PRISM (surveillance program) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia PRISM redirects here. For other uses, see Prism (disambiguation). Logo for the PRISM program, known to have illegally adapted a photograph by Adam Hart-Davis[1] [2] National Security Agency.svg National Security Agencysurveillance Boundless Informant data collection.svg Map of global NSA data collection Programs[show] Legislation[show] Institutions[show] Lawsuits[show] Whistleblowers[show] Publication[show] Related[show] Concepts[show] Collaboration[show] v t e PRISM is a clandestine mass electronic surveillance data mining program known to have been operated by the United States National Security Agency (NSA) since 2007.[3][4][5] PRISM is a government code name for a data-collection effort known officially by the SIGAD US-984XN.[6][7]The Prism program collects stored Internet communications based on demands made to Internet companies such as Google Inc. under Section 702 of the FISA Amendments Act of 2008. The NSA can use these Prism requests to target communications that were encrypted when they traveled across the Internet backbone, to focus on stored data that telecommunication filtering systems discarded earlier,[8][9] and to get data that is easier to handle, among other things.[10] PRISM began in 2007 in the wake of the passage of the Protect America Act under the Bush Administration.[11][12] The program is operated under the supervision of the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA Court, or FISC) pursuant to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).[13] Its existence was leaked six years later by NSA contractorEdward Snowden, who warned that the extent of mass data collection was far greater than the public knew and included what he characterized as dangerous and criminal activities.[14] The disclosures were published by The Guardian and The Washington Poston June 6, 2013. Subsequent documents have demonstrated a financial arrangement between NSAs Special Source Operations division (SSO) and PRISM partners in the millions of dollars. [15] Documents indicate that PRISM is the number one source of raw intelligence used for NSA analytic reports, and it accounts for 91% of the NSAs Internet traffic acquired under FISA section 702 authority.[16][17] The leaked information came to light one day after the revelation that the FISA Court had been ordering a subsidiary of telecommunications company Verizon Communications to turn over to the NSA logs tracking all of its customers telephone calls on an ongoing daily basis.[18][19] U.S. government officials have disputed some aspects of the Guardian and Washington Post stories and have defended the program by asserting it cannot be used on domestic targets without a warrant, that it has helped to prevent acts of terrorism, and that it receives independent oversight from the federal governments executive, judicial andlegislative branches.[20][21] On June 19, 2013, U.S. President Barack Obama, during a visit to Germany, stated that the NSAs data gathering practices constitute a circumscribed, narrow system directed at us being able to protect our people.[22]
Posted on: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 10:36:14 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015