Security agency leaves privacy advocates insecure
In the first reading this Sunday, the Lord asserts that when it comes to the nations of the world, “I know their works and their thoughts.” The highly secretive National Security Agency (NSA) has similar ends in mind when it engages in . . .
In the first reading this Sunday, the Lord asserts that when it comes to the nations of the world, “I know their works and their thoughts.” The highly secretive National Security Agency (NSA) has similar ends in mind when it engages in extensive worldwide electronic surveillance. Under increasing pressure because of programs that at times capture communications of U.S. citizens, the agency is going to unusual lengths to try to reassure the public its activities are lawful and any infringements unintentional.
In a sign of how much heat it has taken since former NSA contractor Edward Snowden started disclosing details of highly classified U.S. surveillance programs, the ultra-secretive federal intelligence organization held a rare conference call with reporters to counter public perceptions that NSA transgressions were intentional violations of rules against eavesdropping on Americans.
The Washington Post reported that the NSA had broken privacy rules or overstepped its legal authority thousands of times each year since 2008, citing an internal agency audit and other top-secret documents. The NSA's presentation was an attempt to calm the latest firestorm.
"These are not willful violations, they are not malicious, these are not people trying to break the law," John DeLong, NSA director of compliance, told reporters. NSA employees know their actions are recorded and the agency's culture is to report any mistakes, he said, repeatedly stressing that "no one at NSA thinks a mistake is OK."
New revelations this week suggest the NSA's surveillance network also has the capacity to spy on 75 percent of all U.S. internet traffic. According to current and former NSA sources who spoke with the Wall Street Journal, the agency can observe more of Americans' online communications than officials have publicly acknowledged.
The new revelations differ from the programs described in the documents leaked by Snowden, which described a process to acquire Americans' phone records as well as another program, known as PRISM, that made requests from internet companies for stored data. By contrast, the internet monitoring systems revealed in recent days have the capability to track almost any online activity so long as it is covered by a broad court order.
Homily hint: We live in an age where the lines have blurred between private and public, but there is one place we can go that no spy agency or internet spammer can reach: the deepest recesses of our hearts, where God is waiting for us. Encourage folks to make time each day for the most important conversation they will have—the one no one but God will hear.
In a sign of how much heat it has taken since former NSA contractor Edward Snowden started disclosing details of highly classified U.S. surveillance programs, the ultra-secretive federal intelligence organization held a rare conference call with reporters to counter public perceptions that NSA transgressions were intentional violations of rules against eavesdropping on Americans.
The Washington Post reported that the NSA had broken privacy rules or overstepped its legal authority thousands of times each year since 2008, citing an internal agency audit and other top-secret documents. The NSA's presentation was an attempt to calm the latest firestorm.
"These are not willful violations, they are not malicious, these are not people trying to break the law," John DeLong, NSA director of compliance, told reporters. NSA employees know their actions are recorded and the agency's culture is to report any mistakes, he said, repeatedly stressing that "no one at NSA thinks a mistake is OK."
New revelations this week suggest the NSA's surveillance network also has the capacity to spy on 75 percent of all U.S. internet traffic. According to current and former NSA sources who spoke with the Wall Street Journal, the agency can observe more of Americans' online communications than officials have publicly acknowledged.
The new revelations differ from the programs described in the documents leaked by Snowden, which described a process to acquire Americans' phone records as well as another program, known as PRISM, that made requests from internet companies for stored data. By contrast, the internet monitoring systems revealed in recent days have the capability to track almost any online activity so long as it is covered by a broad court order.
Homily hint: We live in an age where the lines have blurred between private and public, but there is one place we can go that no spy agency or internet spammer can reach: the deepest recesses of our hearts, where God is waiting for us. Encourage folks to make time each day for the most important conversation they will have—the one no one but God will hear.
Sources: Articles by Tabassum Zakaria and Mark Hosenball for Reuters,
citing the Washington Post, and Fox News, citing the Wall Street Journal