Edward Snowden said that even greater revelations are coming from the NSA documents he leaked in the high-profile electronic surveillance case, in a surprise appearance via satellite and telepresence robot at the 2014 TED conference in Vancouver.
As he noted, there is still much to investigate, including allegations that the NSA misled technology companies into creating "backdoors" in their systems, which made their data vulnerable to hackers from around the world.
"Are we really stopping terrorism? I don't think so," he said. "The bottom line is that terrorism [...] has always been a cover for actions. Terrorism provokes emotional reactions.".
Snowden, who is "somewhere in Russia," insisted that his actions were not "risky" and that he did what he did for the American people. He also said he would like to return to the United States if he were granted immunity.
"I don't want to harm my government... its willingness to ignore due process and declare guilt without trial... is among the things we must fight against as a society.".
"I am living proof that one person can take on the most powerful intelligence agencies in the world and win," the former NSA employee stressed.
Responding to those who ask whether Internet users who are not doing anything reprehensible should be indifferent to the issue, he stated that “you are giving up your rights. Your rights matter, because you never know when you will need them. People should be able to pick up the phone and call their families, send a message to a loved one, buy a book online, without worrying about what the government might think about it in the future. We have a right to privacy.”.
As he noted, his actions exposed one of the "most dangerous legacies of the post-9/11 era.".
Source: naftemporiki.gr
