To understand the difference, consider the CIA's World War II predecessor, the Office of Strategic Services.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center For Security Policy

William Donovan, chief of the Office of Strategic Services, tapped him to recruit and oversee agents in a bid to penetrate Germany.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center for Security Policy | CIA Director William Casey: His Analysis And Plain Speech Help Him Lead The Agency to the Top

Among other things, the inquiry led to the creation of a behind-the-lines intelligence-gathering organizer of anti-Nazi operations, the Office of Strategic Services, which was the precursor to the Central Intelligence Agency.

FORBES: Fact and Comment