NSA Creeps Snooped On Their Love Interests
I know that Gregg, upon meeting me, used LexisNexis to look me up. We never discussed this; I just know that now, knowing Gregg. (He likes to know what he's getting into.)
Assuming he did that, that's fair game -- publicly available information from news articles.
What's not fair game is when government employees use their agency's snoop power to poke around in the lives of their love interests.
Evan Perez writes at CNN.com:
The National Security Agency's internal watchdog detailed a dozen instances in the past decade in which its employees intentionally misused the agency's surveillance power, in some cases to snoop on their love interests.A letter from the NSA's inspector general responding to a request by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, lists the dozen incidents where the NSA's foreign intelligence collection systems were abused. The letter also says there are two additional incidents now under investigation and another allegation pending that may require an investigation.
At least six of the incidents were referred to the Justice Department for possible prosecution or additional action; none appear to have resulted in charges.
...In one case, detailed by the NSA's watchdog, a civilian intelligence employee assigned overseas was found to have used the NSA's signals intelligence collection system to listen to the phone conversations on nine phone numbers belonging to foreign women from 1998 to 2003 without any valid reason. The signals intelligence system is used to spy on foreign targets for national security reasons.
...The case began because a woman, a foreign national employed by the U.S. government, told another employee she suspected the man with whom she was in a sexual relationship was listening to her calls. The employee who misused the NSA's systems also incidentally collected the communications of a U.S. resident on two occasions, a move that requires a court warrant.
The NSA's vast surveillance powers are under fire after the disclosure of internal documents by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden. Intelligence officials have sought to defend the NSA's surveillance activities by saying the agency doesn't misuse its authority.
And my hair isn't red and I sub for Kobe on the Lakers.
If they believe that there have only been a dozen instances they are blind, stupid or both.
There are a few thousand people with access to the systems. Trusting them to all be pure as the driven slush is totally foolish.
Jim P. at September 28, 2013 5:52 AM
We know they lie. They have been caught at it. Why would we care what they say? It's a waste of time.
MarkD at September 28, 2013 6:12 AM
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