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Background

The agency was originally established as the Defense Investigative Service and was created on January 1, 1972.² In 1999, the agency changed its name to the Defense Security Service.³ In July 2019, DSS was reorganized as DCSA, in conjunction with the transfer of responsibility for conducting background investigations from OPM's National Background Investigations Bureau.⁴⁵

Responsibility

DCSA conducts personnel security investigations for 95% of the federal government, supervises industrial security, provides counterintelligence support to the cleared defense industrial base, and performs security education and training. DCSA also provides the uniformed US military services, Department of Defense agencies, 35 federal agencies, and approximately 10,000 cleared government contractor facilities with security support services. The Director of DCSA reports to the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence.

National Industrial Security Program (NISP)

DCSA administers the NISP on behalf of the Department of Defense and 35 other federal agencies. DCSA provides oversight to approximately 10,000 cleared contract companies to ensure they are adequately protecting facilities, personnel, and associated Information Technology systems from attacks and vulnerabilities.

Organization

DCSA is organized into five directorates, each of which are led by a mission director and contain various subcomponents.

• Personnel Security
  • Consolidated Adjudication Services (CAS)
• Industrial Security
  • National Access Elsewhere Security Oversight Center (NAESOC)
  • NISP Authorization Office (NAO)
• Security Training
  • Center for Development of Security Excellence (CDSE)
  • The National Center for Credibility Assessment (NCCA)
• Counterintelligence & Insider Threat
  • DoD Insider Threat Management and Analysis Center (DITMAC)
• Field Operations
  • Western Region
  • Central Region
  • Eastern Region
  • Mid-Atlantic Region

Personnel

DCSA Industrial Security Representatives, Counterintelligence Agents, Background Investigators, and Information System Security Professionals are credentialed Special Agents. DCSA also uses a number of contract investigators and staff to help support DCSA's various missions.

Locations

The DCSA headquarters is located on Marine Corps Base Quantico. DCSA also has 167 field offices across the United States.

See also

US military investigative organizations

• Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI)
• Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS)
• Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS)
• Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS)
• United States Army Counterintelligence (ACI)
• United States Army Criminal Investigation Command (USACIDC or CID)
• United States Marine Corps Criminal Investigation Division (USMCCID or CID)

External links

Media related to Defense Security Service at Wikimedia Commons

• Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency

References

1. "Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency: About Us". Retrieved February 2, 2022. https://www.dcsa.mil/about/ ↩

2. "About DSS – History". Archived from the original on June 25, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120625131735/http://www.dss.mil/about_dss/history.html ↩

3. "History". www.dss.mil. Retrieved August 31, 2019. https://www.dss.mil/about/history/ ↩

4. "New agency name, acting director". Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency. Retrieved August 31, 2019. https://www.dss.mil/About-Us/News/News-Display/Article/1884750/new-agency-name-acting-director/ ↩

5. "Transferring Responsibility for Background Investigations to the Department of Defense". Federal Register. April 29, 2019. Retrieved August 31, 2019. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/04/29/2019-08797/transferring-responsibility-for-background-investigations-to-the-department-of-defense ↩