NSA surveillance was illegal and ineffective, says US federal court
Edward Snowden's memoir, "Permanet Record," at a bookstore in California, September 17, 2019 (illustration).
JUSTIN SULLIVAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP
Text by: Dominique Desaunay Follow
5 mins
Seven years after the revelations in 2013 of whistleblower Edward Snowden, a US federal court ruled Wednesday, September 2 that the National Security Agency's (NSA) global phone surveillance was illegal and potentially unconstitutional.
And for this appeals court, the massive collection of metadata from millions of Americans was mostly inefficient.
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This
program for monitoring telecoms networks by the National Security Agency (NSA)
was created in response to the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States.
It allowed
the NSA to have access to telephone
, landline and mobile
metadata
and SMS
metadata
of any citizen residing in the territory.
According to the conclusions of the Federal Court of Appeal of the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco, this
massive collection carried out by Americans was not only illegal
and potentially unconstitutional, but also formidably ineffective.
"
This device has not foiled any terrorist plot by establishing that the government's public assertions on its
'' necessity ''
were misleading,
" said the American justice system.
One of the more interesting aspects of this Snowden ruling is that the 9th Circuit reviewed classified info about terror arrests that Obama-era officials in 2013 publicly claimed justified the mass surveilence program.
The judges called BS.
https://t.co/hEtImY8TaA pic.twitter.com/jGcIjwNOAj
Avi Asher-Schapiro (@AASchapiro) September 3, 2020
NSA advances 13 thwarted terrorist plots, none according to court
The National Security Agency has nevertheless tried to justify these eavesdropping by mentioning cases for which its tool would have made it possible to prevent terrorist attacks.
The NSA boasts of having foiled 13 plots using its device.
A number, which for lack of tangible evidence, has been reduced to a single case, if any.
This is Basaaly Moalin, an American who was convicted of sending $ 8,500 to the
Islamist Shebabs, an extremist militia in Somalia linked to al-Qaeda
.
The NSA cannot claim the case, however, since the individual's phone was already monitored by the American justice system and led to the opening of an intelligence investigation carried out abroad.
"
I never imagined I would see
[this]
in my lifetime,
" says Snowden
Former CIA and NSA computer scientist Edward Snowden, who
revealed this eavesdropping system in 2013
, praised the court's verdict on his Twitter feed.
"
I never imagined that in my lifetime I would see our courts condemn the activities of the NSA as illegal and in the same judgment congratulate me for having exposed them,
" he wrote.
Seven years ago, as the news declared I was being charged as a criminal for speaking the truth, I never imagined that I would live to see our courts condemn the NSA's activities as unlawful and in the same ruling credit me for exposing them.
And yet that day has arrived.
https://t.co/FRdG2zUA4U
Edward Snowden (@Snowden) September 2, 2020
In
exile in Russia for years
, he believes he acted as a whistleblower and not a “
traitor
”,
as Donald Trump accuses him
: “
Make no mistake, he is not a hero.
He is a coward who should come back and face justice,
“
stormed the billionaire on social networks in 2014
.
Edward Snowden also wishes this return to the country, but it is not really topical.
The government can always appeal by requesting a review of the court decision by the Supreme Court.
In addition, the other NSA cyber-surveillance programs still in force, also denounced by the whistleblower, are not affected by this judgment of the American court.
With the courts striking down the NSA's mass surveillance programs and crediting the 2013 revelations,
And new laws having been written to curb abuse both at home and abroad,
As people around the country and members of Congress call for pardon,
How long should charges stand?
Edward Snowden (@Snowden) September 4, 2020
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