Central Security Service
Encyclopedia
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
, established in 1972 by a Presidential Directive
Presidential directive
Presidential Directives, better known as Presidential Decision Directives or PDD are a form of an executive order issued by the President of the United States with the advice and consent of the National Security Council...
to promote full partnership between the National Security Agency
National Security Agency
The National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
(NSA) and the Service Cryptologic Elements (SCE) of the United States Armed Forces
United States armed forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
.
Organization
The blue background of the CSS emblem represents "fidelity" and "steadfastness", with the symbols for the cryptologic service elements provided shown clockwise from top right as follows: Army Intelligence and Security CommandUnited States Army Intelligence and Security Command
The United States Army Intelligence and Security Command is a direct reporting unit that conducts intelligence, security, and information operations for U.S. Army commanders and national decision makers. INSCOM is both an organization within the United States Army and the National Security Agency,...
, United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
, Naval Security Group
Naval Security Group
The Naval Security Group was an organization within the United States Navy, tasked with intelligence gathering and denial of intelligence to adversaries. A large part of this is Signals Intelligence gathering, Cryptology and Information Assurance...
, United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
and Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Agency with the symbol of the National Security Agency
National Security Agency
The National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
in the center.
Tasks
According to James BamfordJames Bamford
V. James Bamford is an American bestselling author and journalist who writes about United States intelligence agencies, most notably the National Security Agency.-Biography:...
, NSA/CSS was initially conceived as a separate "fourth service" beside the three U.S. armed services. The latter three resisted this idea, and therefore the CSS was founded as an inter-service organization. The day-to-day work of the CSS is to capture enemy signals (radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
, telemetry
Telemetry
Telemetry is a technology that allows measurements to be made at a distance, usually via radio wave transmission and reception of the information. The word is derived from Greek roots: tele = remote, and metron = measure...
, radio/satellite communications) using the means of the involved service. For example, the Navy has special submarines for tapping undersea cables; the Air Force operates aircraft with sophisticated antennas and processing gear to listen to enemy radar and radio; and on the ground, the Army operates similar eavesdropping equipment.
The Naval Security Group is a significant addition of signals intelligence and communications security
Communications security
Communications security is the discipline of preventing unauthorized interceptors from accessing telecommunications in an intelligible form, while still delivering content to the intended recipients. In the United States Department of Defense culture, it is often referred to by the abbreviation...
expertise to the organization. Managing the logistics of collection across the globe and securing the systems used inside the agency and other branches of the military are particularly useful contributions from the Naval Security Group. The Computer Network Defense Red Team run by the Navy at the Fleet Information Warfare Center also operates directly under the Naval Security Group and provides critical operational and exercise support to commands to improve their ability to fend off malicious computer activity. "Red Team
Red Team
A red team is a group of penetration testers that assess the security of an organization, which is often unaware of the existence of the team or the exact assignment. Red teams provide a more realistic picture of the security readiness than exercises, role playing, or announced assessments...
" refers to a group of subject-matter experts tasked with playing the role of the enemy in training exercises, often referred to as peer review or penetration testing in private industry.