On Sunday, during a public chat about the documentary CitizenFour's victory at the Oscars, Edward Snowden took questions from the audience and revealed why he regrets his leaks about the NSA.
“I should have done it earlier,” he said. “If I had done it earlier, these programs would have spread less.
“This is something we see in almost every area of government, not just in the national security space: Once the government is granted some new power or authority, it becomes exponentially harder to take it back.”
Edward Snowden , along with CitizenFour director Laura Poitras and Glenn Greenwald, participated in a Reddit Q&A on Monday. Snowden was initially banned from Reddit because moderators thought he was a fake account.
Privacy and surveillance could be a hot topic in the next presidential election, Snowden said, but only if people put pressure on politicians through activism. Governments only change when the people demand it.
"Our rights are not granted by governments because they are inherent in our nature, but that is quite the opposite for governments"
Greenwald pointed out that privacy legislation is supported by both sides of the political spectrum. Both Republicans and Democrats are working together to legislate on the issue. But the leadership of both parties has always been behind the NSA's mass surveillance.
Documentary director Laura Poitras said that the reception of CitizenFour from the public was much better than expected and that she is planning more films that will delve into the Snowden files and the ongoing fight for privacy.
He categorically denied the claims made by some in the US that Edward Snowden is a Russian spy, pointing out that it would make no sense. If he had worked for Putin's friends, he would not have published any of the leaked files, would not have gone to Hong Kong in the first place, and would not have needed to stay more than a month in a Moscow airport.
One of the top questions Edward Snowden was asked was whether he had been disappointed by the lack of public outrage over his revelations about the NSA's spying activities. He responded that people obviously care about their privacy, but they feel powerless, and said the tech community needs to make changes.
Source: secnews.gr
