The primary purpose of a DIRGram is to ensure that key directives and information from the NSA’s leadership are effectively communicated throughout the agency. This can include:

• Operational Directives: Instructions regarding specific intelligence operations, including changes in procedures or the initiation of new projects.
• Policy Updates: Announcements of new policies or modifications to existing policies that impact the agency’s operations and protocols.
• Strategic Guidance: Communication of strategic priorities and objectives to align the efforts of different divisions with the overall goals of the NSA.
• Administrative Instructions: Information on administrative matters, such as changes in personnel policies, compliance requirements, or internal organizational changes.

Below, you will find DIRgrams released via FOIA.

Document Archive

DIRgrams from September 2001 – September 2002 [40 Pages, 5.5MB]

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The post NSA DIRgram / Director’s Memorandum Archive first appeared on The Black Vault.

Document Archive

Book I: The Struggle for Centralization 1945-1960

 American Cryptology During the Cold War 1945-1989, Book I [299 Pages, 14.87MB]

Book II: Centralization Wins, 1960-1972

 American Cryptology During the Cold War 1945-1989, Book II [371 Pages, 73MB] – This version was after an MDR case filed in November 2021 and released in January 2023.
ARCHIVED VERSION PREVIOUSLY RELEASED – Date Unknown and more redacted than the above:  American Cryptology During the Cold War 1945-1989, Book II [369 Pages, 17.31MB]

Book III: Retrenchment and Reform, 1972-1980

 American Cryptology During the Cold War 1945-1989, Book III [271 Pages, 11.77MB]

Book IV: Cryptologic Rebirth, 1981-1989

 American Cryptology During the Cold War 1945-1989, Book IV [233 Pages, 9.21MB]

The post American Cryptology during the Cold War, 1945-1989 first appeared on The Black Vault.

Document Archive

NSA Report to the President’s Intelligence Oversight Board (IOB) for 4QT 2001 [9 Pages, 2MB]

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The post NSA Report to the President’s Intelligence Oversight Board (IOB) for 4QT 2001 first appeared on The Black Vault.

On November 27, 2021, The Black Vault filed a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) request to have this document further reviewed. Although previously released in 2007 to an unknown FOIA requester, it was redacted heavily in many sections.

In November of 2022, The Black Vault received a much less redacted version, which is available below.

Document Archive

On Watch: Profiles from the National Security Agency’s Past 40 Years, 1984 [112 Pages, 40MB]

The post On Watch: Profiles from the National Security Agency’s Past 40 Years, 1984 first appeared on The Black Vault.

Although released in early 2018, there were many redactions. However, in August of 2021, The Black Vault filed a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) case to have the record reviewed again. It was a success, having some (not all) of the redactions lifted. The result was the release of initiative details that include machine learning, stealth science, projected research outcomes, and more.

Below, you will find the release, but also a highlighted release showing what information was declassified for this MDR case.

Document Archive

Research Initiatives Presentation, Dr. Deborah Frincke, Director, NSA/CSS Research Directorate, 22 December 2016 [11 Pages, 5MB]

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Research Initiatives Presentation, Dr. Deborah Frincke, Director, NSA/CSS Research Directorate, 22 December 2016 – Highlighted Version [11 Pages, 5MB]

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The post Research Initiatives Presentation, Dr. Deborah Frincke, Director, NSA/CSS Research Directorate, 22 December 2016 first appeared on The Black Vault.

Below, you will find issue released via the FOIA to The Black Vault.

Document Archive

SIDToday Newsletters, August 26, 2016 – August 30, 2016 [16 Pages, 11MB]

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The post SIDToday Newsletters – NSA Signals Intelligence Directorate Internal Newsletter first appeared on The Black Vault.

Document Archive

The Maya Astronomical Computer, by Charles H. Lacombe and [REDACTED], Winter 1977 [23 Pages, 13.2MB]

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The post The Maya Astronomical Computer, by Charles H. Lacombe and [REDACTED], Winter 1977 first appeared on The Black Vault.

From the document:

“The digital revolution has clearly placed the National Security Agency/Central Security Service (NSA /CSS) in a unique position to serve the nation in new and exciting ways. Our future demands that we succeed in providing Global Cryptologic Dominance through improved performance and better integration of our core expertise and missions – exploit , protect and defend – while supporting DoD efforts to attack information and information systems. Delivering Global Cryptologic Dominance also demands our best people and best efforts to develop and operate world – class Cryptologic systems and tools. Our aim is to sense, make sense of, and securely share electronically gathered information at the speed, agility, and security that the global information network offers. Additionally, we will measurably improve the security of national security systems and other critical operations and information by providing the Information Assurance know -how and technology when and where needed.”

Document Archive

NSA/CSS Strategy, Published June 2010 [27 Pages, 12MB]

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The post NSA/CSS Strategy, Published June 2010 first appeared on The Black Vault.

In the beginning of 2016, I requested under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and printout of documents listed within the NSA’s ADMS system, which catalogs NSA records within their holdings.

I filed two separate requests, seeking titles and citations for all records that bear the dates before 1900 and the second request was identical but for records dated 1900 through 1920.

The NSA responded to both requests in the same response. Below, you will find the archive.

Document Archive

National Security Agency (NSA) ADMS “Document Management System” Printouts for Documents dated 1930  [6 Pages, 2MB]

 National Security Agency (NSA) ADMS “Document Management System” Printouts for Documents dated through 1920 [61 Pages, 21.6MB]

The post National Security Agency (NSA) ADMS “Document Management System” Printouts first appeared on The Black Vault.

Cryptolog was created in 1974 and was, according to the editor, “a new vehicle for the interchange of ideas on technical subjects.” Another editor called it “a mix of technical, expository, philosophical, futuristic, argumentative and historical articles – with a light touch here and there – there’s always an article or two to engage the reader.” Issues of Cryptolog were published initially on a monthly basis, but in the final years of its publication, were released on a quarterly basis. There were no issues published in 1993 and the final issue was released in July of 1997.

The Black Vault began not only archiving the released versions first put out in 2012, but later filing Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) requests to get them further reviewed.

Below you will find the October 1981 edition, and the huge MDR request success that got much of it further declassified.

Document Archive

Cryptolog (NSA Newsletter), October 1981 Edition, Released September 2020 [18 Pages, 7.5MB]

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Cryptolog (NSA Newsletter), October 1981 Edition, Released September 2020 – HIGHLIGHTED EDITION – [18 Pages, 7.5MB] – This version contains highlighted text, which discerns the newly released information after the MDR.

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Archived Versions

Cryptolog (NSA Newsletter), October 1981 Edition, Released October 2012 – This is the original release of the 1981 edition in 2012. It is archived here to represent how redacted the record originally was.

The post Cryptolog (NSA Newsletter), October 1981 Edition first appeared on The Black Vault.

The following document was first received by the National Security Archive many years ago, but it is unclear when it was first declassified. The released version had many redactions.

So, in February of 2019, The Black Vault requested a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) of the document. In July of 2019, the below was released.

Document Archive

NSA COMINT REPORT: Capital Projects Planned in India, August 31, 1972 [8 Pages, 2.2MB]

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NSA COMINT REPORT: Capital Projects Planned in India, August 31, 1972 – Highlighted Version – [8 Pages, 2.2MB] – This version contains the highlighted information that is newly released, and no longer redacted.

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The post NSA COMINT REPORT: Capital Projects Planned in India, August 31, 1972 first appeared on The Black Vault.

The following document was requested through a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) request by The Black Vault in February 2019. The records was released at an unknown previous date, but had some of the report redacted.

The MDR was a success, and some of those redactions were lifted on the June 2019 released by the NSA to The Black Vault. I put a “highlighted” version below so you can see the newly released information.

Document Archive

National Security Agency / Central Security Service Transition 2001, December 2000 [45 Pages, 13MB]

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National Security Agency / Central Security Service Transition 2001, December 2000 – Highlighted Version – [45 Pages, 13MB]

The post National Security Agency / Central Security Service Transition 2001, December 2000 first appeared on The Black Vault.

Cicada 3301 is a nickname given to an organization that on three occasions has posted a set of puzzles to recruit codebreakers from the public. The first internet puzzle started on January 4, 2012 on 4chan and ran for approximately one month. A second round began one year later on January 4, 2013, and a third round following the confirmation of a fresh clue posted on Twitter on January 4, 2014. The stated intent was to recruit “intelligent individuals” by presenting a series of puzzles which were to be solved. No new puzzles were published on January 4, 2015. However, a new clue was posted on Twitter on January 5, 2016. In April 2017 a verified PGP-signed message was found: Beware false paths. Always verify PGP signature from 7A35090F. That message explicitly denies the validity of any unsigned puzzle, as recently as April 2017.

The puzzles focused heavily on data security, cryptography, steganography, internet anonymity, and surveillance.

It has been called “the most elaborate and mysterious puzzle of the internet age” and is listed as one of the “top 5 eeriest, unsolved mysteries of the internet”, and much speculation exists as to its function. Many have speculated that the puzzles are a recruitment tool for the NSA, CIA, MI6, a “Masonic conspiracy” or a cyber mercenary group. Others have claimed Cicada 3301 is an alternate reality game. No company or individual has taken credit for it or attempted to monetize it, however.

Document Archive

(Other than the NSA documents below, it should be noted that a “no records” response was given to my FOIA requests on Cicada 3301 sent to the FBI, NSA’s Intellipedia system, and the CIA.

Cicada 3301 Documents from the NSA [27 Pages, 10MB] (Note: the request date from the NSA referenced in the letter is incorrect.)

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* Thanks to Wikipedia for background information on Cicada 3301.

The post Cicada 3301 first appeared on The Black Vault.

The following emails were internal communications between NSA employees on how to deal with certain types of FOIA requesters. I filed an MDR in 2019 as the records were previously released under FOIA, however, no new information came to light.  The records are archived below.

Document Archive

NSA Emails: Media Leaks Strategic Guidance Needed on Engaging FOIA Requesters, 2013 [9 Pages, 3.5MB]

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The post NSA Emails: Media Leaks Strategic Guidance Needed on Engaging FOIA Requesters, 2013 first appeared on The Black Vault.

When employees of the National Security Agency (NSA) seek outside employment, they are required to file an “outside employment approval” form wherein they request from a superior permission to do so.

Back in March of 2015, I requested all forms filed. The released forms are below.

Document Archive

National Security Agency (NSA) Outside Employment Request Forms, approximately 2015-2016 [28 Pages, 14.4MB]

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The post National Security Agency (NSA) Outside Employment Request Forms first appeared on The Black Vault.

The American electoral process retains many vestiges reflecting its eighteenth century origins. In the age of supersonic transport and email, U.S. citizens select their national leadership on a timetable derived from the speed of carriages and town criers.

In the past, in the transition periods following elections, the Central Intelligence Agency has been the manager for general orientations about the foreign intelligence community and for specific, classified briefings on topics of concern to the incoming administration.

In 2000 the National Security Agency, for the first time, decided to engage more actively in the presidential transition briefing process. The issues for NSA were not small. For those in the new administration for whom this would be the first exposure to cryptology, a briefing would be an important factor in determining how they would interact with NSA.

Previously, the National Security Agency (NSA) released the below document to offer insight into the 2001 transition. I requested what is called a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and was successful in getting the NSA to review the document more thoroughly, and remove some of the “blacked out” information. I have included all releases, for reference.

The Documents

 Presidential Transition 2001: NSA Briefs a New Administration 2019 Release (With highlights of new information) – [28 Pages, 14.2MB] – This document was released to me in 2019, with less redactions, and is embedded below, after the Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) was completed.

 Presidential Transition 2001: NSA Briefs a New Administration 2016 Release – [28 Pages, 1.6MB] – This document was released to me in 2016, after an MDR that I filed, and it is archived here for reference.

 Presidential Transition 2001: NSA Briefs a New Administration 2013 Release – [25 Pages, 2.3MB] – This was the original release of the document in 2013, and it is archived here for reference.

The post Presidential Transition 2001: NSA Briefs a New Administration (2004 Document) first appeared on The Black Vault.

PROMIS is believed by some to be the forefunner to the now infamous “Prism” program by the National Security Agency (NSA).  The “Prism” program was brought to light by leaker Edward Snowden, yet it is now coming to light, that a program has existed long before this new revelation.  It was known as PROMIS.

PROMIS is also the name for a Department of Justice computer software program.  In the mid-1970s, Inslaw, Inc., a small Washington D.C. software development company, created for the a highly efficient, people-tracking, computer program known as Prosecutor’s Management Information System (Promis). Inslaw’s principal owners, William Anthony Hamilton and his wife, Nancy Burke Hamilton, later sued the United States Government (acting as principal to the Department of Justice) for not complying with the terms of the Promis contract and for refusing to pay for an enhanced version of Promis once delivered. This allegation of software piracy led to three trials in separate federal courts and two congressional hearings.

The following article excerpt is used to best explain the program as connected to the NSA – while the FOIA documents follow below.

The FOIA Documents

Department of Justice (DOJ)

 Report of Special Counsel Nicholas J. Bua to the Attorney General of the United States Regarding the Allegations of INSLAW, Inc., March 1993, and the 1994 DOJ Report on INSLAW/PROMIS matter, released by the Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Information Policy (OIP) [465 Pages, 11MB] – Special thanks to GovernmentAttic.org for this record.

National Security Agency (NSA)

 NSA Documents Regarding PROMIS, Released 4 October 2018 [17 Pages, 2.7MB] – In March of 2016, see below, the NSA required a $440 payment in order to continue to process my request on PROMIS. Although I did not respond, I was surprised to receive this in October of 2018. It appears that this is only part of what the NSA has on PROMIS, and additional records are still being processed. I will add them when they are released to me.

 NSA Documents Regarding PROMIS, Released 22 October 2018 [85 Pages, 8MB] – This release includes the user’s manual of the PROMIS system, various memorandums and more. One document was withheld entirely and this, according to the NSA, is now the final release of information.

 ARCHIVED (Read Above) Letter regarding the NSA use of the PROMIS System [4 Pages, 1.1MB] – The NSA did find a considerable amount of documents, however, they are requiring a payment of $440 for the release of the material.

The post NSA Surveillance Program: PROMIS first appeared on The Black Vault.

According to this article:

“GNI (Global Network Intelligence) and IW (Information Warfare) are two acronyms that have become part of NSA’s language over the past couple of years. Both convey new and comprehensive activities that are critical to NSA’s future and both dramatically affect the Agency’s offensive (SIGINT) and defensive (INFOSEC) missions. The purpose of this article is to provide a general overview of the background and ongoing activities in each area, to explain their interrelationships, and to discuss a few relevant challenges that are of general interest to the NSA workforce.”

This record was released previous in heavily redacted form. In February 2018, I requested a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) of this document, in hopes to get some of the redactions lifted. In August of 2018, the NSA removed a considerable amount of redactions, and released the document to The Black Vault.

You can find the newest version (as posted in August of 2018) of this record.

Document Archive

 Global Network Intelligence and Information Warfare: SIGINT and INFOSEC in Cyberspace, 1995 [13 Pages, 2.4MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/nsa/SIGINTINFOSEC-Cyberspace.pdf

The post Global Network Intelligence and Information Warfare: SIGINT and INFOSEC in Cyberspace, 1995 first appeared on The Black Vault.

Although this document had been released before, in February of 2018, I requested a “Mandatory Declassification Review” (MDR) of the record to see if I could get some of the blacked out information released.  Although it wasn’t much, once the MDR was completed in August of 2018, it had a little less redaction.  I will still consider that a win!

Document Archive

 NSA and the Supercomputer Industry, Cryptologic Quarterly, Winter 1995 – Vol. 14, No. 4 [12 Pages, 1.4MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/nsa/MDR103541.pdf

The post NSA and the Supercomputer Industry, Cryptologic Quarterly, Winter 1995 – Vol. 14, No. 4 first appeared on The Black Vault.

The document, “Beyond BOURBON-1948: The Fourth Year of Allied Collaborative COMINT Effort Against the Soviet Union” dated 1995 was first released in approximately 2010. The document had excessive redactions.  After a document has been reviewed, as long as two years have passed, you can request a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) to get the document re-reviewed for possible further release. In other words, get redactions lifted.

In October of 2016, I request an MDR on the document. The NSA reviewed it under MDR Case 85686, and released the record to me in June of 2017.

Declassified Document

 Beyond BOURBON-1948: The Fourth Year of Allied Collaborative COMINT Effort Against the Soviet Union, 1995 (Result of 2017 MDR Request) [61 Pages, 7.3MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/nsa/MDR85686.pdf

The post Beyond BOURBON-1948: The Fourth Year of Allied Collaborative COMINT Effort Against the Soviet Union, 1995 (Result of 2017 MDR Request) first appeared on The Black Vault.

This particular document was found, when I filed a FOIA request back on April 10, 2014, asking for: a copy of all records, electronic or otherwise, pertaining to the internal discussion by the National Security Agency on how the agency would deal with FOIA requests, the media, and any and all inquiries into the NSA after Edward Snowden released classified information. 

It took until 20 September 2017, but the NSA released the below document as responsive to the above.

Document Archive

 NSA/CSS Media Engagement and Outreach Plan: September – December 2014 [21 Pages, 1.8MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/nsa/NSAMediaPlan-SepDec2014.pdf

FOIA Case File

I requested the entire “FOIA Case File” with processing notes and internal documents, regarding the above case. Although I do not do this for every FOIA case I file, I felt this one would be interesting to see the “behind the scenes”.

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/nsa/77487A.pdf

The post NSA/CSS Media Engagement and Outreach Plan: September – December 2014 first appeared on The Black Vault.

In April of 2014, I requested from the National Security Agency (NSA) the following:

I respectfully request a copy of all records, electronic or otherwise, pertaining to the internal discussion by the National Security Agency on how the agency would deal with FOIA requests, the media, and any and all inquiries into the NSA after Edward Snowden released classified information.

It took more than three years, but the NSA finally responded with the below document.

Document Archive

 NSA/CSS Media Engagement and Outreach Plan, September – December, 2014 [21 Pages, 1.4MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/nsa/NSA-Snowden-FOIA.pdf

The post NSA/CSS Media Engagement and Outreach Plan, September – December, 2014 first appeared on The Black Vault.

Internally, the National Security Agency (NSA) publishes the “Gabby the Grammar Geek” column.

In September of 2014, I requested under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for all columns that were published in 2013.

It was not until September of 2017 that they were released.

Although it took a while for this release, I did file for more. This page will be updated when they are available.

Document Archive

 Gabby the Grammar Geek Column, Published by the National Security Agency (NSA), 2013 [22 Pages, 2.8MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/nsa/gabbygeek-2013-nsa1.pdf

The post Gabby the Grammar Geek Column, Published by the National Security Agency (NSA) first appeared on The Black Vault.

According to Wikipedia:

The Voynich manuscript is an illustrated codex hand-written in an unknown writing system. The vellum on which it is written has been carbon-dated to the early 15th century (1404–1438), and it may have been composed in Northern Italy during the Italian Renaissance. The manuscript is named after Wilfrid Voynich, a Polish book dealer who purchased it in 1912.

Some of the pages are missing, with around 240 remaining. The text is written from left to right, and most of the pages have illustrations or diagrams. Some pages are foldable sheets.

The Voynich manuscript has been studied by many professional and amateur cryptographers, including American and British codebreakers from both World War I and World War II. No one has yet succeeded in deciphering the text, and it has become a famous case in the history of cryptography. The mystery of the meaning and origin of the manuscript has excited the popular imagination, making the manuscript the subject of novels and speculation. None of the many hypotheses proposed over the last hundred years has yet been independently verified.

In 1969 the Voynich manuscript was donated by Hans P. Kraus to Yale University’s Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, where it is cataloged under call number MS 408.

 In June of 2017, I requested from the National Security Agency (NSA) all records they had to The Voynich Manuscript. Below, you will find the search results.  They did inform me they have put some of the material on their website, however, it does not appear that it is complete.

Below, according to the NSA, is a complete set of records.

Document Archive

 The Voynich Manuscript NSA Documents [348 Pages, 57MB]

The post The Voynich Manuscript – National Security Agency (NSA) Documents first appeared on The Black Vault.

The below document was received, after I filed a FOIA Request on February 27, 2017, for the following:

I respectfully request a copy of records, electronic or otherwise, pertaining to: any memo to staff issued in January or February 2017 about the need to protect sensitive or internal agency information.

The below record was responsive to this request, and as far as I can tell, as of the creation of this page, had never been released publicly before.

Document Archive

 NSA Director’s Message: “Professionalism and Duty”, February 22, 2017 [3 Pages, 1.1MB]

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The post NSA Director’s Message: “Professionalism and Duty”, February 22, 2017 first appeared on The Black Vault.