Did The NSA Hire Two Secretive Israeli Companies To Wiretap The U.S. Telecommunications Network?

Reuters

DID YOU KNOW?: Two Secretive Israeli Companies Reportedly Bugged The US Telecommunications Grid For The NSA -- Business Insider

The newest information regarding the NSA domestic spying scandal raises an important question: If America's tech giants didn't 'participate knowingly' in the dragnet of electronic communication, how does the NSA get all of their data?

One theory: the NSA hired two secretive Israeli companies to wiretap the U.S. telecommunications network.

In April 2012 Wired's James Bamford — author of the book "The Shadow Factory: The NSA from 9/11 to the Eavesdropping on America" — reported that two companies with extensive links to Israel's intelligence service provided hardware and software to wiretap the U.S. telecommunications network for the National Security Agency (NSA).

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My Comment: An intriguing (and if true it is disturbing) intelligence relationship .... the Israeli are being used to spy and collect data on Americans so that U.S. agencies cannot be accused of breaking U.S. laws. I know that no one is going to confirm this publicly .... but it is a question that needs to be answered. More coverage and discussion of Israeli capabilities to penetrate U.S. communication networks can be read here.

Picture Of The Day

A paratrooper peers through his scope to observe a target during his brigade's fire support coordination exercise on Fort Bragg, N.C., June 6, 2013. The paratrooper, a sniper, is assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division's 4th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo Sgt. Adonis Williams

What Are Polls Saying On The NSA Surveilance Scandal

Gallup, Fox News Polls: Public Opposes Broad NSA Collection Of Records -- Hot Air

I’m not going to blog every poll on this topic but some commenters were grumpy about the results of the Pew and CBS polls and I wanted to throw them a bone. If you’re waiting for a backlash, your wait might be over. First, Gallup:

And, hot on its heels, Fox News:

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More Polls On The NSA Surveillance Programs

57% Fear Government Will Use NSA Data to Harass Political Opponents -- Rasmussen Reports
More Americans see man who leaked NSA secrets as 'patriot' than traitor: Poll -- Reuters
Fox News poll: Voters oppose NSA program, most lack trust in government -- FOX News
Polls show Obama's real worry: NSA leaks erode trust in government -- The Guardian
Majority say NSA tracking of phone records "acceptable" - Washington Post-Pew Research Center poll -- Washington Post
Why 3 Polls on NSA Snooping Produce Wildly Contradictory Results -- Media Ethics
Partisan Hypocrisy and NSA Surveillance -- Kevin Drum, Mother Jones

Yahoo Fought Against The NSA's Demands For Their Data (But They Lost)

Reuters

How Yahoo Fought PRISM — and Lost -- Atlantic Wire

Yahoo, one of the companies named as part of the NSA's PRISM data collection program, didn't go quietly, according to a New York Times scoop posted late Thursday. The company was behind a 2008 court challenge to fight a court order requiring the company to give them data without a warrant, which they lost. That, according to the Times, ushered the company into PRISM.

The court, Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court or FISC, has been in the news a lot recently for, among other things, authorizing the phone data tracking of millions of Americans. The Yahoo case was previously known as an unsuccessful challenge to the NSA's surveillance powers, but until now, no one knew the name of the company behind it. Here's how that argument went down, according to the Times:

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My Comment: Yahoo's court case against the NSA makes the denials from Facebook, Google, Apple, etc. of NSA cooperation all the more questionable.

Who Is Spying On The U.S. Media?

CBS News Confirms Sharyl Attkisson's Computer Hacked -- CBS

CBS News announced Friday that correspondent Sharyl Attkisson's computer was hacked by "an unauthorized, external, unknown party on multiple occasions," confirming Attkisson's previous revelation of the hacking.

CBS News spokeswoman Sonya McNair said that a cybersecurity firm hired by CBS News "has determined through forensic analysis" that "Attkisson's computer was accessed by an unauthorized, external, unknown party on multiple occasions in late 2012."

"Evidence suggests this party performed all access remotely using Attkisson's accounts. While no malicious code was found, forensic analysis revealed an intruder had executed commands that appeared to involve search and exfiltration of data. This party also used sophisticated methods to remove all possible indications of unauthorized activity, and alter system times to cause further confusion. CBS News is taking steps to identify the responsible party and their method of access."

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More News On CBS Reporter Sharyl Attkisson's Computer Being Hacked

CBS News says someone tampered with reporter Sharyl Attkisson’s computer -- Washington Post/AP
CBS News says reporter's computer was hacked -- Reuters
CBS probe finds computer of lead Benghazi reporter was hacked -- FOX News
CBS: Sharyl Attkisson computer hacked -- Politico
CBS News reporter Sharyl Attkisson’s computer intrusion a ‘sophisticated’ plot -- Washington Times
CBS News: Someone was pulling data from Sharyl Attkisson’s computer; Update: CBS report added -- Hot Air
Sharyl Attkisson's Computer Was Hacked but CBS Doesn't Know Who Did It -- Atlantic Wire
Sharyl Attkisson’s computer: What could have prompted breaches? -- Erik Wemple, Washington Post

My Comment: Considering what has been happening in the past week .... this is a very disturbing story.

NSA's PRISM Program Reveals The Partnership Between US-UK Intelligence Services

Britain's Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) in Cheltenham, England. The British intelligence organization's close ties to the US National Security Agency have come under scrutiny amid the controversy over the NSA's PRISM surveillance program revealed by whistleblower Edward Snowden. Reuters/Handout

Another US-UK 'Special Relationship' - Between Intelligence Services --Christian Science Monitor

Edward Snowden's leaks about the NSA's PRISM program have drawn attention to the extraordinarily tight partnership between the US agency and GCHQ, its British counterpart.

A week on from revelations about the secret US eavesdropping program called PRISM, the British government has warned international airlines not to allow former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden to board flights to Britain.

The effective labeling of Mr. Snowden as a “persona non grata” over his leaks about PRISM underline how they have struck a nerve with authorities here due to the long, close historical partnership between the American NSA and the British equivalent, known as Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ).

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My Comment: I suspect that the NSA and the GCHQ are not happy with this exposure.

NSA Leaker Edward Snowden Extradition Could Take Months To Years

Edward Snowden told the South China Morning Post that he had no intention of hiding from justice. Photograph: Bobby Yip/Reuters

John Miller: Edward Snowden Extradition Could Take Months, Years -- CBS

(CBS News) American officials are working to bring Edward Snowden, the man responsible for leaking information on U.S. government surveillance programs, to the United States to face charges.

The British government has warned airlines not to allow Snowden to fly to the United Kingdom, because he will not be permitted into the country.

CBS News senior correspondent John Miller, a former deputy director at the FBI, says getting Snowden back to the U.S. and issuing charges against him is "complicated on a number of levels."

In order to extradite Snowden from Hong Kong, where he is believed to be, the charge against him for leaking National Security Agency (NSA) documents to the press has to "fit with U.S. law but also with statutes in Hong Kong," Miller explained Friday on "CBS This Morning."

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My Comment: It may take years to extradite .... but the U.S. is very patient.