When Edward Snowden revealed the NSA PRISM program, world leaders
and citizens around the world were not happy. That program works with the
assistance of Google, Yahoo, and others. The newest leak from Snowden suggests
that the NSA, when it doesn’t have the permission it wants, simply hacks
Google, Yahoo, and others, and takes the information being sought after.
Snowden’s latest leak is reported in the The Washington Post and
shines light on an NSA program called MUSCULAR. According to the document, the
NSA MUSCULAR program, a joint effort between NSA and Britain’s GCHQ, simply
hacks and takes information from Google and Yahoo servers as needed.
According to the document, the NSA steals email metadata alongside
other content, like audio and video. The MUSCULAR program is believed to be
responsible for stealing over 181 million records in 30 days from the Google
and Yahoo servers
Technically, it is illegal to obtain consumer data without going
through the proper channels. However, the NSA has taught us in recent months
that for every illegal activity there is a shady executive order that turns the
law flat on its face. In this case, the NSA can collect unlawful data by
enacting Executive Order 12333. That order goes all the way back to President
Ronald Reagan in 1981. The NSA works in the grey area of the law by collecting
hacked data from overseas servers.
So how are Google and Yahoo taking the news? Google is fighting
back against the NSA by creating stronger security protocols meant to fend off
government spying. At this time, we don’t know what Yahoo is doing to create
stronger encryption between data links and its servers.
It’s safe to assume that your personal data is not safe in this
day and age. Basically don’t put anything online that you don’t want accessed
by the NSA or other government agencies
Source:Inquistr
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