Australian Signals Directorate
| File:Defence signals directorate logo.png Slogan: Reveal their secrets ... Protect our own | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 12 November 1947 |
| Jurisdiction | Commonwealth of Australia |
| Headquarters | Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia 35°17′43″S 149°08′55″E / 35.2952°S 149.1487°E |
| Minister responsible |
|
| Parent agency | Department of Defence |
| Website | asd.gov.au |
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Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) (formerly: Defence Signals Directorate (DSD)) is an Australian government intelligence agency responsible for signals intelligence (SIGINT) and information security (INFOSEC). ASD was established in 1947.
Overview
ASD has two principal functions: to collect and disseminate foreign signals intelligence; and to provide information security products and services to the Australian Government and its Defence Force.[1]
Based in Canberra, at the Defence Headquarters at Russell Offices[2] it operates monitoring facilities at Kojarena, Western Australia and at Shoal Bay, Northern Territory, which are believed to be part of the ECHELON system, and is involved in Pine Gap.[3]
Under the 1948 UKUSA agreement, ASD's intelligence is shared with its foreign partner agencies: the National Security Agency (NSA) – United States, the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) – United Kingdom, the Communications Security Establishment (CSE) – Canada, and the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) – New Zealand.
Electronic warfare operators in the Royal Australian Corps of Signals work closely with the Australian Signals Directorate. 7 Signal Regiment (Electronic Warfare) at Borneo Barracks, Cabarlah, Queensland is associated with ASD.
Facilities
The ASD operates at least three receiving stations: the Australian Defence Satellite Communications Station (ADSCS), located at Kojarena, near Geraldton, Western Australia; the Shoal Bay Receiving Station, located at Shoal Bay, Northern Territory;[4] and a small station on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands.[4]
These stations contribute signals intelligence for many Australian Government bodies, as well as the wider UKUSA partners. The ASD also maintains a workforce at Pine Gap in central Australia.[3]
In addition, it has been reported that many Australian embassies and overseas missions also house small facilities which provide a flow of signals intelligence to ASD.[5]
Naming
The Directorate has operated under a number of different names since its founding:
- 1947 – Defence Signals Bureau established within the Department of Defence
- 1949 – Changes name to Defence Signals Branch
- 1964 – Changes name to Defence Signals Division
- 1978 – Changes name to Defence Signals Directorate
- 2013 – Changes name to Australian Signals Directorate[6]
See also
References
- ^ "About DSD: DSD Defence Signals Directorate". dsd.gov.au. 2011.
- ^ "History: DSD Defence Signals Directorate". dsd.gov.au. 2011.
- ^ a b Leslie, Tim; Corcoran, Mark (19 November 2013). "Explained: Australia's involvement with the NSA, the US spy agency at heart of global scandal". ABC. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
- ^ a b Dorling, Philip (1 November 2013). "Listening post revealed on Cocos Islands". Canberra Times.
- ^ Dorling, Philip (31 October 2013). "Exposed: Australia's Asia spy network". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2 November 2013.
- ^ "2013 Defence White Paper: Renaming the Defence Signals Directorate and the Defence Imagery and Geospatial Organisation" (Press release). Minister for Defence. 3 May 2013. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
External links
- Australian Signals Directorate official website
- Open Australia Search: Parliamentary records mentioning 'signals directorate'.
