The National Security Agency’s monitoring of Americans includes customer records from the three major phone networks as well as emails and Web searches, and the agency also has cataloged credit-card transactions, said people familiar with the agency’s activities.
The disclosure this week of an order by a secret U.S. court for Verizon Communications Inc.’s phone records set off the latest public discussion of the program. But people familiar with the NSA’s operations said the initiative also encompasses phone-call data from AT&T Inc. and Sprint Nextel Corp., records from Internet-service providers and purchase information from credit-card providers. …
NSA also obtains access to data from Internet service providers on Internet use such as data about email or Website visits, several former officials said. NSA has established similar relationships with credit-card companies, three former officials said.
It couldn't be determined if any of the Internet or credit-card arrangements are ongoing, as are the phone company efforts, or one-shot collection efforts. The credit-card firms, phone companies and NSA declined to comment for this article.
Not ongoing? Anyone want to bet on that?
National Intelligence Director James Clapper defended that program late Thursday saying procedures are in place that are approved by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court “to ensure that only non-U.S. persons outside the U.S. are targeted, and that minimize the acquisition, retention and dissemination of incidentally acquired information about U.S. persons.”
“Information collected under this program is among the most important and valuable intelligence information we collect, and is used to protect our nation from a wide variety of threats,” Clapper said in a statement.
As long as it’s to protect everybody it’s OK? Like the Patriot Act on steroids?
We conservatives often talk about the “slippery slope.” Some of us didn't like the Patriot Act for just that reason.
Now we've seen the slope and are accelerating down it.
Let’s see who recognizes it.
3 comments:
Oh PUHleeze!
This is all your doing!
You right wing nut jobs DEMANDED that privacy be sacrificed for safety after 9/11.
Don't you DARE complain about the policies that your elected officials put in place with your approval.
XO: I sure didn't demand it. You once again engage in your liberal generalities without regard for facts.
I have never, do not now and never will support the Patriot Act or any government involvement in personal privacy...period.
I remember when the NYT broke the story that the Bush administration had appropriated millions upon millions of calls from the phone companies.
What was the reaction of fringe right wingers like the posters at "z's", Joe?
They complained that the "mainstream" media was aiding terrorists by revealing the information.
The general reaction on the right has been acceptance of this type of oversight and the likes of the "z" blog was typical in enabling this by keeping the peeps sufficiently frightened.
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