Latest Snowden leak reveals NSA's goal to continually expand surveillance abilities

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http://www.opednews.com/articles/Latest-Snowden-leak-reveal-by-RT-TV-Intelligence_NSA_Prism_Snowden-131123-477.html



The National Security Agency (NSA) headquarters at Fort Meade, Maryland

Latest Snowden leak reveals NSA's goal to continually expand surveillance abilities
OpEdNews Op Eds 11/23/2013 at 21:13:05
By RT TV

In a mission statement last year the US National Security Agency described how it would continue to expand its power and assert itself as the global leader in clandestine surveillance, according to a new report based on the Edward Snowden leaks.

The five-page document brought to light Friday by the New York Times reveals the intelligence agency's intention to "aggressively pursue legal authorities and a policy framework mapped more fully to the information age." The spy agency sought the ability to trace "anyone, anywhere, anytime," according to its 2012 mission statement.

Dated February 2012, the memo was written after PRISM and many of the other programs that have since outraged the public were implemented. It describes a four-year plan to push the NSA past its current status and into "the golden age of SIGINT," code for signals intelligence.

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The document, given the name "SIGINT Strategy 2012-2016," falls short of explaining exactly how it would go about assuming more power, but does make clear that the so-called "culture of compliance" would not give up any concessions. The paper indicates NSA leaders communicated the need for more power in order to effectively carry out its duties.