Recent disclosures drew this statement from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence:
It should hardly be surprising that our intelligence agencies seek ways to counteract our adversaries’ use of encryption. Throughout history, nations have used encryption to protect their secrets, and today, terrorists, cybercriminals, human traffickers and others also use code to hide their activities. Our intelligence community would not be doing its job if we did not try to counter that.
While the specifics of how our intelligence agencies carry out this cryptanalytic mission have been kept secret, the fact that NSA’s mission includes deciphering enciphered communications is not a secret, and is not news. Indeed, NSA’s public website states that its mission includes leading “the U.S. Government in cryptology … in order to gain a decision advantage for the Nation and our allies.”
The stories published yesterday, however, reveal specific and classified details about how we conduct this critical intelligence activity. Anything that yesterday’s disclosures add to the ongoing public debate is outweighed by the road map they give to our adversaries about the specific techniques we are using to try to intercept their communications in our attempts to keep America and our allies safe and to provide our leaders with the information they need to make difficult and critical national security decisions. (emphasis added)
If you expect your banking, shopping, medical, email or other information to be withheld from U.S. intelligence agencies, you are in the same class as “terrorists, cybercriminals [and] human traffickers.”
An attempt at privacy is evidence that you are working against the intelligence community and by inference, the preservation of America.
We were at a dangerous point on that slippery slope some time ago. Since then the intelligence community slid into a paranoid fantasy land and is attempting to drag other segments of government with it.
Are there people and/or organizations that would like to hurt the U.S. and/or its citizens? Given the abusive/exploitive relationship the U.S. has maintained for over a century with other countries, I would suspect so.
One response to view everyone as a threat and potential source of well-deserved retribution. Your defense being to rely upon abuse and exploitation.
Another response is to “be a blessing” to others, both personally and on a national level.
We can follow the intelligence community into more cycles of paranoia and pain or choose to break that cycle for a chance at healing.
Your call.
PS: Sorry, forgot to cite the source on the Director of National Intelligence quote. Would not want you to think I read his draft email or something. 😉
Revealed: The NSA’s Secret Campaign to Crack, Undermine Internet Security