Security and Intelligence Division

The SID shared a similar background to its domestic counterpart, the Internal Security Department (ISD).

In the aftermath of 1915 Singapore Mutiny, to collect the political intelligence, espionage, and the surveillance of potential subversives,{{cite book|last1=Ban|first1=Kah Choon|title=The Untold Story of Special Branch Operations in Singapore 1915-1942|date=2001|publisher=Raffles}} a political intelligence bureau was established in Singapore under direct command and control of Major-General Dudley Howard Ridout, General-Officer-Commanding of Singapore,{{cite journal|last1=Comber|first1=Leon|title=The Singapore Mutiny (1915) and the Genesis of Political Intelligence in Singapore|journal=Intelligence and National Security|date=13 August 2009|volume=24|issue=4|pages=529–541|doi=10.1080/02684520903069462|s2cid=154217090}} which eventually became the Special Branch in 1919.

Prior to 1965, Singapore's primary intelligence agency was the Malaysian Special Branch. After Singapore gained independence in 1965, the Ministry of Interior and Defence (MID) was directed to reorganise and consolidate all intelligence capabilities in January 1966. The SID was subsequently established in February 1966, with Tay Seow Huah as its first director.

In 1974, S. R. Nathan, who was then the SID Director, led a negotiation team to help resolve the Laju hostage crisis.{{cite web|title=S. R. Nathan|url=http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_490_2004-12-23.html|publisher=National Library Board Singapore|access-date=19 January 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131031114827/http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_490_2004-12-23.html|archive-date=31 October 2013}}

As the SID is a highly secretive organisation, information about its activities is only released occasionally to the media. In 2001, Yap Chuin Wei, a reporter from The Straits Times, interviewed a former SID officer on the agency's work. The officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the SID works in three main ways: collection of information, analysis of information, and informal diplomacy.{{cite news|last=Yap|first=Chuin Wei|title=Examining the world's second-oldest profession|url=https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/beritamalaysia/conversations/topics/34955|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140119090115/http://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/beritamalaysia/conversations/topics/34955|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 January 2014|access-date=19 January 2014|newspaper=The Straits Times|date=19 May 2001}} The SID was also mentioned in Lee Kuan Yew's book From Third World to First: The Singapore Story: 1965–2000, in which it is said to have played a role in providing weapons to anti-communist forces in Cambodian Civil War in the 1970s.{{cite book|last=Lee|first=Kuan Yew|title=From Third World to First: The Singapore Story: 1965-2000|year=2000|publisher=HarperCollins|isbn=0060197765|pages=[https://archive.org/details/fromthirdworldto00leek/page/378 378–379]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/fromthirdworldto00leek/page/378}} The SID also played a role in rebuilding Singapore's relations with Indonesia after the Konfrontasi ended in 1966. Tim Huxley wrote a short history of the SID in his book Defending the Lion City: The Armed Forces of Singapore, which was published in 2000.{{cite book|last=Huxley|first=Tim|title=Defending the Lion City: The Armed Forces of Singapore|year=2000|publisher=Allen & Unwin|location=Australia|pages=89–90|isbn=1-86508-118-3}}

The former SID officer interviewed by Yap said that SID officers rarely receive public awards due to security and political concerns. They are awarded a set of medals equivalent to the National Day medals instead but their names will not be publicised.

In 2004, the National Security Coordination Secretariat (NSCS) was set up under the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to deal with security threats and terrorism. This meant that the SID and the ISD, which previously worked independent of each other, had to share information for the first time.{{cite news|last=Tor|first=Ching Li|title=United front against terror|url=http://newspapers.nl.sg/Digitised/Article.aspx?articleid=today20040721-1.2.10.3&sessionid=c5264d400b1b4aa9917969dd35e417c3&keyword=%22security+and+intelligence+division%22&lang=en&token=and%2csecurity%2cdivision%2cintelligence|access-date=19 January 2014|newspaper=Today|date=21 July 2004|page=6|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203133102/http://newspapers.nl.sg/Digitised/Article.aspx?articleid=today20040721-1.2.10.3&sessionid=c5264d400b1b4aa9917969dd35e417c3&keyword=%22security+and+intelligence+division%22&lang=en&token=and%2Csecurity%2Cdivision%2Cintelligence|archive-date=3 December 2013}}

In August 2013, it was alleged that the SID cooperated with the Australian Signals Directorate to tap the undersea fibre optic telecommunications cables that link Asia, Europe and the Middle East.{{cite web|last=Dorling|first=Phillip|title=Spy agency taps undersea cables|url=http://www.smh.com.au/national/spy-agency-taps-undersea-cables-20130828-2squf.html#ixzz2mK9WWPvv|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|access-date=19 January 2014|date=29 August 2013}}

On 19 July 2021, the SID launched its official website to attract and recruit more talents into its ranks.{{cite news|last=Tor|first=Ching Li|title=Singapore intelligence officers open up as SID seeks to recruit more diverse talent|url=https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/sid-singapore-intelligence-officers-security-recruitment-2049961|access-date=19 July 2021|newspaper=CNA|date=19 July 2021}}

The following is a list of former Director of the Security Intelligence Division. The identity of the director is not conspicuously made known to the public, until they relinquish the post.

• Internal Security Department, the domestic intelligence agency

{{Reflist}}

{{External national intelligence agencies}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Security And Intelligence Division}}

Category:Singaporean intelligence agencies

Category:Government agencies established in 1966