Setting The Stage For The Events That Took Place

Edward Snowden took advantage of his access the government’s vast electronic surveillance operations. Snowden had access to more sensitive information than Manning but, in his dealings so far with the Washington Post and The Guardian, he has made a key point of not releasing all the documents he had which is saving him from harsher punishment. ("What Bradley Manning Leaked.”) Many of the documents that Edward Snowden had exposed were related to our military capabilities, operations, tactics, techniques and procedures. Even a confidential Pentagon report written by military intelligence officials claims that Edward Snowden's leaks had put U.S. soldiers at serious risk and encouraged terrorists to change their strategies. ("Snowden Leaks Could Cost Military Billions: Pentagon.") However, in the middle of 2014, the NSA's director, U.S. Navy Admiral Michael S. Rogers, said that while some terrorist groups had changed their communications to avoid surveillance techniques revealed by Snowden, the damage done was not significant enough to claim it as an immediate threat or danger. Still, in February 2015, “the NSA director said that Snowden's disclosures created "blind spots" in the NSA's surveillance by revealing U.S. strategies to monitor terrorism”.( "What NSA Director Mike Rogers Doesn't

Edward Snowden and the PRISM leak: On June 6, 2013, The Guardian broke the news that the U.S. National Security

On June 6, 2013, The Guardian published a story about the National Security Agency's (NSA) secret Internet surveillance program, PRISM (Greenwald and MacAskill 2013). The story was based on documents leaked by one of the most successful whistle-blowers in American history, former NSA contractor Edward Snowden. The documents that Snowden has released up to this time have shown the NSA to be heavily engaged in the collection of personal Internet activity, bulk collection of telephone "metadata," and other forms of surveillance that have brought U.S. intelligence practices into question.

On June 6, 2013 the details of the National Security Agency’s (NSA) surveillance activities where given by Edward Snowden to the public; raising concerns of Americans about their privacy. Edward Snowden, a former employee of the NSA, gave the alarming details of surveillance programs in his interview on how the NSA accesses our emails, calls, internet activity, and anything else that is related to technology. In this system of surveillance the NSA can gather data from companies and tap the cables that are vital for moving around information from technological devices, they may also use their relationships with technology companies to get emails or information straight from U.S. servers. (Cawley, Kiss, Boyd, Ball) Nevertheless, the claim is

“Even if you’re not doing anything wrong, you’re being watched and recorded,” said former NSA information technology contractor, Edward Snowden, as quoted in an article by CNN political reporter, Jeremy Diamond. Despite his low position in the National Security Agency, Snowden caught the world’s eye in 2013 when he leaked documents revealing the NSA and FISC’s plans for mass domestic surveillance in the United States. His decision to reveal classified documents sent the nation into widespread outrage. The NSA had access to not only metadata (records of activity), but also content containing personal information that Americans rightfully assumed was protected by laws such as the Stored Communications Act (SCA) and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Amendments Act

Greenwald, G. (2015). No place to Hide: Edward Snowden, the NSA, and the surveillance state.

Edward Snowden, a former employ in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and a former contractor of NSA has fled to Russia after releasing sensitive information on the NSA surveillance to the Washington Post (Gellman). The domino effect created by Snowden's actions has caused uproar among citizens. The level of the information that was released by Snowden was not every day, common knowledge, but it was information that normally is withheld even from the special court that governs

Similarly Glenn Greenwald’s feature article (2013), of Edward Snowden in ‘Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind the NSW surveillance revelations’, reveals

In 2013, word spread rapidly through the United States and the rest of the world that the National Security Agency had access to files that the general public was unaware of due to these reforms. Edward Snowden, a former Central Intelligence Agent, leaked the truth about the NSA’s conduct to reporters and newspapers nationwide. The files that Snowden was referring to include call records and contents, emails, Facebook posts, instant messages, and Google searches. The NSA also hacked into various servers around the world, breaking some foreign countries’ laws. Those servers even included those of allied countries like Germany and other Western democracies. While they believed that their actions were technically legal within U.S. law, they were blatantly breaking the laws of foreign

Former NSA agent, Edward Snowden, empowered U.S. citizens by releasing top secret governemnt files documenting the government’s unwarranted, illegal surveillance on ally countries and unknowing american citizens. His act of courage brought an era of awareness to the masses of the unconstitutional acts of the sovereign. Today, U.S. citizens can thank Snowden for confirming previously far-fetched conspiracy theories and for giving the people a chance to fight back against oppressive government tactics.

p. 2). He knew about the NSA’s operation on the American public, where they used people’s technology to spy on them. Snowden felt that this was a violation of the public’s rights and they had a right to know what was happening. He knew that beyond violating his loyalty to the NSA, that he was compromising the life he knew to get people to stand up and make their representatives to make decisions in the public’s best interest. If not, Snowden believes that there will be a

The person who revealed the NSA spying scandal was Edward Snowden. Snowden was born in North Carolina and is 31 years old. Also, he is a high school dropout, has a GED, and spent a few months in army training. He is a former NSA contractor, but left and leaked this data, and is now considered a “whistleblower”2. In June 2013, he told the world what he had found while working for the NSA. He revealed that they were looking at people’s data in foreign countries and around the U.S. Amid all this, Edward Snowden is currently on the FBI’s most wanted list for doing this and he is hiding in Russia at the moment. Snowden also revealed what

Mr. Edward Snowden shared truths to the American people on what the NSA does. Some people may say that his reveal is simply common sense or went against our nation, labeling him a traitor. However, ““Snowden has brought to light important information that deserved to be in the public domain, while doing no lasting harm to the national security of his country.”” (John Cassidy, 2013) To those who trusted other NSA officials on what they truly do, Mr. Snowden can be other source to get the truth; it’s debatable on why a 29-year-old would go out of his way to lie about a vital matter. Snowden said himself that he doesn’t want to live in a world where everything he does and say is reordered. His act, whether you think it was idiotic or heroic, revealed to America on what our countries intentions are for both our nation and around the world.

Edward Snowden, the former National Security Agency (N.S.A) subcontractor turned whistle-blower is nothing short of a hero. His controversial decision to release information detailing the highly illegal ‘data mining’ practices of the N.S.A have caused shockwaves throughout the world and have raised important questions concerning how much the government actually monitors its people without their consent or knowledge. Comparable to Mark Felt in the Watergate scandals, Daniel Ellsberg with the Pentagon Papers, Edward Snowden joins the rank of infamous whistleblowers who gave up their jobs, livelihood, and forever will live under scrutiny of the public all in the service to the American people. Edward Snowden released information detailing the

Edward Snowden is a United States citizen and former employee of the National Security Agency (NSA). Snowden leaked information about the NSA to the media in 2013 and is now in Russia where he was recently granted three years of asylum. The NSA uses cryptology and others forms of information gathering to enable various networks to make advantageous decisions for the Nation and our allies under all circumstances. The NSA operates undetected by civilians, and uses global monitoring so broadly defined that it has allowed for unscrupulous behavior that was witnessed by contracted employee, Edward Snowden. Snowden believed that as the public gained knowledge of the illegal intelligence gathering by the government of domestic citizens, and abroad, he would gain protection from the public. Snowden did receive protection from people including powerful lawyers, journalists, and privacy advocates. Analysis of the Edward Snowden case