WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The NSA was revealed to routinely engage in dragnet, bulk data collection on US citizens in a series of leaked documents from NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.
“We do not conduct intelligence against US persons. We do not do massive surveillance in the United States. That is illegal,” Rogers said at the 2015 Geospatial Intelligence Symposium when asked to defend NSA’s reputation.
Rogers insisted that the NSA applies signal intelligence “in a foreign intelligence mission,” stressing that its primary purpose is foreign surveillance.
The NSA has also been criticized for spying on US allies. On Tuesday, the whistleblower agency Wikileaks published reports revealing the NSA spied on dozens of senior French government officials, including three presidents.
