# CIA vs FBI **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 2, 2003, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118 "2003-10-02T14:32:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![metroshane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@metroshane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/metroshane)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/1 "2003-10-02T14:32:25Z")
What is the difference between these two groups…as far as juridicition, authority, etc? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/2 "2003-10-02T15:24:43Z")
The general distinction is that FBI is internal (the US’s national police force) and the CIA deals with external threats. I’m sure others will come along with better explainations. ---
**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/3 "2003-10-02T15:27:14Z")
I always heard that the CIA was in charge of espionage, etc., particularly in other countries, while the FBI was the chief law-enforcement agency with jurisdiction in the US. But that’s just off the top of my head, and I could be way off. ---
**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/4 "2003-10-02T15:28:22Z")
… and Telemark already said that. Drat! ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/5 "2003-10-02T15:48:08Z")
From [FBI Mission Statement](http://anchorage.fbi.gov/mission.htm) > [@](#): > > The mission of the FBI is to uphold the law through the investigation of violations of federal criminal law; to protect the United States from foreign intelligence and terrorist activities; to provide leadership and law enforcement assistance to federal, state, local, and international agencies; to perform these responsibilities in a manner that is responsive to the needs of the public and is faithful to the Constitution of the United States. From [CIA site](http://www.cia.gov/cia/information/mission.html) > [@](#): > > We support the President, the National Security Council, and all who make and execute US national security policy by: > > Providing accurate, evidence-based, comprehensive, and timely foreign intelligence related to national security; and > > Conducting counterintelligence activities, special activities, and other functions related to foreign intelligence and national security as directed by the President. and also > [@](#): > > The Central Intelligence Agency’s primary mission is to collect, evaluate, and disseminate foreign intelligence to assist the President and senior US Government policymakers in making decisions relating to the national security. The Central Intelligence Agency does not make policy; it is an independent source of foreign intelligence information for those who do. The Central Intelligence Agency may also engage in covert action at the President’s direction in accordance with applicable law. and even > [@](#): > > It should be noted that the CIA is a foreign intelligence agency, not a law enforcement agency, and is expressly prohibited by law from having any police or law enforcement powers, or internal security functions. The FBI enforces federal laws. The CIA gathers intelligence, i.e., a spy agency. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/6 "2003-10-02T15:59:58Z")
The FBI is a law enforcement agency. It’s job is to investigate federal crimes, and to help state and municipal law enforcement agencies by providing them with certain services. The CIA is an intelligence agency. It gathers and analyzes intelligence from the various other intelligence services, and spies on foreign countries. ---
**Author:** ![metroshane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@metroshane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/metroshane)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/7 "2003-10-02T16:09:25Z")
Ah, thanks. It seems they share some of the same mystique and rarely any information. I had no idea the CIA had no police authority. ---
**Author:** ![Bookkeeper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bookkeeper/32/281_2.png) [@Bookkeeper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bookkeeper)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/8 "2003-10-02T16:15:26Z")
As a very general overview: FBI is a law enforcement agency, operating mostly internally in the US, and has responsibility for counter-espionage (catching spies in US); CIA is an intelligence-gathering agency, forbidden by law to conduct operations internally in the US. All very nicely and neatly laid out by the US Congress, but unfortunately, the real world frequently fails to cooperate, and CIA foreign operations often interact with FBI domestic operations since espionage/terrorist/etc. organizations refuse to segregate their activities to match US law. ---
**Author:** ![RenMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecb155/32.png) [@RenMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RenMan)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/9 "2003-10-02T17:53:40Z")
How does the NSA fit into all this? And are all these now gathered under the umbrella of the Department of Homeland Security? ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/10 "2003-10-02T19:05:03Z")
The NSA’s job is to provide government agencies with cryptographic services and to intercept communications in foreign countries. The US “Intelligence Community” consists of the Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, the National Reconnaissance Office, the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, the intelligence branches of the four armed services and the coast guard, the departments of State, Energy, Treasury and Homeland Security, and the FBI. Each of these is responsible for different aspects of intelligence operations. The CIA is an independent agency (not part of any cabiet Department) and its head, the Director of Central Intelligence, is also the head of the entire Intelligence Community. The FBI, part of the Department of Justice, works with the Intelligence Community by providing counterintelligence operations and investigations into spies and terrorists inside the US. As stated above, the FBI is a law-enforcement agency and investigates violations of federal statutes here and abroad. The NSA, part of the Department of Defense (but not a military force) provides cryptographic services and signals intelligence. Their job is both to create codes for the good guys to use and to break codes that the bad guys use. The NRO, part of the Department of Defense, buils and operates spy satellites. NIMA is a relatively new agency, part of the Department of Defense, which provides extremely detailed maps of all sorts to the military and intelligence agencies, using sources from satellites, reconassaince planes, seismic data, and all sorts of other neat stuff. Each armed force (Air Force, Navy, Marines and Army) each have their own intelligence offices, which provide battlefield intelligence, behind-enemy-lines espionage and other services to their specific branch. Intelligence from the service-level agencies makes its way to DIA and the CIA as needed. The DIA, part of the Department of Defense, provides the armed services and other members of the Intelligence Community with battlefield-related intelligence data, and coordinates the efforts of the four services’ own intelligence branches. The director of the DIA is also the chair of the Military Intelligence Board, which oversees and coordinates the intelligence activities of all DoD based intelligence agencies. The Bureau of Intelligence and Research, part of the Department of State, provides the Intelligence Community with foreign-policy and diplomatic related intelligence. They also analyize intelligence activity from a foreign-policy perspective. The Intelligence Office off the Department of Energy provides the Intelligence Community with information about nuclear weapons, nuclear waste and energy systems the world over. The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Intelligence Support is the only Treasury agency which is a member of the IC, and provides intelligence related to economic activity, world currencies, counterfeiting and the protection of US assets here and abroad. The Department of Homeland Security is also a member of the IC, coordinating the Community with state and local governments for emergency response purposes. Clear as mud, right? ---
**Author:** ![Jodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@Jodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jodi)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/11 "2003-10-02T19:11:35Z")
Actually, that was very informative, FRIEDO. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/12 "2003-10-02T19:52:17Z")
The CIA, if they’re prepared. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2003, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/13 "2003-10-02T21:58:32Z")
[The winner is: CIA](http://www.googlefight.com/cgi-bin/compare.pl?q1=CIA&q2=FBI&B1=Make+a+fight%21&compare=1&langue=us) ---
**Author:** ![censored](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/35a633/32.png) [@censored](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/censored)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2003, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/14 "2003-10-03T00:35:22Z")
NIMA also performs IMINT (imagery intelligence, e.g. photos from satellites, reconaissance planes, UAVs) analysis, in addition to the mapping services. ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2003, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cia-vs-fbi/205118/15 "2003-10-03T05:02:31Z")
O,IC.