The story
Originally used in the first half of the twentieth century as an epithet for the Special Higher Police, although it is arguable that its popularity in modern usage stems primarily from the synonymous organization in George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949), which is responsible for monitoring all citizens and making sure they are not guilty of political dissent or thoughtcrime.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.