Government Communications Security Bureau

The Government Communications Security Bureau ( GCSB ) is a news service of the New Zealand Government.

The mission statement of the organization is: To contribute to national security of New Zealand by:

• Technical foreign intelligence to assist the government in the decision-making process and to inform,
• Round the clock surveillance of foreign intelligence and warning service for the government,
• Ensuring the integrity, availability and confidentiality of official information by an information systems security for the government and
• Support in the protection of vital national infrastructure against information threats.

Especially for the last task, the Centre for Critical Infrastructure Protection (Centre for the Protection of vital infrastructure ) was established in 2001 within the GCSB.

The GCSB itself was founded in 1977 by a decree of the Prime Minister and operates the communication monitoring stations Waihopai station and the radio monitoring station Tangimoana station. The GCSB is directly subordinated to the Prime Minister.

2003 was the adoption of the Government Communications Security Bureau Act 2003. Since the office is set up as a public service department.

In the course of the investigation against Kim Schmitz persons were monitored illegal. However, the intelligence agency may by law to monitor no New Zealand citizens or citizens who are resident in New Zealand. Prime Minister John Key ordered after learning of the monitoring of an investigation.

After a legislative reform in August 2013, it is the GCSB first time allows, under certain conditions, also spy on the internet activities of New Zealand citizens.