Central Intelligence Agency

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

The CIA is headed by a director and is divided into various directorates, including a Directorate of Analysis and Directorate of Operations. Unlike the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the CIA has no law enforcement function and focuses on intelligence gathering overseas, with only limited domestic intelligence collection. The CIA is responsible for coordinating all human intelligence (HUMINT) activities in the IC. It has been instrumental in establishing intelligence services in many countries, and has provided support to many foreign organizations. The CIA exerts foreign political influence through its paramilitary operations units, including its Special Activities Center. It has also provided support to several foreign political groups and governments, including planning, coordinating, training and carrying out torture, and technical support. It has been involved in many regime changes and carrying out planned assassinations of foreign leaders and terrorist attacks against civilians.

In Their Own Story

During World War II, U.S. intelligence and covert operations had been undertaken by the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). The office was abolished in 1945 by President Harry S. Truman, who created the Central Intelligence Group in 1946. Amid the intensifying Cold War, the National Security Act of 1947 established the CIA, headed by a director of central intelligence (DCI). The Central Intelligence Agency Act of 1949 exempted the agency from most Congressional oversight, and during the 1950s, it became a major instrument of U.S. foreign policy. The CIA employed psychological operations against communist regimes, and backed coups to advance American interests. Major CIA-backed operations include the 1953 coup in Iran, the 1954 coup in Guatemala, the Bay of Pigs Invasion of Cuba in 1961, and the 1973 coup in Chile. In 1975, the Church Committee of the U.S. Senate revealed illegal operations such as MKUltra and CHAOS. In the 1980s, the CIA supported the Afghan mujahideen through Pakistan's ISI, and the Nicaraguan Contras, and after the September 11 attacks in 2001, played a role in the Global War on Terrorism.

Reader's Guide

The CIA has an executive office and five major directorates: the Directorate of Digital Innovation, the Directorate of Analysis, the Directorate of Operations, the Directorate of Support, and the Directorate of Science and Technology. The director of the Central Intelligence Agency (D/CIA) is appointed by the president with Senate confirmation and reports directly to the director of national intelligence (DNI). 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 the day-to-day work as the third-highest post of the CIA. The Directorate of Analysis is tasked with helping "the President and other policymakers make informed decisions about our country's national security" by looking "at all the available information on an issue and organiz[ing] it for policymakers." The Directorate of Operations is responsible for collecting foreign intelligence (mainly from clandestine HUMINT sources), and for covert action. The Directorate of Science & Technology was established to research, create, and manage technical collection disciplines and equipment. The Directorate of Support has organizational and administrative functions to significant units including the Office of Security, the Office of Communications, and the Office of Information Technology. The Directorate of Digital Innovation (DDI) focuses on accelerating innovation across the Agency's mission activities and is the Agency's newest directorate.

Did You Know?

• The CIA is headquartered in the George Bush Center for Intelligence in Langley, Virginia, and is sometimes metonymously called 'Langley'.
• The CIA was established by the National Security Act of 1947 amid the intensifying Cold War.
• The Central Intelligence Agency Act of 1949 exempted the agency from most Congressional oversight.
• The CIA's Directorate of Digital Innovation formally began operations on October 1, 2015, though it had been covertly operating since approximately March 2015.
• The CIA has been involved in major operations including the 1953 coup in Iran, the 1954 coup in Guatemala, the Bay of Pigs Invasion of Cuba in 1961, and the 1973 coup in Chile.