NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
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NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
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Re: NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
#2Most of us had heard about Binney before, but the other guys back up many of the same claims.
Binney's take on what they'll do to Snowden.
"Binney: First tortured, then maybe even rendered and tortured and then incarcerated and then tried and incarcerated or even executed."
Re: NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
#3Interesting that he now calls Snowden a traitor for the China-specific intel turned over, while supporting him broadly otherwise. Pretty much the same line I'd draw (although I think he should have gone to IG/Congress rather than the media, but with the threat of going to media if no action taken. It's possible he went to IG/Congress already, but I don't think so.)
Re: NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
#4Interesting that he now calls Snowden a traitor for the China-specific intel turned over, while supporting him broadly otherwise. Pretty much the same line I'd draw (although I think he should have gone to IG/Congress rather than the media, but with the threat of going to media if no action taken. It's possible he went to IG/Congress already, but I don't think so.)
Giving up British intelligence for the G20 surveillance is also probably crossing the line.
If developed countries can't trust each other not to spy on their diplomats where does that leave us?
I guess they should all assume they are being spied on at all times while on foreign soil, but airing that in public is likely to worsen his chance of avoiding jail time—or worse.
Re: NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
#5"We were gathering bulk data from telecoms even before the Patriot Act" Thought this was important to note.
Re: NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
#6Interesting that he now calls Snowden a traitor for the China-specific intel turned over, while supporting him broadly otherwise. Pretty much the same line I'd draw (although I think he should have gone to IG/Congress rather than the media, but with the threat of going to media if no action taken. It's possible he went to IG/Congress already, but I don't think so.)
Giving up British intelligence for the G20 surveillance is also probably crossing the line. If developed countries can't trust each other not to spy on their diplomats where does that leave us? I guess they should all assume they are being spied on at all times while on foreign soil, but airing that in public is likely to worsen his chance of avoiding jail time—or worse.
I have ~no problem with gov on gov spying. I actually have more problem with China's spying on US companies for commercial reasons than China's spying on the USG. USG spying on private individuals might be worse than China spying on USG from an abstract moral perspective.
I'd argue that US v USSR spying during the Cold War, particularly PHOTOINT and SIGINT and other forms of technical intelligence, largely averted a global thermonuclear war. Gov v Gov spying is just another form of transparency. (obviously as a US citizen I'd prefer the US to have an edge there, but generally for something like Brazil v Argentina I don't particularly care)
Re: NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
#7"We were gathering bulk data from telecoms even before the Patriot Act" Thought this was important to note.
Perhaps even more important to note "before 9/11."
So if mass surveillance didn't prevent 9/11, is the rationale to expand it to TOTAL surveillance, if necessary?
Re: NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
#8Hobbes would be saying "No, no, I meant about the size of a very large whale,. Big enough to keep random individuals from running amok and spoiling things... This is more like Cthulu."
Re: NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
#9> Binney: Part of his job as the system administrator, he was to maintain the system. Keep the databases running. Keep the communications working. Keep the programs that were interrogating them operating. So that meant he was like a super-user. He could go on the network or go into any file or any system and change it or add to it or whatever, just to make sure — because he would be responsible to get it back up and running if, in fact, it failed.
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> So that meant he had access to go in and put anything. That's why he said, I think, "I can even target the president or a judge." If he knew their phone numbers or attributes, he could insert them into the target list which would be distributed worldwide. And then it would be collected, yeah, that's right. As a super-user, he could do that.
I have a feeling that the NSA deals with access control just like the rest of us...very poorly. Even more egregious is that Snowden was a contractor...if we're going to leave open the possibility of the NSA targeting us at their whim, can't they at least do that in-house?
Re: NSA veterans speak out on whistle-blower [video]
#10"We were gathering bulk data from telecoms even before the Patriot Act" Thought this was important to note.
I would be honestly surprised if it started as late as 1980.