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Federal Bureau of Investigation

U.S. federal law enforcement agency / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, the FBI is also a member of the U.S. Intelligence Community and reports to both the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence.[3] A leading U.S. counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and criminal investigative organization, the FBI has jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crimes.[4][5]

Quick facts: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Abbreviation...
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation's seal
Federal Bureau of Investigation's seal
FBI special agent badge
FBI special agent badge
Flag of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
AbbreviationFBI
MottoFidelity, Bravery, Integrity
Agency overview
FormedJuly 26, 1908 (as the Bureau of Investigation)
Employees≈35,000[1]
Annual budgetUS$9,748,829,000 (FY 2021)[2]
Jurisdictional structure
Federal agencyUnited States
Operations jurisdictionUnited States
General nature
Operational structure
HeadquartersJ. Edgar Hoover Building
Washington, D.C., U.S.
38°53′43″N 77°01′30″W
Agency executives
Parent agencyDepartment of Justice
Office of the Director of National Intelligence
Website
www.fbi.gov Edit this at Wikidata
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Although many of the FBI's functions are unique, its activities in support of national security are comparable to those of the British MI5 and NCA; the New Zealand GCSB and the Russian FSB. Unlike the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), which has no law enforcement authority and is focused on intelligence collection abroad, the FBI is primarily a domestic agency, maintaining 56 field offices in major cities throughout the United States, and more than 400 resident agencies in smaller cities and areas across the nation. At an FBI field office, a senior-level FBI officer concurrently serves as the representative of the Director of National Intelligence.[6][7]

Despite its domestic focus, the FBI also maintains a significant international footprint, operating 60 Legal Attache (LEGAT) offices and 15 sub-offices in U.S. embassies and consulates across the globe. These foreign offices exist primarily for the purpose of coordination with foreign security services and do not usually conduct unilateral operations in the host countries.[8] The FBI can and does at times carry out secret activities overseas,[9] just as the CIA has a limited domestic function; these activities generally require coordination across government agencies.

The FBI was established in 1908 as the Bureau of Investigation, the BOI or BI for short. Its name was changed to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 1935.[10] The FBI headquarters is the J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington, D.C. The FBI has a List of the Top 10 criminals.