Edward Snowden Reveals New Information About NSA Spying On India

[Purveyor]

By Jason Burke, The Guardian
Wednesday, September 25, 2013 14:17 EDT

The US National Security Agency may have accessed computers within the Indian embassy in Washington and mission at the United Nations in New York as part of a huge clandestine effort to mine electronic data held by its south Asian ally.

Documents released by the US whistleblower Edward Snowden also reveal the extent and aggressive nature of other NSA datamining exercises targeting India as recently as March of this year.

The latest revelations – published in the Hindu newspaper – came as Manmohan Singh, the Indian prime minister, flew to Europe on his way to the US, where he will meet President Barack Obama.

The NSA operation targeting India used two datamining tools, Boundless Informant and Prism, a system allowing the agency easy access to the personal information of non-US nationals from the databases of some of the world’s biggest tech companies, including Apple, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo.

more...

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/09/25/edward-snowden-reveals-new-information-about-nsa-spying-on-india/

[mzmolly]

1. I had no idea the US had a spy

program pre-Snowden.

[mike_c]

3. this isn't spying in the usual sense....

I mean, gathering intelligence in order to estimate a potential enemy's industrial or military capacity is one thing, but indiscriminately harvesting communications and data from private citizens is spying on a whole different scale, and while the former might just be prudent foreign relations, the latter is imperial, intrusive, and unnecessary.

[Uncle Joe]

4. It makes for easy political retribution against the people. n/t

[GoneFishin]

9. That's what this is all about. The new improved J. Edgar Hoover system for

the wealthy and connected to get everything they want, all the time.

[mzmolly]

6. Oh. I had no idea

that Bush started a spy program utilizing technology, then.

[randome]

8. Not private citizens of this country.

And since the NSA's responsibilities include monitoring foreign communications, I doubt this gets much traction.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font][hr]

[mike_c]

10. so you don't object to OTHER COUNTRIES hoovering up your personal communications...

...and private data? As long as you're not a citizen of the countries that monitor your communications and data, it's OK?

[randome]

15. I have more important things to worry about than whether India is spying on me.

Or Brazil. Or Canada. It's not illegal for countries to spy on one another. Maybe if we come up with a plan to make us all live in brotherly harmony, that will change.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font][hr]

[stevenleser]

23. If they can, they already do. I'm sure China and Russia already do that.

I'm sure all unencrypted IP traffic in the US is being "hoovered up" by China and Russia and probably a few other countries.

It's really not hard to do.

[Shivering Jemmy]

27. I expect them to

That is their job.

[Scurrilous]

2. LOL

"Professor Gopalapuram Parthasarathy, a former senior diplomat, said no one should be surprised by the Hindu's story. "Everybody spies on everyone else. Some just have better gadgets. If we had their facilities, I'm sure we would do it too. The US-Indian relationship is good and stable and if they feel India merits so much attention then good for us," he told the Guardian."

Anxiously awaiting the next breathless bombshell from Glenn and Eddie.

[mzmolly]

7. "Everybody spies on everyone else. Some just have better gadgets."

[Tarheel_Dem]

11. I guess that kinda puts things in their proper perspective. They're running out of shit to *shock*.

[Cha]

12. I'm so sick of those

dipshits.

"Professor Gopalapuram Parthasarathy, a former senior diplomat, said no one should be surprised by the Hindu's story. "Everybody spies on everyone else. Some just have better gadgets. If we had their facilities, I'm sure we would do it too. The US-Indian relationship is good and stable and if they feel India merits so much attention then good for us," he told the Guardian."

Good, India isn't whining about it.

[JI7]

16. India considers it a compliment that the US would spy on them

[Number23]

19. Professor Gopalapuram Parthasarathy just drank Snowden's and everyone at the Guardian's milk and

smiled while he was doing it.

[Hekate]

21. I noticed that too.Thank you, Professor P, for filling in briefly for Obvious Man. Sometimes it's...

... freakin' necessary to remember those words of wisdom: Every nation is spying on every other nation.

[Historic NY]

26. And stole the Eddies lunch money for the week.

Any article that starts off with "may have", and then "might have" is guaranteed to be full of speculative BS.

[FSogol]

25. +1. LOL. n/t

[Uncle Joe]

5. That's peculiar, the views count isn't registering on this thread?

It seems to be the only one on the forum with this malfunction.

[Wilms]

13. Sorry. That's classified.

[Uncle Joe]

14. One could think so.

[JI7]

17. this shows one reason India is not upset

US Intelligence agencies had uncovered evidence of a plot hatched by Pakistani security officials to use militants to kill rights activist Asma Jahangir in India, according to a media report.

Citing classified documents provided by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, The Washington Post reported that US intelligence agencies had discovered evidence of the plot against Jahangir, one of Pakistan's leading critics of the security establishment.

In May 2012, the US agencies found out that Pakistani security officers were plotting to "eliminate" Jahangir, according to the summary of a top-secret Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) report.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/pak-officials-planned-to-kill-asma-jahangir-in-india/1164182/

[randome]

20. "Stop spying on people!" Breitbart screamed.

You clearly do not belong on Libertarian Underground. Please move on.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font][hr]

[struggle4progress]

18. "... published .. as .. the Indian prime minister, flew to .. meet President .. Obama ..."

Like Manning and Manning's pals before him, Snowden and Snowden's pals sure do seem to be doing their damndest to undermine diplomacy

[stevenleser]

22. IMHO, the greatest chance for a nuclear war is one between India and Pakistan

Keeping an eye on both countries is a good use of our intelligence resources.

A total of 1.3 Billion people live in both countries, many in substandard dwellings. Between the two countries, they have over 300 warheads. A nuclear war between the two could kill a billion people in a day.

[PragmaticLiberal]

24. Maybe I'm just not very bright but explain to me what Snowden's purpose is in releasing this info?

It's one thing when he revealed the NSA's spying on U.S. citizens but this doesn't sit well with me.

I don't think there's any person of reasonable intelligence who is shocked that we spy on other countries...including out allies.

Heck, while Snowden is at it he should reveal all of our allies who spy on US. Now I'd really like to know THAT.


And interestingly, does this not contradict Snowden's claim that he would never release info that would harm the U.S.?

Well, these spying "revelations" fall into that category imo.

Why damage U.S. relations with other countries? What purpose does it serve?


So yeah, I guess I'm not that bright. Someone educate me please.

[randome]

28. Can't speak to your intelligence but you raise a good point.

With the thousands of documents Snowden supposedly stole and turned over to Greenwald, he could not have known everything that was in them.

It's Greenwald who is choosing to publish the most damaging documents he can find at the most inappropriate times for maximum damage effect.

And doing a piss-poor job of it, too.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font][hr]