Shabak is believed to have three operational wings:[2] Although a security agency, it is not a part of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, and its chief answers directly to the Prime Minister of Israel.

[8] On the other hand, a study published in 2013 by Matitiahu Mayzel casts doubt on the story, arguing that the speech was not secret and that it was conveyed to the West by multiple sources, including Soviet political and intelligence agencies.

[10] In 1967, an Egyptian-Israeli double agent, Refaat Al-Gammal, gave Egypt false information about Israel's battle plans, claiming it would begin with ground operations.

The 1987 Landau Commission, set up to investigate Shabak interrogation methods, criticized the organization and established guidelines to regulate what forms of physical pressure could be used on prisoners.

[13] A 1995 official report by Miriam Ben-Porat, made public in 2000, showed that Shin Bet "routinely" went beyond the "moderate physical pressure" authorised by the Landau Commission.

Another source of embarrassment and criticism was the violent, provocative and inciting behavior of Avishai Raviv, an informer of the Shabak's Jewish Unit during the time leading up to the assassination.

[15] Gillon was replaced by Israeli Navy admiral Ami Ayalon, who helped to restore the organizational morale, after the debacle of the Rabin assassination, and to rehabilitate its public image.

[16] In 2000, Ayalon was replaced by Avi Dichter, an ex-Sayeret Matkal commando and experienced Shabak agent, who tightened the working relationship with the Israel Defense Forces and Israeli police.

In November 2003, four former heads of Shabak (Avraham Shalom, Yaakov Peri, Carmi Gillon and Ami Ayalon) called upon the Government of Israel to reach a peace agreement with the Palestinians.

In 2007, the service launched its first-ever public recruitment drive, unveiling a "slick Website" and buying on-line ads in Israel and abroad in a campaign aimed at "attract[ing] top-tier computer programmers" to its "cutting-edge" IT division.

On March 18, 2008, it was announced that Shabak's official website would also offer a blog, where four of its agents would discuss anonymously how they were recruited, and what sort of work they perform; they would also answer questions sent in by members of the public.

[18] The decision to launch the blog was made by the Shin Bet's top brass, including head Yuval Diskin, and is part of an attempt to attract high-tech workers to the agency's growing IT department.

According to Shabak officers, the Web site and blog are aimed also at promoting a more accessible and positive public image for the secret service, long associated with "dark, undercover and even violent activity".

In 1987, after complaints about excessive use of violence, the Landau Commission drew up guidelines condoning "moderate physical pressure" when necessary, but in 1994, State Comptroller Miriam Ben-Porat found that these regulations were violated and senior GSS commanders did not prevent it.

[27] Later, in 1999, the Israeli Supreme Court heard several petitions against Shabak methods, including (1) "forceful and repeated shaking of the suspect's upper torso, in a manner which causes the neck and head to swing rapidly," (2) manacling of the suspect in a painful "Shabach position" for a long period of time, (3) the "frog crouch" consisting of "consecutive, periodical crouches on the tips of one's toes," and other methods.

[34] Shabak has also worked closely with the Israeli Air Force in "targeted killings" of field commanders and senior leaders of Palestinian militant factions[35] of Hamas, the Islamic Jihad, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, and Fatah.

[39][40] In 2012, six former heads of the Shabak (Shalom, Peri, Gillon, Ayalon, Dichter, and Diskin) featured in a documentary film, The Gatekeepers, and discussed the main events of their tenures.