text: what is the purpose of the cia?   central intelligence agency  the central intelligence agency (cia) is an intelligence agency of the united states government, responsible for obtaining and analyzing information about foreign governments, corporations, and individuals, and reporting such information to the various branches of the government. a third function of the cia is to act as the "hidden hand" of the government by engaging in covert operations, some of questionable legality, at the direction of the president. [1] it is this last function that has caused most of the controversies regarding the cia over the years.