Seal of the United States Diplomatic Security Service

Regional Security Officer (RSO) is the title given to a special agent of the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) who is in charge of a

Regional Security Office A Regional Security Office is the office at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate that oversees all functions of security. It is headed by a special agent of the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) who has the title of Regional Security Officer (RSO). ...

. The RSO is the principal security

attaché In diplomacy, an attaché is a person who is assigned ("to be attached") to the diplomatic or administrative staff of a higher placed person or another service or agency. Although a loanword from French, in English the word is not modified acco ...

and advisor to the U.S. Ambassador at American embassies and

consulate A consulate is the office of a consul. A type of diplomatic mission, it is usually subordinate to the state's main representation in the capital of that foreign country (host state), usually an embassy (or, only between two Commonwealth co ...

s. Working for the United States Department of State as special agents, RSOs are also considered to be officers of the State Department acting as specialists within the United States Foreign Service. The RSO is also the senior law enforcement representative at a U.S. Embassy.

Authority and responsibilities

Working under the dual supervision of the

Chief of Mission In diplomatic usage, head of mission (HOM) or chief of mission (COM) from the French "chef de mission diplomatique" (CMD) is the head of a diplomatic representation, such as an ambassador, high commissioner, nuncio, chargé d'affaires, permanen ...

(Ambassador) and the Diplomatic Security Service, the RSO ensures that all mandated security programs are carried out. The word "regional" derives from a historical shortage of agents, leading to many embassies with no resident DSS Agent; often an RSO would have to oversee security at several embassies and consulates. Since virtually each embassy now has an RSO, the term is largely anachronistic. In some cases, an RSO may regionally oversee security at consulates and other U.S. presence facilities from an embassy within a country. At an embassy, the RSO reports directly to the Deputy Chief of Mission, who in turn reports directly to the Ambassador. Under the RSO's direct supervision are the following groups: U.S. Marine Security Guards, Assistant RSOs, local guards, foreign service national (FSN) investigators, an office management specialist and other secretarial and staff assistants, a Surveillance Detection Unit (with a mission of detecting hostile surveillance),

security engineering Security engineering is the process of incorporating security controls into an information system so that the controls become an integral part of the system’s operational capabilities. It is similar to other systems engineering activities in tha ...

officers, security technical specialists, as well as Navy

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s assigned to post. The RSO is in charge of security for all Americans assigned to an embassy (or on temporary duty to Post) that come under the authority of the Chief of Mission. The RSO's responsibility for security relates to personnel, information, physical security of embassy buildings and residences, as well as the conduct of criminal investigations, particularly those involving passport and

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fraud. At larger embassies having other law enforcement agencies in addition to the Diplomatic Security Service, the RSO chairs a law enforcement working group as the Ambassador's main law enforcement and security attaché/advisor. This group is composed of all other U.S. law enforcement agencies that may be represented at an embassy such as ICE/HSI, CBP, FBI/LEGAT (legal attaché), U.S. Secret Service, NCIS, AFOSI and others. The working group ensures that the Ambassador is apprised of all significant law enforcement activity at post.

Fugitives

Since the Diplomatic Security Service is the most widely represented law enforcement organization in the world, its capability to track and capture fugitives who have fled U.S. jurisdiction to avoid prosecution is unmatched. During 2009, the DSS assisted in the resolution of 136 international fugitive cases around the globe.DSS collaborates with

America's Most Wanted ''America's Most Wanted'' (often abbreviated as ''AMW'') is an American Television show, television program whose first run was produced by 20th Television, and second run is under the Fox Entertainment#Fox Alternative Entertainment, Fox Alter ...

The role of the DSS in tracking international fugitives was highlighted in the movies ''

Fast Five ''Fast Five'' (also known as ''Fast & Furious 5'' or ''Fast & Furious 5: Rio Heist'') is a 2011 American action film directed by Justin Lin and written by Chris Morgan. It is the sequel to ''Fast & Furious'' (2009) and the fifth i ...

'' and ''

Fast & Furious 6 ''Fast & Furious 6'' (titled on-screen as ''Furious 6'') is a 2013 American action film directed by Justin Lin and written by Chris Morgan. It is the sequel to ''Fast Five'' (2011) and is the sixth installment in the ''Fast & Furious'' franch ...

''.

References

''Relentless Pursuit: The DSS and the Manhunt for the Al-Qaeda Terrorists''
Samuel M. Katz, 2002 * ''Targeted: Volume 1, The Evil Genius'' (

) (Wild Eyes Productions for

the History Channel History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney ...

;

A&E Television Networks A&E Networks (stylized as A+E NETWORKS) is an American multinational broadcasting company that is a 50–50 joint venture between Hearst Communications and The Walt Disney Company through its General Entertainment Content division. The company o ...

) 2003

External links

Authority and responsibilities

Fugitives

See also

References

External links