Getting XKeyscore Right

On July 31, Guardian columnist Glenn Greenwald

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  Paul Rosenzweig

  @RosenzweigP

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For those who are interested in the details of the latest revelations about the NSA XKeyscore program, including some of the essential details that are elided in some of the public coverage, I was pointed by my Twitter feed to this excellent article, "Getting XKeyscore Right," by freelance journalist Joshua Foust.  Here's the first couple of paragraphs:

On July 31, Guardian columnist Glenn Greenwald published a story about an NSA surveillance program called XKeyscore:

"A top secret National Security Agency program allows analysts to search with no prior authorization through vast databases containing emails, online chats and the browsing histories of millions of individuals, according to documents provided by whistleblower Edward Snowden."

There are a few problems with this story. Not only is the program not top secret, but important details raise serious questions about the Guardian’s fact checking and portrayal. It’s worth asking: Do we know what we’re even reacting to anymore?

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Topics:

Surveillance & Privacy

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Paul Rosenzweig

@RosenzweigP

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Paul Rosenzweig is the founder of Red Branch Consulting PLLC, a homeland security consulting company. He formerly served as deputy assistant secretary for policy in the Department of Homeland Security. He is a professorial lecturer in law at George Washington University, a senior fellow in the Tech, Law & Security program at American University, and a board member of the Journal of National Security Law and Policy.