NSA Said to Search Content of Messages to and From US

Headquarters of the NSA at Fort Meade, Maryland. Español: Instalaciones generales de la NSA en Fort Meade, Maryland. Русский: Штаб-квартира АНБ, Форт-Мид, Мэриленд, США (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

CHARLIE SAVAGE | New York Times | August 9, 2013

WASHINGTON — The National Security Agency is searching the contents of vast amounts of Americans’ e-mail and text communications into and out of the country, hunting for people who mention information about foreigners under surveillance, according to intelligence officials.

The N.S.A. is not just intercepting the communications of Americans who are in direct contact with foreigners targeted overseas, a practice that government officials have openly acknowledged. It is also casting a far wider net for people who cite information linked to those foreigners, like a little used e-mail address, according to a senior intelligence official.

While it has long been known that the agency conducts extensive computer searches of data it vacuums up overseas, that it is systematically searching — without warrants — through the contents of Americans’ communications that cross the border reveals more about the scale of its secret operations.

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Broader Sifting of Data Abroad Is Seen by N.S.A.

The seal of the U.S. National Security Agency. The first use was in September 1966, replacing an older seal which was used briefly. For more information, see here and here. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

CHARLIE SAVAGE | New York Times | August 7, 2013

WASHINGTON — The National Security Agency is searching the contents of vast amounts of Americans’ e-mail and text communications into and out of the country, hunting for people who mention information about foreigners under surveillance, according to intelligence officials.

The N.S.A. is not just intercepting the communications of Americans who are in direct contact with foreigners targeted overseas, a practice that government officials have openly acknowledged. It is also casting a far wider net for people who cite information linked to those foreigners, like a little used e-mail address, according to a senior intelligence official.

While it has long been known that the agency conducts extensive computer searches of data it vacuums up overseas, that it is systematically searching — without warrants — through the contents of Americans’ communications that cross the border reveals more about the scale of its secret operations.

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Wisconsin Lawmakers Leading the Way on LGBT Rights

Rainbow flag. Symbol of gay pride. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

John M. Becker | Bilerico | August 6, 2013

Having been born and raised in Wisconsin, my relationship with the Badger State goes way, way back. It’s definitely a love-hate affair, though, due in no small part to the state’s homophobic streak (it passed a constitutional marriage discrimination amendment in 2006, less than eight months after my husband and I were married). Although I no longer live there, I follow Wisconsin LGBT news closely and am often quick to criticize elected officials and public figures there who attack the LGBT community.

But on the national level, I’m proud to say that several Wisconsin politicians are leading the charge for LGBT rights and working hard to bring our community closer to full equality.

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Tech Companies Concede to Surveillance Program

Connie Zhou/Google, via Associated Press

A Google data center in Council Bluffs, Iowa. Google says it scrutinizes each government request and notifies users if it is allowed.

CLAIRE CAIN MILLER | New York Times | June 7, 2013

SAN FRANCISCO — When government officials came to Silicon Valley to demand easier ways for the world’s largest Internet companies to turn over user data as part of a secret surveillance program, the companies bristled. In the end, though, many cooperated at least a bit.

Twitter declined to make it easier for the government. But other companies were more compliant, according to people briefed on the negotiations. They opened discussions with national security officials about developing technical methods to more efficiently and securely share the personal data of foreign users in response to lawful government requests. And in some cases, they changed their computer systems to do so.

The negotiations shed a light on how Internet companies, increasingly at the center of people’s personal lives, interact with the spy agencies that look to their vast trove of information — e-mails, videos, online chats, photos and search queries — for intelligence. They illustrate how intricately the government and tech companies work together, and the depth of their behind-the-scenes transactions.

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