NSA Paid Millions To Tech Companies - Includes Google, Yahoo, Microsoft And Facebook,

The Guardian just released another Snowden leak. This leak shows that the NSA is paying out huge sums of money to tech companies to cover the costs associated meeting certification demands. When asked to comment by The Guardian, Yahoo said that they were entitled by law, Facebook denied getting any compensation, Google denies it joined PRISM, and Microsoft refuses to comment.

This is concerning to some people, including myself, since this could also mean that these companies could stand to profit from the surveillance.

The National Security Agency paid millions of dollars to cover the costs of major internet companies involved in the Prism surveillance program after a court ruled that some of the agency's activities were unconstitutional, according to top-secret material passed to the Guardian.

The technology companies, which the NSA says includes Google, Yahoo, Microsoft and Facebook, incurred the costs to meet new certification demands in the wake of the ruling from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance (Fisa) court.

The disclosure that taxpayers' money was used to cover the companies' compliance costs raises new questions over the relationship between Silicon Valley and the NSA. Since the existence of the program was first revealed by the Guardian and the Washington Post on June 6, the companies have repeatedly denied all knowledge of it and insisted they only hand over user data in response to specific legal requests from the authorities.

NSA paid millions to cover Prism compliance costs for tech companies

reply to post by elouina


Big surprise.

And my family always calls me paranoid . . .

Ever play tip the waiter? I wonder how many coins closer to tipping right over those millions put our big Uncle Sam Waiter guy?

We damn sure couldn't afford to actually pay companies money to build systems to spy on US. I rather resent hearing I actually paid for my own violation ABOVE what I paid their salaries to do it. Now we paid for upgrades and retrofits to make it possible??

Yeah..Right...the Gov says we shouldn't worry. Nothing was done against us. Why, they are there to HELP!

I have a thought for everyone to consider...and it comes from a man Obama likes to fancy he has anything in common with, too.



Words of Wisdom and why we just can't believe much they say anymore...on anything.

reply to post by wrabbit2000


Well if you think about it, most of those companies make money by selling our privacy in the first place. They are all bottom of the barrel slime that would sell your soul to the devil if they could make a profit.

Snowden is a ghost. The boogie man. So is Assange and Anonymous. We live in very deceptive times. Never forget that.

reply to post by elouina


True, they do...but as I noted in a thread yesterday? There is NO comparison and can BE no comparison between data mining and marketing of the private sector vs. the criminal intelligence gathering on U.S. Citizens by U.S. agencies.

One is legal and a core part of our national system. The other is criminal by statute and by mission charter of the relevant agencies.

The fact we can honestly say the overlap has reached a point where we cannot necessarily distinguish one from the other anymore IS the whole problem needing solved here...first and foremost. After all, even the NSA doesn't have organic resources to spy at the level they do. They NEED to corrupt and co-opt private sector..and that is where people ought to focus disengaging the two.

Already a thread

www.abovetopsecret.com...

It would be foolish to think these companies received no monetary compansation for bending over backwards for the NSA.

In fact it's expected I would think.

What would be more eye-brow raising is if the NSA helped these companies spy on their competitors or something. Using these tools the NSA has for corporate espionage would benefit companies more I would think in the long-term.

Microsoft would do something about Sony since they're getting pummeled in pre-order wars. It's obvious they took the money.

Originally posted by igor_ats
What would be more eye-brow raising is if the NSA helped these companies spy on their competitors or something. Using these tools the NSA has for corporate espionage would benefit companies more I would think in the long-term.

I would not be surprised at all. Corrupt Politicians engage in Insider Trading all the time, so there is an incentive there to spy on other corporations and use that knowledge for their own gain.

reply to post by igor_ats


Yea i am not all that surprised either, there isn't a company around that would do this sort of stuff for free.

As for Microsoft, well they have already shot themselves in the foot with Windows 8 and the Surface, but i am still leaning towards the Xbox One as it has a better roster of games. Now that you don't need to use the kinect at all with the new Xbox it is likely the system i will purchase.

Hmmm... follow the money... guess Apple and drop box may be next...

Originally posted by xavi1000
Already a thread

www.abovetopsecret.com...

Please add further comments to the ongoing discussion in the above linked thread.
Thanks

**Thread Closed**