The Security Service was formed on 31 March 1941 as part of the Attorney-General's Department and was initially headed by Lt Colonel E.E. Longfield Lloyd, Deputy Director of the Investigation Branch 
(CA 747). The heads of the State offices of the Service, except for South Australia, were all Army officers and most of the staff were drawn from the armed forces. The Security Service assumed the national security activities previously performed by the Army on behalf of the armed services, though the Army retained responsibility for internment, censorship matters and for civil and internal security in the Northern Territory and north Western Australia. Initially the Service had only investigative and reporting powers; the Attorney-General retaining the power to deal with subversion while the control of aliens remained with the Generals-in-Command of the various military districts.

In March 1942 the position of Director-General of Security was created, with new investigative and executive powers dealing with such areas as sabotage, industrial security, passports, the control of aliens or subversive groups and the security checking of personnel. As a result the Investigation Branch (CA 747) was restricted to departmental investigations and confidential inquiries outside the security field (1).

The State offices of the Security Service were headed by the Deputy Director of Security for that state. As at September 1945, state branches included the following sections:

 . Counter Espionage and Counter Sabotage
 . Aliens Control, including the State Central Aliens Registration 
    Bureau and Police Aliens Registration Officers
 . Internments, Releases and Restrictions
 . Leakage of Information and Prosecutions for Censorships.
 . Seaport and Airport Security, including the Passport Guard and 
     Alien Seamen Registration Officer
 . Legal and Miscellaneous
 . Investigators
 . Administration, Organisation, General
 . Peace Officers Guards Committee

The Security Service, New South Wales also was responsible for a District Security Office at Newcastle (CA 3563) (2).

The 1944 Federal Guide listed the Deputy Director of Security, New  
South Wales as being Lt. Colonel S.H. Jackson, operating from 117 Pitt Street, Sydney (3).

The Security Service was disbanded on 15 December 1945. Its functions and powers were absorbed by the Security Section of the Commonwealth Investigation Branch (CA 747), except for the control and registration of aliens, which was assumed by the Department of Immigration (CA 51) (4). Further research is needed to determine the transmission of functions from the Security Service, New South Wales to the Investigation Branch, NSW (CA 904) and the NSW State Branch (CA 957) of the Department of Immigration.


References

1. C.D. Coulthard-Clark "Australia's Wartime Security Service", 
   Defence Force Journal No. 16 May/June 1979 pp. 24-26
2. Committee of Review - Civil Staffing of Wartime Activities "Report
   on Security Service, 13 Sept. 1945"
3. Federal Guide 1944 p.36
4. Coulthard-Clark, op cit, p.27
Historical agency address
by 1944: 117 Pitt Street, Sydney

Previous agency unregistered

1941: Army Intelligence [subject to further research]