The series centers on the members of an elite law enforcement unit known as Public Security Section 9 as they investigate cybercrime and terrorism cases. The first season was adapted into a feature-length OVA titled The Laughing Man. The series also received video game spin-offs for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, and mobile phones. A new ONA anime series titled Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 was formally announced in December 2018 and the first season of the series was released on Netflix on 23 April 2020.
The series takes place in the year 2030, where many people have become cyborgs with prosthetic bodies. Primarily set in New Port City, in the fictional Japanese prefecture of Niihama, the series follows the members of Public Security Section 9, a special-operations task-force made up of former military officers and police detectives. Both seasons feature ongoing investigations into two incidents that embroil the group in corruption within other branches of the Japanese government.