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Search Results for: Snowden

The Intercept – NSA’s Spy Hub in New York, Hidden in Plain Sight

“…33 Thomas Street is different: An investigation by The Intercept indicates that the skyscraper is more than a mere nerve center for long-distance phone calls. It also appears to be one of the most important National Security Agency surveillance sites on U.S. soil — a covert monitoring hub that is used to tap into phone… Continue Reading

Former NSA contractor removed 50 terabytes of classified data

ZDNet: “An NSA contractor siphoned off dozens of hard drives’ worth of data from government computers over two decades, prosecutors will allege on Friday. The contractor, Harold T. Martin III, is also accused of stealing thousands of highly classified documents, computers, and other storage devices during his tenure at the agency. It’s not known exactly… Continue Reading

Once again a contractor charged with removing classified NSA information

Politico, Josh Gerstein and Cory Bennett: “The U.S. government confirmed a potentially wide-ranging breach of classified information Wednesday, raising serious questions about the steps federal agencies and contractor Booz Allen Hamilton took to prevent leaks in the wake of the Edward Snowden’s seismic revelations about National Security Agency surveillance…During a court-ordered search of [the home… Continue Reading

The Guardian – How the Pentagon punished NSA whistleblowers

Mark Hertsgaard – The Guardian – “By now, almost everyone knows what Edward Snowden did. He leaked top-secret documents revealing that the National Security Agency was spying on hundreds of millions of people across the world, collecting the phone calls and emails of virtually everyone on Earth who used a mobile phone or the internet.… Continue Reading

Expert – PGP leaks metadata and is not secure

Via Motherboard – Pssst, Your PGP Is Leaking: “Ever since the Snowden revelations, more and more people have been educating themselves on how to use encryption. One of the first programs people might turn to is Pretty Good Privacy, or PGP, a version of which was thrust further into the public consciousness when it was… Continue Reading

Pew – The state of privacy in America

The state of privacy in America: What we learned: “After the June 2013 leaks by government contractor Edward Snowden about National Security Agency surveillance of Americans’ online and phone communications, Pew Research Center began an in-depth exploration of people’s views and behaviors related to privacy. Our recent report about how Americans think about privacy and… Continue Reading

The Moral Character of Cryptographic Work

The Moral Character of Cryptographic Work, Phillip Rogaway, Department of Computer Science, University of California, Davis, USA. December 1, 2015: “Cryptography rearranges power: it configures who can do what, from what. This makes cryptography an inherently political tool, and it confers on the field an intrinsically moral dimension. The Snowden revelations motivate a reassessment of… Continue Reading

NH Public Library retracts access to TOR after DHS intervention

techdirt – First Library To Support Tor Anonymous Internet Browsing Effort Stops After DHS Email –  “Since Edward Snowden exposed the extent of online surveillance by the U.S. government, there has been a surge of initiatives to protect users’ privacy. But it hasn’t taken long for one of these efforts — a project to equip… Continue Reading

U.S. Investigations Services Agrees to Forego at Least $30 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations

DOJ news release: “The Justice Department announced today that U.S. Investigations Services Inc. (USIS) and its parent company, Altegrity, have agreed to settle allegations that USIS violated the False Claims Act (FCA) for conduct involving a contract for background investigations that USIS held with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM).  The companies have agreed… Continue Reading

Americans’ Attitudes About Privacy, Security and Surveillance

Pew – Americans’ Views About Data Collection and Security By Mary Madden and Lee Rainie: “Contrary to assertions that people “don’t care” about privacy in the digital age, this survey suggests that Americans hold a range of strong views about the importance of control over their personal information and freedom from surveillance in daily life.… Continue Reading

UK surveillance report affirms privacy concerns

The Guardian: “Privacy campaigners have secured significant concessions in a key report into surveillance by the British security agencies published on Tuesday. The 132-page report, A Democratic Licence To Operate, which Nick Clegg commissioned last year in the wake of revelations by the US whistleblower Edward Snowden, acknowledges the importance of privacy concerns. “Privacy is… Continue Reading

Filmmaker Laura Poitras suing to shine light on travel detainment

Via The Intercept: “Over six years, filmmaker Laura Poitras was searched, interrogated and detained more than 50 times at U.S. and foreign airports. When she asked why, U.S. agencies wouldn’t say. Now, after receiving no response to her Freedom of Information Act requests for documents pertaining to her systemic targeting, Poitras is suing the U.S.… Continue Reading