Who is Edward Snowden and what did he do?

Edward Snowden is a 30-year-old whistleblower and former NSA contractor. He left his home in Hawaii in May 2013, travelling to Hong Kong to leak documents to journalist Glenn Greenwald. At the time of his departure from the US, Snowden worked as a Booz Allen Hamilton systems analyst doing contract work for the NSA. The documents he revealed detailed secret NSA programs and capabilities that have been and continue to be used to collect and store personal communications both within the US and abroad.

Documents revealed by Snowden show that the US intelligence community and its partners including the UK, Israeli and German spy agencies are involved in warrantless mass surveillance of citizens domestically and abroad. Numerous documents show that, beyond the espionage performed for counterterrorism purposes, the NSA and its partners carried out political and industrial espionage, including the bugging of EU and UN buildings and the collection of phone and email data from Brazils Ministry of Mines and Energy. To read more about the revelations, see the Revelations page.

Despite the many millions of people that the transnational surveillance systems affect, these have been constructed without the knowledge, authorisation or scrutiny of the elected legislative bodies of the US and its partner countries much less the public. Snowden felt that this important information should be democratised:

Im just another guy who sits there day to day in the office, watches whats happening and goes, This is something thats not our place to decide, the public needs to decide whether these programs and policies are right or wrong.' (Snowden, June 2013)

Read more about the investigations, transparency measures, legislative reform, complaints and public awareness generated due to Snowdens revelations on our Impact page.

As stated by Glenn Greenwald in various places, Edward Snowden gave documents to journalists for the express purpose of allowing them to vet and analyse the documents before releasing what they deem appropriate.

Edward Snowdens revelations of secret mass surveillance by the NSA and its national security-sector contractors have greatly embarrassed the US government. Attempts to extradite him to stand trial in the United States come against a background of systemic overclassification of information, increasing secrecy in the courts and a harsh crackdown on national security journalism, centred around investigations of unauthorised leaks. The Obama administration has prosecuted more people under the Espionage Act for leaks to the press than all previous administrations combined.

Edward Snowden has been charged by the US government with theft of government property (18 USC 641), unauthorised communication of national defense information (18 USC 793(d)) and wilful communication of classified communications intelligence information to an unauthorised person (18 USC 798(a)(3)).

Edward Snowden has been charged by the US government with theft and two charges under the 1917 Espionage Act. These charges together incur a maximum 30-year prison sentence and, as happened in Chelsea Mannings case, it is possible that a second set of charges might be added at a later date. There is no public interest or whistleblower defence allowed for charges under the Espionage Act. The US has also submitted extradition requests to numerous countries and taken action to pressure other countries from granting him asylum.

For more information on the threats facing Edward Snowden, read our Threats overview section.

Whilst Snowden could have voiced concerns under the Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act, he would only have been able to present complaints that the law deems of urgent concern to Congress. The US Congress has been briefed on warrantless wiretapping before and failed to respond, as evidenced by an NSA Inspector General review of surveillance activities, which indicates 60 US Congress members had already been briefed [see page 23 of the corresponding pdf] on top secret programs such as STELLARWIND. The same document describes how, immediately following the public exposure of President George W. Bushs warrantless wiretapping program, new orders were signed which essentially gave NSA the same authority to collect bulk internet metadata that it had under the PSP [Presidents Surveillance Program].

In an interview with Glenn Greenwald, Snowden explained that while he did talk to people about abuses he saw, he eventually realised that the wrongdoing he witnessed was something that should be determined by the public. Snowden later described his attempts to discuss his concerns internally in some detail in an interview with the Washington Post.

In addition, Snowden was aware of the significant risks of voicing such concerns through official channels; not only could he have been persecuted for speaking up, but the issues of concern may have continued to be hidden from public view. Thomas Drake, a former senior NSA executive, wrote in the Guardian about his own experience with the Act: By following protocol, you get flagged just for raising issues. Youre identified as someone they dont like, someone not to be trusted.

Everyone has the right to seek and to be granted asylum outside of his or her country of nationality on the basis that they are unable or unwilling to return because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of their race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, as stated in Article 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The right to asylum is governed by a large body of international human rights and refugee law treaties; for example, when the government of Ecuador granted asylum to Julian Assange it quoted a list of 16 conventions and treaties under which his right to asylum was mandated. International customary law also includes the principles of non-refoulement and safe passage. The 1951 United Nations Convention on Refugees and its 1967 Protocol prohibits states from returning refugees in any manner whatsoever to countries or territories in which their lives or freedom may be threatened (non-refoulment), and is binding on all states.

Asylum is granted to people who are at risk of or fear persecution for their political views, or who are charged with political offences. Edward Snowden has been indicted with two charges under the Espionage Act 1917, which falls under the definition of political offences. Following his whistleblowing about secret NSA mass surveillance, the US government has retaliated in unprecedented ways: unsealing a Grand Jury indictment for Snowden prior to his detention in custody; cancelling his passport; and even causing a diplomatic incident by forcing down the presidential plane of Evo Morales on suspicion that Snowden was on it. It is clear that this level of retaliation may endanger Mr Snowdens safety, integrity and even his life.

In August 2013 Chelsea (formerly Bradley) Manning was sentenced to 35 years on Espionage Act charges for passing classified information to the media. During her trial she was legally found to have suffered unlawful treatment in pre-trial detention. All these factors taken together make it clear that Edward Snowden is at risk of persecution and unfair trial in the United States.

When Edward Snowden reached Moscow airport from Hong Kong on 23 June 2013 the US authorities announced they had revoked his US passport and he was subsequently stranded in the transit area of Sheremetyevo airport. The District Court of the Eastern District of Virginia (the court with jurisdiction over the US Department of Defense and the CIA, and where the US government brings most of its national security cases) quickly began sending pre-emptive extradition requests to a number of countries, prior to Mr Snowden being present on those countries territory, to block any attempt by him to travel to or through them. Julian Assange later explained why there were so many asylum requests: We were involved in filling out asylum requests for Edward Snowden formally and informally to around 20 different nations. Some because we thought there was a decent chance, others because we wanted to show the public the refusal, to generate some public debate and awareness about how the government is behaving.

For more detail about Snowdens asylum requests, read the Asylum requests page.

As a publishing organisation, WikiLeaks campaigns for greater protection of journalistic sources and has taken a leading role in assisting Edward Snowden. At his request, WikiLeaks stepped in to use its legal expertise and experience to help Mr Snowden get out of Hong Kong safely. WikiLeaks also provided a legal adviser to accompany him at all times to ensure his safety and assist in making asylum requests to more than two dozen countries. Sarah Harrison stayed with Mr Snowden for four months until she was sure that he was settled and free from the interference of any government.

Edward Snowden was granted temporary asylum by Russia on 1 August 2013 for a period of one year ending 31 July 2014, which includes the right to work and travel within the Russian Federation. In August 2014, Edward Snowden was granted a three-year residence permit, which also allows him to travel abroad for periods of up to three months. Mr Snowden is currently at an undisclosed secure location.

Find out more about Edwards current status on the Asylum in Russia page.

Theres plenty you can do! Already local and international events to support Edward Snowden and to highlight the issues his whistleblowing has raised have been organised around the world. We will post details of the latest Edward Snowden-related events here, so you can keep an eye out for events being held in your area. We will also post petitions that you can sign. If you enjoy writing, why not compose an open letter that can be shared with other supporters for a more targeted campaign?

Financial support for Edward Snowdens legal defence is vital and making a donation to Courage (formerly the Journalistic Source Protection Defence Fund) is quick, simple and one of the most effective ways in which you can help. And see our Take action! section for Five easy actions you can do, both to support Edward Snowden and to protect your own privacy.

Software developers, cryptographers and hacktivists are constantly working on methods to help people maintain their privacy online. There are methods available by which you can protect your web browsing data, email communications, instant messaging, SMS, file storage, and more. We are working on a Privacy enhancing technologies page check back soon for more information!

Courage is a trust, audited by accountants Derek Rothera & Company in the UK, for the purpose of providing legal defence and campaign aid to journalistic sources. It is overseen by an unrenumerated committee of trustees. Edward Snowden is its first recipient. The terms of the fund and its trustees can be obtained from Derek Rothera & Company.

The site is commissioned by the trustees of Courage to provide information on the threats Edward Snowden faces, how he is being protected, and what you can do to support him.

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Frequently asked questions | Courage Snowden

Ben Wizner an attorney for NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, spoke in Nashville on Saturday about the impact of government surveillance on free speech and democracy.(Photo: John Partipilo / The Tennessean)Buy Photo

Edward Snowden wants to return to the United States, an attorney for the NSA whistleblower told a Nashville crowd on Saturday, but it would have to be under considerably more lenientterms than thecrimes he would currently face.

Ben Wizner, an attorney for Snowden, framed those comments assimplyreading between the lines of past statements from Snowden. Wizner was speaking at an American Civil Liberties Union-sponsored event at the downtown Nashville Public Library called, Surveillance State: Can Democracy Survive?

Snowden, a former National Security Agency contractor considered a hero by some and traitor by others, remains living in Russia more than two years after his release of documents to multiple media organizations revealed government programs that systematically collect data from private citizens in the name of national security.

Whats next for Edward Snowden? Wizner said. I will tell you what hes said. He would like to return to the United States. He doesnt like being across the world from his closest family members. Hes not going to come back and accept felony convictions and lose civil rights as a consequence of his act of conscience.

Hes not going to accept a sentence to be held up as a deterrent to future acts of whistleblowing, Wizner added. He has also said that hes not afraid of accepting some punishment. Hes never ruled out doing jail time. If you read between the lines of all those statements, maybe what hes saying to the government is, Pick your misdemeanor,but otherwise thats not a justice system,its a punishment system.'I do think the climate around his ultimate decision is changing.

Ben Wizner, right, an attorney for NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, answers questions during a forum with ACLU of Tennessee Executive Director Hedy Weinberg at the downtown Nashville Public Library.(Photo: John Partipilo / The Tennessean)

Wizner, director of the ACLUs Speech, Privacy and Technology Project, started working at the ACLU one month before 9/11. Since then, hes focused much of his legal work on government intelligence and terrorism.

Under the Espionage Act, Wizner said that the trial Snowden would get would be an empty exercise if he did choose to come home because Snowden already identified himself as the person who leaked the documents to journalists.

That is all the government needs to prove that trial, he said. And everything that he might want to say in his own defense is not only irrelevant under the Espionage Act, its inadmissible under the Espionage Act.

Wizners Nashville appearance was kicked off Saturday with a viewing of "Citizenfour," a documentary film that details the meetings between Snowden and reporters Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras leading up to Snowdens leak of documents. Wizner, who was introduced Saturday by ACLU of Tennessee Executive Director Hedy Weinberg, spoke for about 25 minutes before taking questions from those in attendance.

In his remarks, Wizner argued that the oversight of government intelligence has improved in the two-plus years since Snowden took actions to expose the scope of government surveillance. Wizner defended his thesis by pointing to a recent court decision, congressional action this summer and new attitudes among both media and technology companies. He cited:

All of the entities in our society that are set up to do oversight over the executive branch and the intelligence community have been strengthened in the last two and a half years, Wizner said.Correspondingly, the intelligence community, which has been unchecked for so long, and certainly since 9/11, has been constrained more in the last two and a half years than perhaps in a whole generation.

Moving forward, he said he's encouraged that the government surveillance issue has not turned partisan.

For the most part, politically, this is not playing out as a partisan issue, he said. The fact that its not played out as a partisan issue makes it more possible for us to actually get victories.

Reach Joey Garrison at 615-259-8236 and on Twitter @joeygarrison.

Ben Wizner, an attorney for NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, waits to be introduced at the downtown Nashville Public Library as Wayne Neal Remmy and dog OrEo look on.(Photo: John Partipilo / The Tennessean)

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Edward Snowden attorney: 'Pick your misdemeanor'

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Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders sparred over Edward Snowden during Tuesdays Democratic presidential debate with both calling for him to face trial, but with the Vermont senator saying he thought the NSA whistleblower had played a very important role in educating the American people.

Related: 'I am still standing': Hillary Clinton rises above the Sanders revolution at debate

Clinton was unmoved by public approbation for Snowden, who exposed the depths of US and UK surveillance to media including the Guardian in 2013.

He broke the laws of the United States, she said. He could have been a whistleblower, he could have gotten all the protections of a whistleblower. He chose not to do that. He stole very important information that has fallen into the wrong hands so I think he should not be brought home without facing the music.

Snowden has said he did not believe he was granted adequate protection from reprisal under whistleblower laws. Laws protecting whistleblowers in intelligence agencies are written differently from laws protecting others who oppose their employers including in the government on grounds of conscience, and are generally considered comparatively weak.

Sanders Clintons main challenger for the Democratic nomination was more lenient. I think Snowden played a very important role in educating the American public, the Vermont senator said. He, too, said that Snowden had broken the law and suggested that he ought to be tried. I think there should be a penalty to that, he said. But I think that education should be taken into consideration before the sentencing.

Jim Webb, the Virginia senator and former secretary of the navy, said the decision should be left to the courts, and Martin OMalley, the former Maryland governor, agreed with Clinton. Lincoln Chafee, the former Rhode Island governor, was the only candidate to say he would bring Snowden back to the US as a hero; that answer drew a positive response online.

Clintons claim that the information Snowden made public has fallen into the wrong hands could be reference to a disputed Times of London story that the leak exposed undercover agents. It could also refer to Snowdens own admission that inadequate redaction of classified images he supplied to the New York Times was a fuck-up.

Ewen MacAskill, the Pulitzer prize-winning Guardian journalist who worked on the Snowden story, has pointed out that no evidence has ever been put forward suggesting that the Snowden documents were hacked or that Snowden himself handed the material to any person or agency other than reputable news outlets.

Related: Bernie Sanders to Clinton: people 'are sick of hearing about your damn emails'

When moderator Anderson Cooper asked Clinton whether she regretted voting for the Patriot Act, she gave a flat: No.

I dont, she said. I think that it was necessary to make sure that we were able after 9/11 to put in place the security that we needed. Clinton did allow that the acts notorious section 215, which allowed for essentially unlimited data collection, had been interpreted overbroadly.

The provisions of the Patriot Act, a law broadening the powers of American intelligence and law enforcement agencies passed just weeks after 9/11, have widely been criticized as too broad and being without accountability. Among them are the expansion of the secret Fisa court system and a framework for the standards for the collection of personal information from citizens who are not suspected or accused of any crime.

Sanders who voted against the act multiple times, including against its original incarnation in the House of Representatives said unequivocally that he would end bulk data collection by the NSA.

Clinton demurred. Its not easy to balance privacy and security but we have to keep them both in mind, she said.

Additional reporting by Ed Pilkington in New York

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Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders call for Edward Snowden ...

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Edward Snowden may be the most powerful person on Twitter, at least where WIRED is concerned.

On Monday, Snowden tweeted:

The tweet links to WIREDs 2014 cover story on Snowden, a profile of the whistleblower and former NSA contractor. Within minutes, web traffic to that story skyrocketed.

Getting a traffic boost from a tweet is not uncommon. A tweet linking to a story from WIREDs own Twitter account, which has nearly 5.2 million followers, can send traffic up. But nothing like the Snowden spike, especially for a story more than a year old. Ive never seen anything like it, says WIRED executive editor and longtime web traffic scrutinizer Joe Brown. Since joining Twitter on September 29, Snowden has sent several tweets, many of which include links to new stories or blog posts. And, as they have forWIRED, they seem to be driving an especially significant amount of traffic and attention. Snowden tweeted a story about the conviction of journalist Matthew Keys on Wednesday from Vices Motherboard. Within minutes, Motherboards social producer Sarah Emerson tweeted:

Similarly, a few days ago, author and journalist Barton Gellman tweeted a link to a post he wrote on the blog of The Century Foundation, a progressive think tank. The post described a speech he gave at an academic conference after which all of the digital recordings of his speech were erased. Later, he tweeted at Snowden:

(The link now leads to a Medium post.)

As any publisher knows, social referrals matter a lot. In a world in which public figures and celebrity endorsements can give a weighty nudge, Snowden seems to be quickly entering the top echelon. With 1.42 million followers, Snowden may not be the most followed person on Twitter. But he seems to command intense influence over his audiences online behavior. Theywatchhis every move, and they go where he points. Many of his tweets arealso faved and retweeted by thousands of users, spreading them even further. Thats an awful lot of power.

Snowden isusing his newfound powers to talk about things that interest him. Hes supporting causes dear to him. And hes taking a stand as a cat person.

With such finely honed 140-character chops, combined with such a large and loyal audience, Snowden has fulfilled the two basic requirements for turning a Twitter account into more than a way to increase ad dollars for publishers whose stories he tweets.

Celebrity tweets, after all, dont just work for content; they work for brands and products, too. Much like Instagram celebrities or YouTube stars who show off things that theyve been paid to endorse, some brands no doubt would love to reach Snowdens audience. Think Norton anti-virus software, Pacsafe suitcases, or, if they were feeling ironic, Nests Dropcamhow much would a brand pay to get access to Snowdens audience, to get retweeted 7,400 times?

Then again, brands arent exactly fond of controversy, no matter how famous the face.

While there are thousands of Americans who consider Snowden a whistleblower who positively influenced our countrys internal debates about capital-D democracy, there are as many (likely more) people who think hes a weaselly traitor, Shift Communications CEO Todd Defren said in an email. I dont see any brand touching that rail: the juice would not be worth the squeeze.'

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Edward Snowden May Be the Most Powerful Person on Twitter

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"Citizenfour" is the rare doc that captures history as it happened. Laura Poitras was one of a select group of journalists in Edward Snowden's inner orbit as the National Security Agency

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No documentary in history has ever scored a best picture nomination at the Oscars. Not Hoop Dreams. Not The War Room. Not Harlan County,U.S.A. All the classics of the genre failed to make the

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Edward Snowden | Variety

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Monday, October 5, 2015, 7:55 PM

LONDON Edward Snowden says he has offered to return to the United States and go to jail for leaking details of National Security Agency programs to intercept electronic communications data on a vast scale.

The former NSA contractor flew to Moscow two years ago after revealing information about the previously secret eavesdropping powers, and faces U.S. charges that could land him in prison for up to 30 years.

Snowden told the BBC that hed volunteered to go to prison with the government many times, but had not received a formal plea-deal offer.

He said that so far theyve said they wont torture me, which is a start, I think. But we havent gotten much further than that.

In an interview broadcast Monday on the BBCs Panorama program, Snowden said he and his lawyers were waiting for U.S. officials to call us back.

Earlier this year, former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said a plea deal with Snowden was a possibility.

Snowdens revelations about the NSA, Britains GCHQ and other intelligence agencies set off an international debate about spies powers to monitor personal communications, and about the balance between security and privacy.

Critics say his disclosures harmed the ability of the United States and its allies to fight terrorism. FBI deputy director Mark Giuliano told the BBC that Snowden was a traitor.

The question is, if I was a traitor, who did I betray? Snowden said. I gave all of my information to American journalists and free society generally.

I have paid a price but I feel comfortable with the decisions Ive made, he added. If Im gone tomorrow, Im happy with what I had. I feel blessed.

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Edward Snowden: Id go to prison to return to U.S. - NY ...

Edward Snowden in an interview broadcast Monday reiterated that hes willing to go to jail if US authorities allow him to return to his native country.

The former National Security Agency contractor told the BBC that he has volunteered to go to prison with the government many times but to this point has not received any official answer.

So far, theyve said they wont torture me, which is a start, I think, said the whistle-blower, who now resides in Russia. But we havent gotten much farther than that.

Mr. Snowden said he and his lawyers are waiting for the US to call them back.

Is it possible that Snowden and the Justice Department could strike some sort of plea deal? After all, his return could be a good thing for the government and even US intelligence, in some ways.

For one thing, a plea deal would presumably stop Snowdens leaks. Right now he continues to make public bits of classified information from his Russian outpost. As far as the NSA is concerned, hes still an embarrassment and a security risk.

For another, NSA experts might get a chance to debrief him and find out how much he really has, and who he gave it to. That could help them understand the fuller implications of Snowdens moves on US national security.

Finally, a managed Snowden return might be popular. Snowdens revelations about the extent of NSA activities have fueled worldwide discussion about the nature of privacy versus safety in the digital age, and hes become a hero to many. A recent Pew poll shows that 52 percent of Americans are at least somewhat concerned about government surveillance of their data and electronic communications.

One sign of his standing with the public: A petition to pardon Snowden at the online White House petition site has received more than 167,000 electronic signatures in two years.

But this does not mean theres a national consensus on the nature of Snowdens actions. About 46 percent of respondents to that Pew survey said they were not very concerned about US electronic snooping.

Many in the US intelligence community remain adamant that hes a traitor who should be tried in a court of law. That remains the official White House position. Responding to the petition for clemency, Lisa Monaco, the presidents adviser on Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, said that Snowden should come home to the United States, and be judged by a jury of his peers not hide behind the cover of an authoritarian regime. Right now, hes running away from the consequences of his actions."

Nor has Snowden detailed exactly what sort of prison term hes willing to accept. A few months? Years? Currently, he faces charges under the Espionage Act which could send him to jail for three decades. Its hard to envision him returning to endure that kind of sentence.

What does he want? Thats the first thing Brookings Institution national security legal exert Benjamin Wittes asked Snowden after the whistle-blower joined Twitter last week.

What would it take in terms of an understanding with [the Justice Department] for @Snowden to return to the United States? Mr. Wittes tweeted at Snowden.

Snowdens public statement that hes willing to go to jail might be an effort to restart discussions that died out in 2013, some months after he fled the US. Its possible he thinks it could be a propitious time to reach out. After all, in March former Army general and Central Intelligence Agency director David Petraeus avoided jail by pleading guilty to a single misdemeanor in a classified leaks case. Mr. Petraeus admitted that he had provided a lover with notebooks of secrets, and then lied about it to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The fact is, however, that Snowdens infractions were of a different scale than those of Petraeus, and were made in public. He published reams of US secrets for all to see. The Obama administration has been tough on other leakers and there is no reason to believe the current president will make an exception for Snowden.

The realistic scenario is that hes going to be in exile in Russia for a long time to come, wrote The Guardians Ewen MacAskill, who worked with Snowden on his initial 2013 information leaks, in March.

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Edward Snowden says he'd accept jail in US. Coming home ...

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden poses with German Green party parliamentarian Hans-Christian Stroebele in Moscow on October 31. Stroebele returned from the meeting with a letter from Snowden to German authorities, which was distributed to the media. In it, Snowden said he is confident that with international support, the United States would abandon its efforts to "treat dissent as defection" and "criminalize political speech with felony charges."

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden Sen. Charles Schumer, D-New York, leaves a last-minute news conference at the U.S. Capitol after Russia announced that it would grant Snowden temporary asylum on August 1. "Russia has stabbed us in the back, and each day that Mr. Snowden is allowed to roam free is another twist of the knife," he said.

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden Snowden's father, Lon Snowden, who has adamantly supported his son, talks to reporters in Washington on Tuesday, July 30. He has urged his son to remain in Russia "until we have assurances that he would receive a fair trial."

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden Russian lawyer Anatoly Kucherena, center, speaks with journalists at the Sheremetyevo International Airport in Moscow after meeting with Snowden on Wednesday, July 24. Kucherena said he was in daily contact with Russian authorities about securing permission for Snowden to leave the airport.

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden Snowden meets with human rights activists and lawyers on July 12 in a transit zone of the Russian airport. It was his first public appearance since he left Hong Kong on June 23. He announced that he was seeking refuge Russia while awaiting safe passage to Latin America, where he has been offered asylum.

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting in Prokhorovka on July 12. Russian officials said Snowden abandoned his effort to seek asylum in the country after Putin warned that he would have to stop leaking information about U.S. surveillance programs if he wanted to stay.

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden A woman burns American flags during a protest in support of Bolivian President Evo Morales in front of the U.S. embassy in Mexico City on July 4. Leftist Latin American leaders and activists were fuming after some European nations temporarily refused Morales' plane access to their airspace amid suspicions Snowden was aboard.

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden Umbrellas with slogans are lined up before a protest march to the U.S. consulate in Hong Kong on June 15. Snowden was hiding in Hong Kong, where he arrived on May 20 before blowing the lid off the NSA surveillance operation.

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden Protesters in Hong Kong shout slogans in support of Snowden on June 13. The NSA leaker vowed to fight any bid to extradite him from Hong Kong.

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden Graffiti sympathetic to Snowden is stenciled on the sidewalk in San Francisco on June 11.

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden An American flag flutters in front of the U.S. consulate in Hong Kong on June 10.

Photos: NSA leaker Edward Snowden

NSA leaker Edward Snowden Snowden outs himself on June 9 in the British newspaper The Guardian, which published details of his revelations about the NSA electronic surveillance programs. "I have no intention of hiding who I am because I know I have done nothing wrong," he said in a video interview.

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Edward Snowden's ready to go to prison, waiting on answer ...

Fugitive leaker Edward Snowden says he's offered to serve U.S. jail time but hasn't heard back from the American government.

Snowden, the former National Security Agency contractor who leaked classified documents about government surveillance, has been living in exile in Moscow. The U.S. government wants to try him.

He discussed government surveillance in an interview with the BBC which aired Monday night. When asked if he would be prepared to serve jail time or take a plea bargain, Snowden said: "Of course."

"I've volunteered to go to prison with the government many times," he told the program.

The Department of Justice would not confirm or deny the assertion, saying in response to emailed questions that "it is important to remember" Snowden stands accused of leaking classified information and his actions "inflicted serious harms" on national security.

"It remains our position that Mr. Snowden should return to the United States and face the charges filed against him. If he does, he will be accorded full due process and protections," the DOJ said in a statement.

However, former Attorney General Eric Holder said this summer he felt "the possibility exists" for a deal to be struck which would see Snowden return to the U.S. from Moscow.

When asked if the possibility of a deal was something his lawyers were actively discussing with the U.S. government, Snowden said he was "still waiting for them to call us back."

Snowden has been living in Moscow since June 2013.

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Edward Snowden: I've Offered to Go to Prison in U.S. 'Many ...

Snowden, who is wanted under the Espionage Act after leaking tens of thousands of top secret documents, said he had offered to do time in prison as part of a deal. Photograph: Alan Rusbridger for the Guardian

The US justice department has made no effort to contact Edward Snowden to discuss a plea deal that would see him return from exile in Russia, the NSA whistleblower said in an interview on BBC Panorama to be broadcast on Monday night.

Snowden, who is wanted under the Espionage Act after leaking tens of thousands of top secret documents, said he had offered to do time in prison as part of a deal. We are still waiting for them to call us back, he said.

His comments come just months after Eric Holder, who was US attorney-general until April, said Snowdens revelations had spurred a necessary debate. He also said the possibility exists of a plea deal.

But senior figures in the security services in both the US and UK are unforgiving, wanting him to serve a long sentence both as punishment and to act as a deterrent to others.

Former head of the NSA Michael Hayden, asked by Panorama what would happen to Snowden, said: If youre asking me my opinion, hes going to die in Moscow. Hes not coming home.

Snowden, in his first interview with the BBC since he disclosed the documents two years ago, said: Ive volunteered to go to prison with the government many times. What I wont do is I wont serve as a deterrent to people trying to do the right thing in difficult situations.

Asked if he was prepared to face a jail sentence, he replied: Of course.

If Snowden was to return to the US without a deal, he would be tried under the Espionage Act, which would mean no jury and he would be looking at least at 30 years in jail or even a life sentence.

But Snowden does have some leverage. Even some of his critics acknowledge he has sparked a necessary debate worldwide about surveillance and privacy.

Further leverage is the embarrassment factor to the US from Snowdens receipt of prestigious awards and his general popularity, particularly among the young: since starting on Twitter a week ago, he has attracted 1.36 million followers.

In May 2013, Snowden flew to Hong Kong after leaving his job at an NSA facility in Hawaii. The following month he revealed thousands of classified NSA documents, and then travelled to Russia, where he was subsequently granted asylum.

One of the consequences of the Snowden revelations has been an increasing reluctance on the part of internet service providers and social media to cooperate fully with police and security agencies in handing over data.

Mark Rowley, the head of counter-terrorism police operations in the UK, said in a speech at the Royal United Services Institute in London on Monday that some of the internet companies and social media were immature.

Rowley said: Some simply undermine us by adopting a policy that if they supply data to us they will tell the subject that they have done that.

But Simon Milner, Facebook director of policy for the UK and Ireland, told Panorama: We have made important strides in the last three years to ensure that Facebook is a hostile place for terrorists ... and in rare circumstances where we find somebody who is organising activities which may pose an imminent risk to life, then we can and will report those people to the authorities.

Milner said: Facebook doesnt track terrorist content ... However, what we do do is rely on reports from the 1.5 billion people using Facebook to let us know when they see things on Facebook that shouldnt be there, including terrorist activity.

Milner added: There is no algorithm that finds terrorist content.

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