KGB

The Soviet committee for state security, 1954 to 1991, running espionage and internal control

Overview

The KGB operated from 1954 until the dissolution of the USSR as the umbrella of Soviet intelligence. Its First Chief Directorate ran foreign espionage and scored deep successes stealing Western technology, while the Second Chief Directorate hunted Western spies at home. From the Lubyanka it also guarded the leadership and suppressed dissent through the psychiatric and prison systems. At its peak it was among the largest organizations on earth. Its foreign directorate became the SVR and its domestic apparatus became the FSB, both continuing into modern Russia.