The NSA has tapped fiber-optic cables abroad to siphon data from Google and Yahoo, circumvented or cracked encryption, and covertly introduced weaknesses and back doors into coding, according to reports in the Washington Post, the New York Times and the U.K.’s Guardian newspaper based on Snowden documents. ... Microsoft’s networks and services were allegedly hacked by the NSA, the Washington Post reported Nov. 26. Documents disclosed by Snowden suggest, without proving, that the NSA targeted Microsoft’s Hotmail and Windows Live Messenger services under a program called MUSCULAR, the newspaper said. “These allegations are very disturbing,” Smith said in an e-mailed statement. “If they are true these actions amount to hacking and seizure of private data and in our view are a breach of the protection guaranteed by the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution.” ... Meinrath, with the Open Technology Institute, said companies that claim to secure data while allowing it to be intercepted due to lax security should face legal liabilities. “The smartest minds in these companies completely fell down on the job in terms of identifying risks to these business models,” Meinrath said. “The fact that the Snowden revelations can act as a catalyst to implement best practices for secure communications and data integrity is a great outcome.” Microsoft, Yahoo Upgrades Shows Snowden Won, Obama Failed - Bloomberg buff.ly/1cRmb08
Posted on: Tue, 03 Dec 2013 12:49:03 +0000
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