Washington Post: 2,776 NSA Privacy Breaches in One Year
Just two weeks ago, the director of the National Security Agency, Keith Alexander, stood before a technology audience and declared that U.S. phone and Internet surveillance sets “a standard for other countries.”
He talked of strict internal controls, and said relatively few people were able to query databases. If anyone was doing the wrong thing within the agency, he added, “our auditing tools would detect them and they would be found accountable, and they know that” (see “NSA Chief Says U.S. Phone and Web Surveillance Sets Standard for Other Countries”).
Now comes the Washington Post, letting us know that according to internal NSA audits leaked to the paper, privacy breaches have happened 2,776 times in one year ending in May 2012, mostly “unauthorized surveillance of Americans or foreign intelligence targets in the United States.” The primary documents—and the Post story and related graphics—are very well worth reading here.
The Post writes: “Most were unintended. Many involved failures of due diligence or violations of standard operating procedure. The most serious incidents included a violation of a court order and unauthorized use of data about more than 3,000 Americans and green-card holders.” It did not mention whether any consequences followed.
Keep Reading
Most Popular
DeepMind’s cofounder: Generative AI is just a phase. What’s next is interactive AI.
“This is a profound moment in the history of technology,” says Mustafa Suleyman.
What to know about this autumn’s covid vaccines
New variants will pose a challenge, but early signs suggest the shots will still boost antibody responses.
Human-plus-AI solutions mitigate security threats
With the right human oversight, emerging technologies like artificial intelligence can help keep business and customer data secure
Next slide, please: A brief history of the corporate presentation
From million-dollar slide shows to Steve Jobs’s introduction of the iPhone, a bit of show business never hurt plain old business.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.