Sara C. Brown

Sara C. Brown
Department of Homeland Security

Sara C. Brown is the acting Director of the Open Source Intelligence Division at the Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A) within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). In her current joint duty assignment, Ms. Brown leads I&A operations for strategic and tactical open source intelligence collection within a disciplined privacy and civil rights framework that serves national and departmental missions. In her home agency role, Sara is the Division Chief with the Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS) Social Media Division (SMD) at the DHS US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). In this role, she leads USCIS on policy, operations, and technology of open source and social media intelligence screening and vetting for FDNS investigations within a strict and sustainable privacy and civil rights framework.
Prior to her current roles, Sara has held positions focused on aspects of screening and
vetting policy, information sharing protocols, operations, and technology across DHS. These roles have included positions with USCIS, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and the US-VISIT Program, now known as the Office of Biometric and Identity Management (OBIM).
Sara has been recognized with several awards during her time in government service including the 2024 DHS Secretary’s Award for Team Excellence, 2023 USCIS FDNS Integrity Award, 2023 USCIS FDNS Supervisor of the Year, 2023 USCIS RAIO Excellence in Partnership Award, 2022 USCIS FDNS Innovation Award, 2019 Gears of Government Award, 2018 DHS Secretary’s Unit Award, and the 2011 US-VISIT Inspiration Award.
Prior to joining government service, Sara worked at an immigration and nationality law firm in New York City and held researcher roles with the Population Division United Nations and a cultural diplomacy think tank within the New York University’s Office of the Provost. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications and political science from Rutgers University and a Master of Public Administration degree from New York University, Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.