NSA’s PRISM program appears to be a set of specialized deep-pack. Solving the mystery of PRISM. What exactly is PRISM?
How does it work? Who uses it? Let's assume that the companies whose data is sucked in by a National Security Agency tool called PRISM are denying their knowledge of the word and its associations in good faith. And let us also accept their denials that they've given someone at the NSA "direct access" to their servers. So where are we? There are many types of nicknames and special words that the NSA uses. Some refer to collection tools. Each data processing tool, collection platform, mission and source for raw intelligence is given a specific numeric signals activity/address designator, or a SIGAD. PRISM is US-984XN. Each SIGAD is basically a collection site, physical or virtual; the SIGAD alphanumerics are used to indicate the source of intelligence FOR a particular report. The NSA often assigns classified code names to the product of SIGADs. Analysts working on a problem can request that a particular collection site be tasked, or used. PanelPicker. Voting period for this idea type has passed Documents leaked by Edward Snowden show that the NSA is engaging in an unprecedented breach of our privacy, gathering data about every telephone conversation and online transaction it can.
But don't worry, says President Obama: "Nobody is listening to your phone calls. " Is that supposed to make us feel better? This panel will discuss what we can do to push back against widespread government surveillance. I will highlight some of the best practices for both individuals and companies who want to push back against this unconstitutional practice, ranging from a step-by-step walkthrough of anti-surveillance technologies to opportunities for activism to rein in these programs entirely.
Secret court decisions empowering three-letter agencies to invade the innermost recesses of our private lives should be fodder for spy novels, not part of a functioning democracy. Questions Answered.
What is PRISM? Part 2. Does NSA have "direct access" to corporate servers from Google, Microsoft, and other companies? That's what the initial reports said. Then the Washington Post reported that "the arrangement is described as allowing 'collection managers [to send] content tasking instructions directly to equipment installed at company-controlled locations,' rather than directly to company servers.
" But what does that mean? Today, the New York Times digs a little more: Instead of adding a back door to their servers, the companies were essentially asked to erect a locked mailbox and give the government the key....The data shared in these ways, the people said, is shared after company lawyers have reviewed the FISA request according to company practice. Obviously this is still a little fuzzy, but the picture that's developing is substantially different from the initial reporting. Technically speaking, this also makes a lot more sense. For now, I'm just passing this along as interesting information.
What Does PRISM Do? How Does It Work? What, precisely, does the PRISM program do?
The Guardian described it as providing "direct access" to corporate servers owned by the likes of Google and Microsoft, and I was puzzled about exactly what that meant. From a technical perspective, I didn't understand what this entailed. Some kind of remote superuser access? Taps on incoming and outgoing communications links? Software agents installed on company servers? Well, the Washington Post updated its story this morning and added this paragraph: NSA scandal: what data is being monitored and how does it work? What is the scandal?
The US's National Security Agency (NSA), its wiretapping agency, has been monitoring communications between the US and foreign nationals over the internet for a number of years, under a project called Prism. Some of the biggest internet companies, from Apple to Google to Yahoo, are involved. The US government confirmed the existence of the scheme and its application on Thursday night. Which companies are in the scheme? Microsoft was the first to be included, in September 2007.
How long has it been going on? The NSA has allegedly had means of monitoring internet communications as far back as Microsoft's Windows 95, the first version of Windows with built-in internet connectivity, in 1995. What data is being monitored? Potentially, everything. How much does it cost to monitor so much traffic? The budget given in the presentation is comparatively tiny – just $20m per year. How effective has it been?
Nobody knows.