Unit 8200: Edward Snowden Warned the American People About This in 2013

Edward Snowden Warned the American People About This in 2013
President Donald Trump is not stopping the government from spying on the American people.
Rescue Liberty from the Grasp of the Executive Power
What year did Edward Snowden begin to reveal how the NSA uses tools to spy on the American people? In May 2013, Snowden flew to Hong Kong and in early June he revealed thousands of classified NSA documents to journalists Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras, Barton Gellman, and Ewen MacAskill.

Google AI Overview

Edward Snowden's leaks revealed a widespread and sophisticated system of surveillance programs employed by the National Security Agency (NSA) to collect vast amounts of data on Americans and global citizens.

Here are some of the key programs and tools he exposed:
PRISM: This program, also known by the code name US-984XN, allows the NSA and FBI to directly access the servers of major U.S. Internet companies like Microsoft, Google, Apple, Facebook, Yahoo, and others to collect user data. This includes emails, photos, videos, chats, documents, and connection logs. The program was particularly concerning because it allows for the collection of data on individuals "reasonably believed" to be outside the US, but could also sweep in the communications of Americans without a warrant. While the U.S. government maintains PRISM is targeted at foreigners, concerns remain about the incidental collection of data on U.S. citizens.

Mass Collection of Telephone Records (Metadata): Snowden revealed a secret court order compelling a subsidiary of telecom company Verizon to hand over the phone records of millions of US customers to the NSA on a daily basis. This metadata includes information like the phone numbers involved in calls, the time and duration of calls, and even location data. Critics argue that even without recording the actual conversations, this metadata can reveal intimate details of a person's life.

Upstream: This program involves tapping directly into the undersea fiber-optic cables that carry global internet communications.
The NSA, with the assistance of the UK's GCHQ (Government Communications Headquarters), can collect massive amounts of data flowing through these cables.

XKeyscore: Described as the "NSA's Google", this system provides a powerful search and analysis tool for NSA analysts to sift through the enormous amount of global internet data collected through programs like PRISM and Upstream. It allows analysts to track individuals' online activities, including email addresses, phone calls, browsing histories, and more, according to The Intercept.
Boundless Informant: This program helps the NSA visualize and document its data collection efforts, serving as a data-mining tool.

Key takeaways
Massive Scale: The revelations demonstrated the immense scale of the NSA's surveillance capabilities, collecting data on millions of individuals, including American citizens.
Metadata vs. Content: While the government emphasized collecting metadata (information about communications), Snowden's disclosures also revealed the collection of communication content, including emails, chats, and other forms of digital communication.

Legal Challenges & Oversight: The legality of these programs, particularly the bulk collection of phone records, was challenged in court, with some programs being ruled unlawful years later. Reuters reports that a US court ruled the mass surveillance program of telephone records was illegal.

Impact on Privacy & Trust: Snowden's leaks ignited a global debate about the balance between national security and privacy rights, and exposed the role of technology companies in government surveillance. They also contributed to a decline in public trust in government and tech companies concerning privacy and data protection.

The full extent of the information Snowden accessed and the details of all NSA programs remain unknown. However, his revelations drastically changed public perception of government surveillance and its impact on civil liberties.

Real Crimes Against Humanity by Unit 8200
Unit 8200 is an Israeli Intelligence Corps unit of the Israel Defense Forces responsible for clandestine operation, collecting signal intelligence (SIGINT) ...
63,631 views Jul 17, 2025
Join criminal lawyer Nick Hanna as he takes a deep dive into the Israeli intelligence giant, Cellebrite, and the widespread use of its products by law enforcement and spy agencies, militaries and corporations around the world.

0:00 Intro
1:42 What is Cellebrite?
2:17 Cellebrite's close ties with the Israeli army
2:48 What is Unit 8200?
6:21 Cellebrite x Unit 8200
8:22 Involvement in Gaza?
10:44 Use by repressive regimes
12:40 What can Cellebrite products do?
19:30 Use in Australia
33:49 What happens with the data?
36:00 Is Cellebrite collecting all of the data?
41:57 Recommendations
45:13 Outro

The What & The Why is an investigative journalism podcast that covers important issues that you won't hear about in the mainstream media.

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