Category Archives: Edward Snowden

Snowden praises Obama’s NSA reform proposal

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The Hague, March 26:

Intelligence leaker Edward Snowden late Tuesday hailed proposed reforms that would provide more privacy safeguards in how the US electronic intelligence organisation collects telephone metadata.

This is a turning point, and it marks the beginning of a new effort to reclaim our rights from the (National Security Agency) and restore the publics seat at the table of Government, Snowden said in a statement, issued from Moscow via the American Civil Liberties Union.

Earlier, US President Barack Obama said he had received a workable proposal for intelligence reforms.

Answering reporters questions at a summit in the Netherlands, Obama said the proposed changes and new safeguards which must still be adopted by Congress would satisfy the main concerns about privacy that have been raised since Snowdens revelations last year.

The proposal, according to The New York Times, would end the NSAs systematic collection of data about Americans calling habits and leave the bulk records in the hands of telephone companies.

It ensures that the Government is not in possession of that bulk data, said Obama in The Hague.

He did not reveal full details of the proposal.

Obama said the reforms would make sure that not only is a judge overseeing the overall programme, but also that a judge is looking at each individual inquiry made into a database. Under the current system, the NSA was given a free hand by a secret court to search the metadata records it had gathered from telephone companies without the need for a judges approval for every search.

Im confident (the proposal) allows us to do what is necessary about the dangers of a terrorist attack... but does so in a way that addresses some of the concerns that people have raised, Obama said.

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Snowden praises Obama’s NSA reform proposal

Snowden supporters want his passport returned and right to asylum

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A June 9, 2013 photo provided by The Guardian newspaper in London shows Edward Snowden, who worked as a contract employee at the U.S. National Security Agency, in Hong Kong.

THE GUARDIAN AP

Advocates for Edward Snowden, the former NSA contractor-turned-whistleblower pressed for the return of his U.S. passport and his freedom to seek political asylum.

Snowden, whose revelations about a National Security Agency program to collect Americans phone data rocked the intelligence community, is currently in Russia.

Supporters, including Coleen Rowley, a former FBI special agent who became a whistleblower herself about the agencys pre-9/11 knowledge, and former CIA analyst Ray McGovern, attempted to deliver thousands of public petitions to the Departments of State and Justice Wednesday.

Rowley and McGovern were among the first Americans to visit Snowden in Moscow. They were joined at the petition effort by Norman Solomon, co-founder of RootsAction.org, an online civil liberties group whose website hosted the petition drive.

The petitions urge Secretary of State John Kerry to immediately reinstate his passport and call on Attorney General Eric Holder to respect Snowdens right to political asylum.

Previously, Solomon says they had sent emails and letters to Kerry and Holder requesting a time to deliver the petitions, but had received no response. They were largely rebuffed again Wednesday at State and initially at Justice when they appeared in person with the petitions.

Rowley, one of Time magazines 2002 Persons of the Year for her whistleblower activities, said that 105,000 people took the time to write comments on these petitions. And we think its important that officials in these positions, that have the ability to make decisions, should be aware of public sentiment.

The three individuals, known for their strong anti-NSA policies, said they were not surprised with their reception.

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Snowden supporters want his passport returned and right to asylum

LEAD: Snowden praises Obama’s NSA reform proposal

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The Hague, March 26:

Intelligence leaker Edward Snowden late Tuesday hailed proposed reforms that would provide more privacy safeguards in how the US electronic intelligence organisation collects telephone metadata.

This is a turning point, and it marks the beginning of a new effort to reclaim our rights from the (National Security Agency) and restore the publics seat at the table of Government, Snowden said in a statement, issued from Moscow via the American Civil Liberties Union.

Earlier, US President Barack Obama said he had received a workable proposal for intelligence reforms.

Answering reporters questions at a summit in the Netherlands, Obama said the proposed changes and new safeguards which must still be adopted by Congress would satisfy the main concerns about privacy that have been raised since Snowdens revelations last year.

The proposal, according to The New York Times, would end the NSAs systematic collection of data about Americans calling habits and leave the bulk records in the hands of telephone companies.

It ensures that the Government is not in possession of that bulk data, said Obama in The Hague.

He did not reveal full details of the proposal.

Obama said the reforms would make sure that not only is a judge overseeing the overall programme, but also that a judge is looking at each individual inquiry made into a database. Under the current system, the NSA was given a free hand by a secret court to search the metadata records it had gathered from telephone companies without the need for a judges approval for every search.

Im confident (the proposal) allows us to do what is necessary about the dangers of a terrorist attack... but does so in a way that addresses some of the concerns that people have raised, Obama said.

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LEAD: Snowden praises Obama’s NSA reform proposal

NSA director says future Snowden leaks could lead to deaths- Krauthammer: End to NSA’s bulk data collection ‘a …

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The data that National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden's holds could, if released, lead to deaths, the agency's outgoing director says.

Gen. Keith Alexander said in an interview aired Tuesday on "Special Report with Bret Baier" that the possibility that more information coming from Snowden could cost people their lives represents his "greatest concern."

"Do you know what he has?" host Baier asked the general.

"We have a good assessment of what he has, yes," Alexander said.

"And is there a lot more damaging to come?"

"Yes, especially to our military operations and those who are serving overseas," Alexander replied.

Alexander said he was "hugely disappointed" when he learned that Snowden, who was entrusted with sensitive information, began leaking NSA data last summer.

"I think this will haunt him for the rest of his life," Alexander said. "Here's a young guy who made some huge mistakes."

When asked what he would do with Snowden were he granted 15 minutes alone with him, Alexander said he wouldn't attack the former analyst, but instead might reveal to him the damage he's caused the agency, "so he knows the damage -- the significant damage to our nation and to our allies."

Alexander also said the reforms pushed by President Obama, which would require the NSA to prove more direct links from terrorists before acquiring data from telephone companies, are sensible.

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NSA director says future Snowden leaks could lead to deaths- Krauthammer: End to NSA's bulk data collection 'a ...

Snowden effect: Reforms proposed

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Nine months after the world learned his name, Edward Snowden and his leaks made their biggest splash yet in the capital Tuesday.

NSA reform efforts as a result of his surveillance revelations moved closer to reality as reports surfaced of a coalescing White House plan to end the governments bulk collection of American phone records. Neither that proposal nor a competing effort from the House Intelligence Committee have moved forward legislatively, and it will take time to see what, if anything, sticks. But their existence alone indicates that a major shift to the most controversial program revealed by Snowden could eventually be a reality.

This is a turning point, and it marks the beginning of a new effort to reclaim our rights from the NSA and restore the publics seat at the table of government, Snowden himself said in a statement.

A White House proposal, which remains under wraps, and a House bill would put in place a new system whereby phone companies hold records instead of the NSA. Neither proposal is perfect, privacy backers said, but the lack of new rules that require phone companies to retain data for longer than they do now is critical. Such language would have been panned by the telecommunications industry and civil liberties groups alike.

Its definitely a touchdown for privacy advocates, said Kevin Bankston, policy director at the New America Foundations Open Technology Institute. But were still in the first quarter of the game.

The developments, while unfinished, follow a roller coaster ride of reform efforts over the past year. The revelations united liberal Democrats and conservative libertarians in opposition to what they saw as broad government overreach and a violation of privacy but the drip-drip of stories about NSA activity was unable to carry a symbolic vote in the House last July to curb NSA funding.

But privacy groups now feel closer to real action. President Barack Obama committed to ending bulk phone data collection during a January speech, and his own intelligence review group declared the need for reform in December. This weeks proposal in which Obama said he is confident is formally due Friday and will suggest how to practically implement the changes.

We never had any real information about how these programs were used until now, ACLU legislative counsel Michelle Richardson said. Reform efforts were stymied by a lack of information. The Snowden leaks really dislodged those efforts.

That doesnt mean the dual proposals come without questions. Bankston said one big problem is that the administration plan treats only the symptoms of the intelligence overreach exposed by Snowden because it leaves open the possibility for other kinds of bulk data collection by the government.

And the House bill, backed by Reps. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) and Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Md.), would allow intelligence agencies to get data without first getting the go-ahead from a court a separate concern raised by some, including the Center for Democracy & Technology.

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Snowden effect: Reforms proposed