MAIL SURVEY

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0001420862
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: June 22, 2015
• Document Release Date: January 7, 2009
• Case Number: F-2007-00095
• Publication Date: March 25, 1975

Ad ay
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2 5 MAR 1975
MEMORA14DUM FOR: Director of Central Intelligence
FROM Inspector General
SUBJECT : Mail Survey
APPROVED FOR
RELEASE DATE:
05-Nov-2008
1. We have reviewed your statement of 13 January 1975 to the
Commission on CIA Activities within the United States and the one of
15 January 1975 to the Senate Appropriations Committee, and in both
instances the last sentence dealing with subject states that "there
has been no mail survey in this country by CIA since February 1973."
An article in the Washington Post of 18 March 1975 called attention to
this statement in connection with statistics released by the U.S. Postal
Service that showed that "the Central Intelligence Agency had two mail
covers in 1973."
3. In the second instance, the Office of Security requested mail
cover on and on
The mail cover was es a is e 20 June lv/z an
renewe at an 0 day intervals. The last renewal occurred on 26
December 1972 and expired on 29 May 1973.
 SUBJECT: Mail Survey
4. Relevant statements made by you and comments by the press
are attached.
Donald F. Chamberlain
Inspector General
 -Statement by the DCI to the Commission on
CIA Activities Within the United States
13 January 1975
From 1953 until February 1973, CIA conducted several programs
to survey and open selected mail between the United States and two
Communist countries. One occurred in a US city from 1953 to February
1973, when it was terminated. One took place during limited periods in
one other area in November 1969, February and May 1970, and October 1971.
One other occurred in August 1957. The purpose of the first and extended
activity was to identify individuals in active correspondence with Communist
countries for presumed counterintelligence purposes, the results being
shared with the FBI. The others were designed primarily to determine the
nature and extent of censorship techniques. The August 1957 case was to
try to learn the foreign contacts of a number of Americans of counter-
intelligence interest. I repeat that there has been no mail survey in this
country by CIA since February 1973.
 Statement by the DCI before the Senate
Appropriations Committee
15 January 1975
This was a verbatim statement to the one you made on 13 January.
However, a supplement to this statement included the following revision:
Delete the remainder of the text beginning with sentence One other
occurred in August 1957 and substitute the following:
(One) of a'limited nature took place in 1954. The primary
purpose of these activities was to identify individuals in
active correspondence with Communist countries for counter-
intelligence purposes, the results being shared with the FBI.
They also were designed to determine the nature and extent of
foreign governments' censorship techniques and to give leads
to persons (foreign and American, in the United States and the
countries of interest) who would be interested in cooperating
with CIA in foreign intelligence operations. In addition to
the above, international mail passing through a U.S. port was
1. opened in August 1957. There has been no mail survey in this
country by CIA since February 1973.
 Newspaper Comments
An article in the Washington Post of 18 March 1975 reported
that statistics from the U.S. Postal Service showed "that the Central
Intelligence Agency had two mail covers in 1973. The CIA has said it
stopped its program of surveying and opening mail between this country
and foreign countries in February 1973."
An article in the Washington Post of 19 March 1975 deals with
testimony by Mr. William J. Cotter, Chief Postal Inspector, to a
Congressional subcommittee and contains the sentence "With the exception
of activities publicly admitted to by the CIA, Cotter said, no mail is
opened without a court order.