The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency within the United States Department of Defense, supervised by the Director of National Intelligence. The key responsibilities of the NSA include global monitoring, collection, and analysis of data to serve foreign and domestic intelligence and counterintelligence purposes. The NSA is especially experienced in the domain of knowledge known as signals intelligence (SIGINT). Aside from that, the NSA tends to the protection of US communication networks and information systems. This paper overviews the roles, functions, capabilities, and limitations of the National Security Agency and discusses how it integrates into a joint environment.
At present, the United States faces numerous national security threats whose gravity cannot be underestimated. Like the rest of the world, the US is suffering from extremism and international terrorism, which poses a threat to the country’s warfighters, allies, and homeland. The US national interests are negatively impacted by the ongoing regional conflicts and hostile foreign governments. Among other threats is the drug trade that results in large amounts of illegal drugs being brought into the country each year. The nature of threats to national security is evolving: today, a lot of crimes take place in cyberspace. Cyber threats are rapidly changing in their disruptive potential and scope of impact.
As a response to the threats of the modern age, the National Security Agency provides expertise in cryptology, which includes both signals intelligence (SIGINT) and information assurance products and services. The mission of the National Security Agency is to help the government to gain a decision advantage to benefit the Nation and the allies under all circumstances. This is achieved through enabling sophisticated computer network operations (CNO). The official list of the core values to which the NSA adheres include:
- Commitment to service. The NSA shows its awareness of the significant role that it plays in the country’s politics and commits to achieve excellence in the pursuit of its critical mission;
- Respect for the law. The NSA makes sure that its missions have legal underpinnings and are compliant with the US Constitution and the US laws, regulations and policies.
- Integrity. The agency prioritizes ethics, honesty, and transparency when carrying out its mission.
- Transparency. The agency seeks to foster public understanding of what it does and ensure complete transparency to those who monitor and supervise its work on behalf of the Nation;
- Respect for People. The NSA promotes equality and diversity in the workplace where people are judged by their character and ability and not their origins and other unchangeable personal characteristics;
- Accountability. The agency takes full responsibility for its actions and decisions: It prioritizes prudence and sound judgment over expediency (National Security Agency, n.d.).
- Signals intelligence. SIGINT is a system that deciphers electronic signals and systems used by foreign targets. SIGINT derives intelligence from targets such as communications systems, radars, and weapons systems. SIGINT allows the government to make a fair assessment of foreign adversaries’ capabilities as well as their plans and intentions. The NSA’s SIGINT mission has specific boundaries: the agency can only gather information about international terrorists and foreign powers, organizations, or persons. With this function, the NSA seeks to meet the needs of those who require an insight into foreign intelligence, including all departments of the Executive Branch of the United States Government.
- Research. Since 1952, the NSA has been a leading expert in cryptology and electronic communications systems. The agency has a rich research heritage and decades-old traditions. Today, the research function of the NSA helps the government to achieve four well-defined goals: (1) to reach excellence in the field of global computing; (2) to analyze information from the environment in a way that would provide the Nation with a strategic advantage; (3) to maintain secure partnerships and collaborations within the government and outside of it; (4) to penetrate into the “hard” targets that endanger the country.
- Support to the military. One of the most important functions executed by the NSA is support to US military service members across the globe. The NSA uses it signals intelligence activities to ensure support to military operations. Apart from that, the agency provides cybersecurity personnel, products and services to make sure that all communications and data remain protected.
The National Security Agency is endowed with plenty of power and influence within the US government system. It informs the government’s decisions regarding national defense with its insights into foreign intelligence. The organization contributes significantly to the safety and security of the nation and its capacity to protect itself against the attacks and outsiders’ hostility. However, with great power comes great responsibility, and apparently, the NSA has expanded its operations beyond ethically acceptable on several occasions. As Donohue (2015) reports, in 2013, there was a leakage of classified information about two surveillance programs. One was gathering information from the US Internet service providers (PRISM) while the other was collecting cellular phone call metadata.
The US National Security Agency operates under particular limitations put in place by other state entities. Currently, the activities of the NSA are regulated and monitored by the US Constitution, federal law, executive order, and regulations of the Executive Branch govern NSA’s activities. Since the NSA is a defense agency, it complies with the authority of the Department of Defense. In some cases, the NSA decides to limit the scope of its leverage itself to avert issues with the law. The NSA has had a longstanding problem with the public about accessing information.
The growing discomfort has pushed the agency and other state entities to take measures. For example, in 2015, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) announced that the NSA would be prohibited from collecting telephone metadata, which would apply to both US and non-US persons. This example shows how the NSA seeks to integrate into the environment. The optimistic perspective on the subject matter is that imposing limitations on the operations of the agency means that the government seeks to resolve the dilemma between privacy and security. By doing that, it responds to US and non-US persons’ concerns about their rights to keep their lives private. However, there is a more pessimistic view on the changes as well: Nussbaum (2015) opines that the announcement does not explain everything that the decision might imply. The NSA might still have some leeway and work around the legislation.
Two years later, in 2017, the organization made a decision to scale back the amount of data it was gathering from communications over the Internet. As Ewing (2017) reports, due to a “lapse” in compliance with US law, the NSA used to access data from the so-called “about communications.” That means that the NSA overviewed not only messages sent to and from a foreign target but also those mentioning one. Ewing (2017) explains that this practice implies that sometimes the NSA would retrieve data from Americans without an actual warrant, therefore, violating their privacy. In their official statement, the agency announced that it intends to stop the practice. The purpose of this decision was to reduce the chances of acquiring communication of residents of the US or other countries who do not have any ties to a foreign intelligence target. In summation, the NSA has to comply with certain limiting regulations that prioritize privacy.
References
Donohue, Laura K. 2015. “High Technology, Consumer Privacy, and US National Security.” American University Business Law Revue 4 (2015): 11.
Ewing, Philip. 2017. “NSA To Limit Some Collection Of Internet Communication.” NPR, 2017.
National Security Agency. n.d. “What We Do.” Web.
Nussbaum, Brian. 2015. “NSA Surveillance Programs Are Far From Over Despite New Limitations.” Fortune, 2015.