CIA’s legacy is one of brave individuals dedicated to freedom, fulfilling our intelligence mission with ingenuity and grit. Protecting our country is at the heart of our mission — past, present, and future.

In this section, you’ll discover stories about the women and men who helped create America’s first spy agency, the Office of Strategic Services, as well as some surprising characters from CIA’s past. You’ll also learn about our Agency today, its culture, and some of the quirkier stories that don’t quite fit anywhere else.

The CIA is a U.S. government agency that provides objective intelligence on foreign countries and global issues to the president, the National Security Council, and other policymakers to help them make national security decisions.

The World Factbook provides basic intelligence on the history, people, government, economy, energy, geography, environment, communications, transportation, military, terrorism, and transnational issues for 265 world entities.

CIA carefully selects well-qualified people in nearly all fields. Scientists, engineers, economists, linguists, mathematicians, administrative professionals, accountants, and computer specialists are but a few of the professionals continually in demand.

It began with the publication of the major points of Comrade Yu Guang-Yuan's speech in the "Wen Hui Bao." Some people labelled human psychic science research as "running counter to marxism," "Idealism," "Fuedal Sorcery," and "The Researchers are a Bunch of Idiots." They believed that human psychic ability was "magic" or "trickery."

CIA is an independent agency responsible for providing national security intelligence to senior US policymakers. The Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (D/CIA) is nominated by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate.

In our effort to remain as transparent as possible, we’re debunking 10 of the most common misconceptions people have about the CIA. It may surprise some to discover that we are not the gun-toting, globetrotting, martini-drinking spies frequently portrayed on the silver screen.

We read every letter and online message, directing comments to CIA officials and responding as appropriate. Before contacting CIA, be sure to check CIA.gov for the information you’re looking for. Contact CIA by Postal Mail

Jan 16, 2025 · People and Society. Environment. Government. Economy. Energy. Communications. Transportation. Military and Security. Transnational Issues. Introduction. Background. Tip. Visit the Definitions and Notes page to view a description of each topic. ... Connect with CIA Search CIA.gov ...