New Zealand Security Intelligence Service ( NZSIS or SIS ; ) is New Zealand 's primary national intelligence agency . It is responsible for providing information and advising on matters including national security ( including counterterrorism and counterintelligence ) and foreign intelligence . It is headquartered in Wellington and overseen by a Director-General , the Minister of New Zealand Security Intelligence Service , and the parliamentary intelligence and security committee ; independent oversight is provided by the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security . SIS was established on 28 November 1956 with the primary function of combating perceived increases in Soviet intelligence operations in Australia and New Zealand . Since then , its legislated powers have expanded to increase its monitoring capabilities and include entry into private property . Its role has also expanded to include countering domestic and international terrorism , chemical , biological , and cyber threats . The organization has been criticised for its role in numerous high-profile incidents such as the 1974 arrest of Bill Sutch on charges of spying for the Soviet Union , the 1981 assassination attempt by Christopher Lewis on Queen Elizabeth II , and the 1996 invasion of GATT Watchdog organizer Aziz Choudry 's home . It has also been criticised for its failures to anticipate or prevent incidents such as the 1985 bombing of the Rainbow Warrior , the 2004 purchasing of New Zealand passports by Israeli " intelligence contract assets " , and the 2019 Christchurch Mosque Shootings by an Australian alt-right white supremacist terrorist . In the first half of the 20th century , domestic intelligence and counter-subversion were primarily in the hands of the New Zealand Police Force ( 1919 – 1941 ; 1945 – 1949 ) and the New Zealand Police Force Special Branch ( 1949 – 1956 ) . During the Second World War , the short-lived New Zealand Security Intelligence Bureau ( SIB ) took over . The SIB was modeled after the British MI5 and was headed by Major Kenneth Folkes , a junior MI5 officer . However , the conman Syd Ross duped Major Folkes into believing that there was a Nazi plot in New Zealand . After this embarrassment , Prime Minister Peter Fraser dismissed Folkes in February 1943 and the SIB merged into the New Zealand Police . Following the end of the war in 1945 , the police force resumed responsibility for domestic intelligence
Christchurch Mosque Shootings
Christchurch mosque shootings
New Zealand Security Intelligence Service