US lost critical foreign intel sources due to Edward Snowden leaks

[happy]

Whistleblower Edward Snowden, United States surveillance, National Security Agency surveillance, US national security, Snowden leaks US security documents, United states intel sources, United states, World news

United States has lost critical foreign intelligence collection sources as a result of the unauthorised leaks by whistleblower Edward Snowden, a top American intelligence official has said.

"What Snowden has stolen and exposed has gone way, way beyond his professed concerns with so-called domestic surveillance programmes.

"As a result, we've lost critical foreign intelligence collections sources, including some shared with us by valued partners," Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper said during a Congressional hearing.

"Terrorists and other adversaries of this country are going to school on US intelligence sources, methods and trade craft. And the insights that they are gaining are making our jobs much, much harder," he said adding that this includes putting the lives of members or assets of the intelligence community at risk, as well as our armed forces, diplomats and our citizens.

As a result of the Snowden leaks, Clapper said the US is beginning to see changes in communications behaviour of adversaries, particularly terrorists, a disturbing trend that he anticipate will continue.

"Snowden, for his part, claims that he's won and that his mission is accomplished. If that's so, I call on him and his accomplices to facilitate the return of the remaining stolen documents that have not yet been exposed to prevent even more damage to US security," he said adding that the leaks have done profound damage to the national security.

Clapper said that some of the recent aggressive behaviour by Russia might be due to the documents it has received from Snowden.
"It would be completely out of character, having observed the Soviet and now Russian security services in my 50 years of intelligence, and they are very capable and very aggressive.

So, it's beyond belief to me that they wouldn't be taking advantage of the opportunity both to exploit and to control Snowden," Clapper said.
Congressman Peter King rued that some media have tried to glorify Snowden.

"I think, a very distorted version of him to the American people who somehow think he's some kind of a whistleblower rather than what I would say he's a person who has sold his country and put Americans in terrible danger throughout the world," he said.

Defense Intelligence Agency Director Michael Flynn told lawmakers that Snowden could be under Russian influence.

"Yes, there is a possibility that he is under that (Russian influence)," she said when asked about it.

'US lost critical foreign intel sources due to Edward Snowden leaks' | The Indian Express

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Most likely all the innocent people they were targeting became alert and switched their mode of communications.

 

[happy]

"What he potentially made off with ... transcends" the NSA's telephone and Internet collection programs, said Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, speaking before the committee's annual threat assessment hearing. "Less than 10 percent has to do with domestic surveillance programs," he said.

Clapper has called on Snowden and anyone who is helping him to return the remaining documents that have not yet been published.

In describing the effect of Snowden's leaks, Clapper appeared to carefully retreat from his contention last week to the Senate Intelligence Committee that the disclosures were "the most massive and most damaging theft of intelligence information in our history." Some historians and researchers reacted to that comment by questioning whether the Snowden leaks were more damaging than Soviet spy rings that stole U.S. atomic bomb designs in the 1940s and funneled critical communications data and lethally exposed American informants in Russia in the 1980s and 1990s.

Instead, in his opening statement Tuesday, Clapper told the House panel that Snowden's leaks were "potentially the most massive and most damaging theft of intelligence information in our history."

House Intelligence Chairman Mike Rogers said the information Snowden accessed includes countermeasures the U.S. military uses to avoid the devastating improvised explosive devices used against troops in Afghanistan, and increasingly beyond traditional war zones, aimed at U.S. and Western officials in places like Libya.

Snowden told The New York Times that he left all of the documents with journalists in Hong Kong before traveling to Russia, where he has temporary asylum.

Snowden has denied working with the Russian government or any foreign intelligence agency. Snowden's legal representatives could not be reached for immediate comment.

Rogers, R-Mich., also said an individual with access to the Snowden documents was attempting to sell them for personal profit, but he would not identify who that was. He asked FBI Director James Comey, also at the hearing, whether such a person could be prosecuted for selling stolen goods, but Comey demurred, saying if the individual in question was a journalist he or she might be protected by the Constitution's rights to free speech.

US official: Snowden leaks lead to Pentagon change - San Diego, California Talk Radio Station - 760 KFMB AM - 760kfmb

 

[aerokan]

This is what happens when one gets greedy. When Mr.Clapper got greedy and thought that he could expand the surveillance a little 10% more.. what harm would it do? Probably he should have known that if one is standing at the end of the cliff, he shouldn't step forward a few steps. Every action has it's consequences. No point in whining about the consequences when one does not think through their actions. And if one stands by with their actions, atleast they should be prepared for the consequences.

And regarding Snowden being Russian spy and blah blah, one should watch the movie "Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit" based on the popular character of the novels by 'Tom Clancy'. This movie depicts about the plot of Russians to create American financial currency(dollar) crisis. Now in real world, the currency crisis for the dollar will be inevitable and that is no Russian making. It is the US's actions and financial fraud by US that will cause the currency crisis. But it will be blamed on Russia nonetheless. And when that happens, majority of the common public is already brainwashed through this movie to believe that it is the Russian govt who will be responsible. And some more people will believe that this was already predicted by Tom Clancy, but unfortunately has nothing to do with the story plot and this is not in any of his novels. And as for those who know the real truth, their voices will be miffled by control of the media. And that's how US govt operates. In short, Blaming everything on Russians for their mistakes.

 

[Razor]

This is what happens when one gets greedy. When Mr.Clapper got greedy and thought that he could expand the surveillance a little 10% more.. what harm would it do? Probably he should have known that if one is standing at the end of the cliff, he shouldn't step forward a few steps. Every action has it's consequences. No point in whining about the consequences when one does not think through their actions. And if one stands by with their actions, atleast they should be prepared for the consequences.

And regarding Snowden being Russian spy and blah blah, one should watch the movie "Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit" based on the popular character of the novels by 'Tom Clancy'. This movie depicts about the plot of Russians to create American financial currency(dollar) crisis. Now in real world, the currency crisis for the dollar will be inevitable and that is no Russian making. It is the US's actions and financial fraud by US that will cause the currency crisis. But it will be blamed on Russia nonetheless. And when that happens, majority of the common public is already brainwashed through this movie to believe that it is the Russian govt who will be responsible. And some more people will believe that this was already predicted by Tom Clancy, but unfortunately has nothing to do with the story plot and this is not in any of his novels. And as for those who know the real truth, their voices will be miffled by control of the media. And that's how US govt operates. In short, Blaming everything on Russians for their mistakes.

Yeah the Russians got negative publicity for everything since the end of the WW2. But hey, at least the Russians will have somebody to share it with in the coming years (hint: Chinese).
But the truly said (or funny) part is the gullibility of the American public.