency's intelligence program from an opposition's intelligence service. It includes gathering information and conducting activities to prevent espionage, sabotage, assassinations or ot ...

, liaises with foreign law enforcement agencies, handles confidential informants, administers VIP and

witness protection Witness protection is security provided to a threatened person providing testimonial evidence to the justice system, including defendants and other clients, before, during, and after a trial, usually by police. While a witness may only require p ...

, monitors potential

corrupt Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

Garda officers and provides information on threats to the state to the Garda Commissioner and

Government of Ireland The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland. The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The govern ...

. The Crime & Security Branch comprises a number of Garda units, which it collects information from and issues directives to. The Garda CSB is based at Garda Headquarters in the

, Dublin. It is headed by the Assistant commissioner in charge of Crime and Security, and is staffed mainly by senior officers and

intelligence analysts Intelligence analysis is the application of individual and collective cognitive methods to weigh data and test hypotheses within a secret socio-cultural context. The descriptions are drawn from what may only be available in the form of deliberate ...

. The branch is responsible for up to 500 Garda officers in other units, who are mainly detectives with investigative duties. CSB maintain the National Intelligence Database, which collates intelligence received from all its sources, and is linked to that of G2.

Organisational structure

* Security and Intelligence Section (S&I) ** National Surveillance Unit (NSU) * Liaison and Protection Section * Crime Policy and Administration Section *

Special Detective Unit , headquarters = Harcourt Street, Dublin (D2) , formed = as the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) , preceding1 = Garda Special Branch , preceding2 = , jurisdiction = Ireland , employees = Undisclosed~ 300 , budget = Undisclose ...

(SDU) **

Emergency Response Unit An Emergency Response Unit is a name for a law enforcement or other civil government entity that is trained and equipped to respond quickly to emergency situations. In some instances, such a designation is given to a Special Weapons and Tactics uni ...

(ERU) ** Counter-Terrorism International (CTI) ** Hostage Negotiation Section (HNS) ** Witness Protection Unit * Analysis Service ** Bomb Data Centre

Responsibilities

Security & Intelligence

The role of this section is to identify and analyse the threat to the state from terrorists, citizens challenging authority and organised crime gangs. The section is accordingly divided into two sub-sections dealing with intelligence in relation to both terrorism and

organised crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

. The section supports operational units by providing intelligence leads relative to both areas. Security & Intelligence (S&I) is the central point of contact for the Garda Síochána with all external agencies – both law enforcement and security/intelligence – with regard to international co-operation in the fight against terrorism and organised crime.

Liaison & Protection

This section is responsible for the protective security of the state and its institutions. The section also has a strong liaison function, housing both the

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 cr ...

National Central Bureau and the Europol National Unit. These are the central points of contact for secure communications between the Garda Síochána and all external agencies. Liaison & Protection also encompasses the

Schengen Information System The Schengen Information System (SIS) is a governmental database maintained by the European Commission. The SIS is used by 31 European countries to find information about individuals and entities for the purposes of national security, border c ...

(SIS) of which Ireland is a member. A number of Garda Liaison Officers (GLO) attached to Liaison & Protection are posted abroad, including in foreign Irish embassies. The section coordinates the work of a number of

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...

(EU) Council Working groups attended by Garda representatives. It also has an administrative role in relation to the Witness Security Programme.

Crime Policy & Administration

This section is responsible for: * Implementation of strategic policy * Mutual Assistance and Extradition in conjunction with the

Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

* Liaising with the Central Statistics Office (CSO) regarding crime statistics * Providing

legal advice Legal advice is the giving of a professional or formal opinion regarding the substance or procedure of the law in relation to a particular factual situation. The provision of legal advice will often involve analyzing a set of facts and advising a ...

to the Garda Commissioner and the organisation in general * Coordinating the issuing and renewal of firearms licenses * Parole Board Applications * The Hague Convention regarding separated couples' issues * Betting Act applications from non-residents The Missing Persons Bureau is part of Crime, Policy & Administration.

Special Detective Unit

The

(SDU) is responsible for the investigation of threats to state security and the monitoring of persons who pose a threat to this on both national and international fronts. The SDU also provides

security" \n\n\nsecurity.txt is a proposed standard for websites' security information that is meant to allow security researchers to easily report security vulnerabilities. The standard prescribes a text file called \"security.txt\" in the well known locat ...

for visiting

VIPs A very important person or personage (VIP or V.I.P.) is a person who is accorded special privileges due to their high social status, influence or importance. The term was not common until sometime after World War 2 by RAF pilots. Examples inc ...

cash-in-transit Cash-in-transit (CIT) or cash/valuables-in-transit (CVIT) is the physical transfer of banknotes, coins, credit cards and items of value from one location to another. The locations include cash centers and bank branches, ATM points, large retaile ...

movements and armed response. The SDU is the operational wing of the Witness Security Programme. The highly trained and equipped specialist armed intervention unit, the

(ERU), is also part of the SDU.

Analysis Service

The Garda Síochána Analysis Service (GSAS) is responsible for providing analytical support to the Garda organisation. GSAS Management and Analyst staff provide valuable support at both a Regional, and National level, in relation to both operational and strategic policing initiatives. The Research Unit, based in the Garda College, also sit alongside the GSAS. The Research Unit conduct internal and external surveys and have been involved in the evaluation of policing initiatives in order to identify effective practice.

References

External links

Garda Síochána official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garda Crime and Security Branch Crime and Security Branch Irish intelligence agencies Domestic intelligence agencies