United States Army Security Agency

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The United States Army Security Agency (abbreviated ASA) was, from 1945 through 1976, the United States Army's electronic intelligence branch. Its motto was "Vigilant Always." The agency was the successor to a number of Army signals intelligence operations dating back to World War I. As well as intelligence gathering, it also had responsibility for the security of Army communications and for electronic countermeasures operations. In 1976, the USASA was merged with the US Army Intelligence Agency in a process which formed the United States Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM).

Composed primarily of soldiers with very high scores on Army intelligence tests, the ASA was tasked with monitoring and interpreting military communications of the Soviet Union, the People’s Republic of China, and their allies and client states around the world. ASA was directly subordinate to NSA and all field stations had NSA tech reps on site.

All gathered information had time value depending on its importance and classification. Information was passed through intelligence channels within hours of intercept for the lowest priority items, but in as little as 10 minutes for the most highly critical information.

ASA personnel were stationed at locations around the globe, wherever the United States had a military presence -- publicly acknowledged or otherwise. Although not officially serving under the ASA name, ASA personnel were among the earliest U.S. military advisors in Vietnam. The first ASA combat fatality in Vietnam took place in 1961. ASA personnel were attached to Army infantry units throughout the Vietnam War.

ASA military occupational specialties (MOSs) included linguists, Morse code Intercept operators, Non-Morse (teletype) Intercept operators, signal security specialists, direction-finding equipment operators, cryptographers, communications analysts, and electronic maintenance technicians, among others. ASA had its own separate training facilities, MP corps, communication centers and chain of command.

These jobs, which required top secret clearance, were essential to U.S. Cold War efforts. ASA units operated in shifts, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. ASA troops were not allowed to discuss their jobs with outsiders — in fact, they could not talk among themselves about their jobs unless they were in a secure location. Owing to the sensitivity of the information with which they worked, ASA soldiers were subject to travel restrictions during and after their time in service. The activities of the U.S. Army Security Agency have only recently been partly declassified.