Guardian and Snowden revelations 2013

See also Edward Snowden

Here you can find a timeline of all the 'Snowden revelations' starting from July 2013. This page is updated on a regular basis as the news breaks.

Major UK relevant programmes

• PRISM
• Tempora
• Operation Edgehill

Full list of revelations

August 2014

2014-08-25 - The Intercept - The Surveillance Engine: How the NSA Built Its Own Secret Google

Summary: NSA constructed search engine allowing nearly two-dozen government agencies access to million of American and non-American's information collected by the agency.

2014-08-04 - The Intercept - Cash, Weapons and Surveillance: the U.S. is a Key Party to Every Israeli Attack

Summary: Documents obtained by Edward Snowden show a close cooperation between the NSA and the Israeli Defence Forces Unit 8200, revealing covert money transfers and a close cooperation between other Middle Eastern leadership for the surveillance of Palestinian targets.

July 2014

2014-07-25 - The Intercept - The NSA’s New Partner in Spying: Saudi Arabia’s Brutal State Police

Summary: Top secret memo dated April 2013 details the NSA's plans “to provide direct analytic and technical support” to Saudi Arabia's internal security.

2014-07-14 - The Intercept - Hacking Online Polls and Other Ways British Spies Seek to Control the Internet

Summary: A new document named “JTRIG Tools and Techniques” shows that the GCHQ's Joint Threat Research Intelligence Group (JTRIG), has developed tools to change the results of online polls, change the pageview counts on web sites, censor 'extremist' video content and to "amplify sanctioned messaged on YouTube".

May 2014

2014-05-19 - The Intercept - Data Pirates of the Caribbean: The NSA Is Recording Every Cell Phone Call in the Bahamas

Summary:Through system codenamed SOMALGET, the NSA has been intercepting, recording and storing all of Bahama's telephone communications. Such an operation was initially disclosed as working under Mystic, and it was suspected that the country's whose phone communications were intercepted was Iraq.

April 2014

2014-04-08 - The Guardian - Edward Snowden: US government spied on human rights workers

Summary: Edward Snowden when giving evidence to the European Council, said that the NSA and GCHQ spied on leaders and staff members of human rights organisations in the based in the US or internationally.

March 2014

2014-03-31 - The Guardian -NSA revelations 'changing how businesses store sensitive data'

Summary: "many [businesses] are questioning their reliance on "cloud computing" in favour of more secure forms of data storage as the whistleblower's revelations continue to reverberate."

2014-03-22 - The New York Times - N.S.A. Breached Chinese Servers Seen as Security Threat

Summary:NSA infiltrated Chinese telecommunications company, Huawei. Initially the plan was to find any activity between the company and the People's Liberation Army (the Chinese military), but then spread to monitoring the equipment sold to third parties. This allowed the NSA to roam through their telephone and computer networks.

2014-03-20 - The Intercept - Inside the NSA’s Secret Efforts to Hunt and Hack System Administrators

Summary: The Intercept published an analytical report detailing how the NSA has been infiltrating networks through system administrators. The NSA finds the personal email and Facebook accounts of system administrators before hacking into their computers. The purpose of the hacking is to collect passwords, network maps, customer lists and business correspondence.

2014-03-18 - The Washington Post - NSA surveillance program reaches ‘into the past’ to retrieve, replay phone calls

Summary: NSA programme (MYSTIC) can collect 100% of a foreign country's telephone communications and store them for 30 days. This allows them to go into their archive and listen back on any communications they hadn't tagged on the day.

2014-05-13 - The Intercept - Foreign Officials In the Dark About Their Own Spy Agencies’ Cooperation with NSA

Summary: Document revealing an internal interview with an NSA SIGINT (Signals Intelligence), shows that the surveillance operations are mostly kept secret form heads of state and other government officials.

2014-03-12 - The Intercept - How the NSA Plans to Infect ‘Millions’ of Computers with Malware

Summary: The NSA has been developing strong capabilities to remotely infiltrate people's computers, through emails, false facebook pages and other pathways. In a presentation dated from 2009, they discuss plans to develop the technology of such a programme, in order to allow for computer systems to carry out tasks that would normally be completed by human operators.

February 2014

2014-02-04 - The Guardian - NSA tapped German ex-chancellor Gerhard Schröder's phone – report

Summary: Documents previously interpreted as revealing the wire-tapping of German Chancellor's, Angela Merkel's, phone are now being viewed as indication that the position of German Chancellor, rather than specific leaders, are being spied on.

2014-02-05 - NBC - War on Anonymous: British Spies Attacked Hackers, Snowden Docs Show

Summary: GCHQ targeted 'hacktivist' group Anonymous and LulzSec with a Denial-of-service attack (DoS or DDoS)

2014-02-07 - NBC News - Snowden Docs: British Spies Used Sex and 'Dirty Tricks'

Summary: GHCQ's secret unit, called Joint Threat Research and Intelligence Group (JTRIG), used 'dirty tactics' to attack adversaries. These include spreading false stories through Facebook, Flickr, YouTube, Twitter and blogs. 'False flag' operations, which are actions made to look as though they were carried out by British adversaries.

2014-02-18 - The Intercept - Snowden Documents Reveal Covert Surveillance and Pressure Tactics Aimed at WikiLeaks and Its Supporters

Summary: Documents show that American and British security agencies directly targeted Wikileaks and “the human network that supports WikiLeaks.”. They have also targeted torrent sharing site Pirate-Bay and 'hacktivist' group Anonymous

2014-02-27 - The Guardian - UK spy agency intercepted webcam images of millions of Yahoo users

Summary: GCHQ programme called 'Optic Nerve' described in documents as "a web interface to display Yahoo Webcam images sampled from unselected intercept and a system for proportionate target discovery". The programme collected images of Yahoo Webchat users every five minutes.

January 2014

2014-01-02 - Washington Post - NSA seeks to build quantum computer that could crack most types of encryption

Summary: New documents provided by Snowden reveal that the NSA is looking to develop a Quantum computer that will have the ability to break nearly all encryption tools. The documents also reveal a programme called "Owning the Net", that seeks to use quantum technology to break widely used RSA encryption tool.

2014-01-09 - The Guardian - NSA and GCHQ activities appear illegal, says EU parliamentary inquiry

Summary: European Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs inquiry into mass surveillance, published their first report stating that the mass surveillance programmes are illegal.

2014-01-09 - Washington Post - Obama, lawmakers discuss whether to end NSA collection of Americans’ phone records

Summary: President Obama met with lawmakers on Thursday to discuss ending mass government surveillance.

2014-01-10 - Washington Post - Pentagon Finds Snowden Took Most U.S. Secrets Ever, Rogers Says

Summary: A Pentagon report found that Edward Snowden downloaded 1.7 million intelligence files, committing the biggest theft in US history.

2014-01-14 - New York Times - N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

Summary: Through programme 'Quantum', the NSA has implanted software in around 100,000 computers worldwide which allows them to access the systems without internet connection. The most regular targets have been the Chinese army, but also include European trade unions and partner countries in the fight against the war on terror, like Saudi Arabia. The technology is said to have been in use since 2008 and has to be placed manually through tiny circuit boards or USB cards. Transceivers that have been implanted in the computer connect with a 'field station' that can be located up to 8 miles from the 'target'. All data and malware is transmitted through a covert radio frequency. The 'field station' then communicates with the NSA's remote operations centre.

There has been no evidence of domestic use of the programme.

2014-01-16 - The Guardian - NSA collects millions of text messages daily in 'untargeted' global sweep

Summary:the NSA has been collecting millions of text messages. Programme 'Dishfire' has the ability to collect information on location, financial transactions and contacts. British counterpart GCHQ uses the information log to search through the metadata from UK numbers.

2014-01-17 - The Guardian - Obama presents NSA reforms with plan to end government storage of call data

Summary: American president announced a series of reforms to the NSA and the collection of phone records. The reforms called for an end to the collection of bulk phone data by the NSA, but not an end to the programme itselfprompted Congress to create an independent panel of advocates that can provide a voice in front of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court

2014-01-27 - NBC News - Snowden docs reveal British spies snooped on YouTube and Facebook

Summary: In a programme called "Squeaky Dolphin", it appears GCHQ was able to monitor the real-time activity of users in popular social media sites, such as Facebook, YouTube and blogging websites.GCHQ was able to obtain the information either through physical taps in the cables or by using third parties to gain physical access to the data stream.

2014 -01-27 - The New York Times - Spy Agencies Tap Data Streaming From Phone Apps

Summary: The NSA has been collecting information on users through popular mobile applications.

2014-01-30 - CBC News - CSEC used airport Wi-Fi to track Canadian travellers: Edward Snowden documents

Summary: The Communications Security Establishment Canada ( CSEC), used free wifi internet, at a major Canadian airport, to track the wireless devices of thousands of travellers for days.

December 2013

2013-12-02 - Guardian - Revealed: Australian spy agency offered to share data about ordinary citizens

Summary: the Australian security agency offered to share information on ordinary citizens. The documents are the exchange with their surveillance agency partners about whether they should share "medical, legal or religious information".

2013-12-05 - Washington Post - NSA tracking cellphone locations worldwide, Snowden documents show

Summary:The NSA is collecting location information on nearly 5 billion cell phones a day, by tapping into cables that connect mobile networks globally. The information is primarily gathered from non-US citizens, but 'incidentally' also tracks information on US citizens.US officials maintain that the practise is lawful and intended to only gather information on foreign targets.

2013-12-09 - Guardian - Amnesty to take legal action against UK security services

Summary: The human rights group has issued a claim at the Investigatory Powers Tribunal against the British intelligence agencies. The group alleges that it is very likely their communications have been intercepted by GCHQ and have violated Article 8 (right to privacy) and Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the Human Rights Act.

2013-12-09 - BBC - US and UK 'spy on virtual games like World of Warcraft'

Summary: NSA and GCHQ have been following conversations and payments in virtual games, suspecting that they may be an alternative place for terrorist groups to discuss plans or for arms dealers to make transactions.

2013-12-10 - Washington Post - NSA uses Google cookies to pinpoint targets for hacking

Summary: NSA and GCHQ use cookies designated for commercial purposes, as a way of tracking and infiltrating user's computers. Documents show that the intelligence agencies have been using Google's REF cookies. Previous Snowden files have revealed that cookie data can be obtained under a FISA order in which case the companies handing over the information are fully aware of the process.

2013-12-10 - Washington Post - New documents show how the NSA infers relationships based on mobile location data

Summary: Operation called HAPPYFOOT enables the NSA to track the location of their surveillance targets.

2013-12-17 - CNN - Judge: NSA domestic phone data-mining unconstitutional

Summary: A US federal judge found that the collection of domestic bulk data including details on phone records of time and numbers by the NSA was unconstitutional. His ruling was connected to five plaintiffs that protested against this activity, but was limited only to the specific case.

2013-12-18 - Reuters - White House review panel proposes curbs on some NSA programs

Summary: White House review panel set up by President Obama published their assessment report titled "Liberty and Security in a Changing World" on the NSA surveillance programme. The review made 46 suggestions including stripping the security service of their power to store communications metadata collected through the surveillance programme.

2013-12-19 - The Guardian - Tech companies call for 'aggressive' NSA reforms at White House meeting

Summary: On Tuesday, major tech firms met with president Obama to discuss scaling down on mass surveillance. Those attending included Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo, Eric Schmidt, Google’s executive chairman, senior representatives from Comcast, Facebook, Microsoft, Twitter, Randall Stephenson, and CEO of AT&T.

November 2013

2013-11-02 - Judiciary Senates hearing - “The Surveillance Transparency Act of 2013”

Summary: Hearing on Senator Franken's bill " "The Surveillance Transparency Act of 2013". The bill will allow companies to report on any surveillance orders they receive and will introduce stricter reporting on the Government's use of FISA.

2013-11-11 - Der Spiegel - Quantum Spying: GCHQ Used Fake LinkedIn Pages to Target Engineers

Summary: GCHQ infiltrated Belgacom employee’s computers by using fake copies of their LinkedIn profiles. Belgacom is a Belgian telecommunications company that is partially owned by the Belgian government.

2013-11-14 - New York Times - C.I.A. Collects Global Data on Transfers of Money

Summary: CIA is collecting bulk information of international money transfers under the same law that allows the NSA to collect phone records. The information includes transfers from the United States. A spokesperson for a bank handling money transfers from abroad said that they collect consumer information in order to comply with the 'Bank Secrecy Act'.

2013-11-27 - Guardian - NSA 'collected details of online sexual activity' of Islamist radicals

Summary: The NSA was targeting six 'radical islamists' and collecting information on their online 'sexual activity' in order to discredit them by creating a list of their 'vulnerabilities'.

October 2013

2013-10-04 - Guardian - NSA and GCHQ target Tor network that protects anonymity of web users

Summary: Documents describe attempts to identify Tor users and attack computers. Includes an attack called EgotisticalGiraffe against the Tor browser bundle.

2013-10-06 - Guardian - Prism and Tempora: the cabinet was told nothing of the surveillance state's excesses

Summary: Chris Huhne says the National Security Council, a Cabinet sub committee, was not told about key surveillance programmes.

2013-10-14 - Washington Post - NSA collects millions of e-mail address books globally

Summary: “collection depends on secret arrangements with foreign telecommunications companies or allied intelligence services in control of facilities that direct traffic along the Internet’s main data routes.”

2013-10-25 - Guardian - Leaked memos reveal GCHQ efforts to keep mass surveillance secret

Summary:

2013-10-26 - Guardian - NSA surveillance: Merkel's phone may have been monitored 'for over 10 years'

Summary: “Merkel's mobile number had been listed by the NSA's Special Collection Service (SCS) since 2002 and may have been monitored for more than 10 years.” 80 unregistered locations are used for surveillance by the USA, in “Paris, Madrid, Rome, Prague, Geneva and Frankfurt” as well as Berlin.

2013-10-28 - BBC reporting on Spanish media - NSA 'monitored 60m Spanish calls in a month'

Summary: El Pais and El Mundo “alleged that the NSA tracked millions of phone calls, texts and emails from Spanish citizens between 10 December 2012 and 8 January this year”

2013-10-30 - Washington Post - NSA infiltrates links to Yahoo, Google data centers worldwide, Snowden documents say

Summary: Documents detail taps on unencrypted private data links at Google and Yahoo! and detail “full take,” “bulk access” and “high volume” data grabs. These actions would be illegal overseas.

September 2013

2013-09-02 - Bloomberg reporting on Globo TV - U.S. Spied on Presidents of Brazil and Mexico, Globo Reports

Summary: Documents show President Dilma Rousseff’s communications being intercepted, and those of Pena Nieto, one month before he was elected. The “document highlights software that was used to probe President Dilma Rousseff’s communications with several unidentified aides.”

2013-09-05 - Guardian - Revealed: how US and UK spy agencies defeat internet privacy and security

New York Times - N.S.A. Able to Foil Basic Safeguards of Privacy on Web

Summary: Programmes aim at inserting backdoors and weakening crytographic products to make them exploitable under US and UK operations known as Bullrun and Edgehill.

2013-09-05 - Der Speigel - NSA Can Spy on Smart Phone Data; iSpy: How the NSA Accesses Smartphone Data

Summary: “The documents state that it is possible for the NSA to tap most sensitive data held on these smart phones, including contact lists, SMS traffic, notes and location information about where a user has been.” Includes iPhones, Blackberrys and Android systems.

2013-09-08 - Reuters reporting on Globo TV - U.S. government spied on Brazil's Petrobras oil firm: Globo TV

Summary: Fantastico

2013-09-11 - Guardian - NSA shares raw intelligence including Americans' data with Israel

Summary: MoU does not set any legal limits on Israeli use of data which includes Internet data – “"Raw Sigint includes, but is not limited to, unevaluated and unminimized transcripts, gists, facsimiles, telex, voice and Digital Network Intelligence metadata and content.”

2013-09-20 - TechWeekEurope, reporting on Der Speigel - GCHQ ‘Hacked Belgium ISP Belgacom’

Summary: GCHQ targeted Belgacom under Operation Socialist; customers include the European Commission, the European Council and the European Parliament.

2013-09-25 - Guardian - NSA spied on Indian embassy and UN mission, Edward Snowden files reveal

Summary: NSA “may have accessed computers within the Indian embassy in Washington and mission at the United Nations in New York as part of a huge clandestine effort to mine electronic data held by its south Asian ally”; documents show vast attempt to target India through datamining.

2013-09-30 - Guardian - NSA stores metadata of millions of web users for up to a year, secret files show

Summary: A year's worth of metadata is stored by the NSA for data mining, say documents. "The Marina metadata application tracks a user's browser experience, gathers contact information/content and develops summaries of target … This tool offers the ability to export the data in a variety of formats, as well as create various charts to assist in pattern-of-life development."

August 2013

2013-08-01 - Guardian - Exclusive: NSA pays £100m in secret funding for GCHQ

Summary: GCHQ funding secured from NSA at a time of cuts, partly for Mastering the Internet “Britain's surveillance laws and regulatory regime as a "selling point" for the Americans.”

2013-08-02 - Guardian - BT and Vodafone among telecoms companies passing details to GCHQ

Summary: “BT, Vodafone Cable, and the American firm Verizon Business – together with four other smaller providers – have given GCHQ secret unlimited access to their network of undersea cables.”, the physical basis for Tempora.

2013-08-09 - Guardian - NSA loophole allows warrantless search for US citizens' emails and phone calls

Summary: “previously undisclosed rule change allows NSA operatives to hunt for individual Americans' communications using their name or other identifying information” specifically “communications of Americans in direct contact with foreign targets can also be collected without a warrant”. Not clear if or when this started, as the document cites instructions from 2011 saying “analysts may NOT/NOT [not repeat not] implement any USP [US persons] queries until an effective oversight process has been developed by NSA and agreed to by DOJ/ODNI [Office of the Director of National Intelligence].”

2013-08-23 - Guardian - NSA paid millions to cover Prism compliance costs for tech companies

Summary: FISA court's ruling on lack of compliance with US privacy standards forces NSA to fund changes in operations for US Internet companies

July 2013

2013-07-07 - Guardian - The NSA's mass and indiscriminate spying on Brazilians

Summary: A report on the NSA tapping into the Brazilian telecommunications network and intercepting, collecting and storing the email and telephone records of Brazilians

2013-07-11 - Guardian - Microsoft handed the NSA access to encrypted messages

Summary: Secret files show scale of Silicon Valley co-operation on Prism; Outlook.com encryption unlocked even before official launch; Skype worked to enable Prism collection of video calls; Company says it is legally compelled to comply

2013-07-19 - Guardian - Secret court lets NSA extend its trawl of Verizon customers' phone records

Summary: Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) announces extension "in order to provide the public with a more thorough and balanced understanding of the program"

2013-07-19 - Guardian - XKeyscore: NSA tool collects 'nearly everything a user does on the internet'

Summary: "training materials for XKeyscore detail how analysts can use it and other systems to mine enormous agency databases by filling in a simple on-screen form giving only a broad justification for the search"; XKeyscore "searches within bodies of emails, webpages and documents", including the "To, From, CC, BCC lines" and the 'Contact Us' pages on websites"

June 2013

2013-06-05 - Guardian - NSA collecting phone records of millions of Verizon customers daily

Summary: Verizon NSA phone record collection

2013-06-06 - Guardian - NSA Prism program taps in to user data of Apple, Google and others

Summary: NSA's PRISM tool's existence revealed

2013-06-07 - Guardian - UK gathering secret intelligence via covert NSA operation

Summary: PRISM usage in UK revealed

2013-06-07 - Guardian - Obama orders US to draw up overseas target list for cyber-attacks

Summary: Cyber attack targets from Presidential Policy Directive 20, October 2012

2013-06-11 - Guardian - Boundless Informant: the NSA's secret tool to track global surveillance data

Summary: Boundless Informant, showing international metadata collection “details and even maps by country the voluminous amount of information it collects from computer and telephone networks”

2013-06-11 - Guardian - Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind the NSA surveillance revelations

Summary: Reveals identity of whistleblower Edward Snowden, “I have no intention of hiding who I am because I know I have done nothing wrong"

2013-06-16 - Guardian - GCHQ intercepted foreign politicians' communications at G20 summits

Summary: computers monitored and their phone calls intercepted on the instructions of their British government

2013-06-20 - Guardian - The top secret rules that allow NSA to use US data without a warrant

Summary: “judges have signed off on broad orders which allow the NSA to make use of information "inadvertently" collected from domestic US communications without a warrant.”

2013-06-21 - Guardian - GCHQ taps fibre-optic cables for secret access to world's communications

Summary: “scale of the agency's ambition is reflected in the titles of its two principal components: Mastering the Internet and Global Telecoms Exploitation”; Tempora has run for 18 months and stores data for up to 30 days

2013-06-27 - Guardian - NSA collected US email records in bulk for more than two years under Obama

Summary: “Fisa court would approve a bulk collection order for internet metadata "every 90 days". A senior administration official confirmed the program, stating that it ended in 2011.” … “collection of these records began under the Bush administration's wide-ranging warrantless surveillance program, collectively known by the NSA codename Stellar Wind”

2013-06-29 - Der Spiegel - NSA Spied on European Union Offices

Summary: “conducted online surveillance of European citizens, but also appears to have specifically targeted buildings housing European Union institutions” including bugging rooms and infiltrating the EU representation’s computer network at the UN.

2013-06-30 - Guardian - New NSA leaks show how US is bugging its European allies

Summary: document lists 38 embassies and missions, describing them as "targets" “ list of targets includes the EU missions and the French, Italian and Greek embassies, as well as a number of other American allies, including Japan, Mexico, South Korea, India and Turkey” Dropmire "implanted on the Cryptofax at the EU embassy, DC"

Political reactions

See also: Mass Surveillance 2013 Commentaries

March 2014

2014-03-04 - The Guardian - Edward Snowden's revelations made it clear: security oversight must be fit for the internet age

Summary: Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg discusses the need to make surveillance legislation fit for the internet age. He says "It is not enough for the agencies to claim that they strike the correct balance between privacy and national security: they must be seen to do so." He also calls for a reform of the intelligence and security committees and to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal. He welcomes the investigation of the government's mass surveillance by the Royal United Services Institute.

2014-03-04 - GOV.uk - Security and privacy in the internet age

Summary: Nick Clegg makes speech at Royal United Services Institute think tank, where he discussed balancing privacy and security in the digital age. He said it was not a binary debate between a democracy and a surveillance state, but rather "a debate about the strength of our democracy and its interaction with parts of the state that are, by their nature, secret".

2014-03-07 - The Guardian - Digital bill of rights needed to safeguard online freedoms, says Lib Dem chief

Summary: President of Liberal Democracts, Tim Farron, calls for a Digital Bill of Rights at LibDem spring conference on 9th March 2014.

2014-04-12 - BBC - Sir Tim Berners-Lee: World wide web needs bill of rights

Summary: Tim Berner-Lee has made calls for an international charter to protect and enshrine the internet. He said "Unless we have an open, neutral internet we can rely on without worrying about what's happening at the back door, we can't have open government, good democracy, good healthcare, connected communities and diversity of culture (...) Our rights are being infringed more and more on every side, and the danger is that we get used to it".

2014-03-27 - The White House - Statement by the President on the Section 215 Bulk Metadata Program

Summary: President of the United States makes a statement on ending mass collection of American phone data. He has referred to Congressional leadership and the Judiciary and Intelligence Committees, to pass legislation that would discontinue the collection of metadata by the government. Since there will be no legislation available by March 28, he has looked to the Department of Justice for a reauthorisation of the programme.

October 2013

2013-10-08 - Guardian - MI5 chief: GCHQ surveillance plays vital role in fight against terrorism

Summary: New MI5 chief Sir Andrew Parker says: "In some quarters there seems to be a vague notion that we monitor everyone and all their communications, browsing at will through people's private lives for anything that looks interesting." Says this is nonsense, and “"We are facing an international threat and GCHQ provides many of the intelligence leads upon which we rely. It causes enormous damage to make public the reach and limits of GCHQ techniques. Such information hands the advantage to the terrorists. … It is the gift they need to evade us and strike at will. Unfashionable as it might seem, that is why we must keep secrets secret, and why not doing so causes such harm."

2013-10-09 - BBC - Guardian's Alan Rusbridger defends Snowden leaks

Summary: The Guardian's deputy editor, Alan Rusbridger, defends the publications by the Guardian

2013-10-10 - Guardian - Editors on the NSA files: 'What the Guardian is doing is important for democracy'

Summary: Editors of a number of international publications respond to attacks on the Guardian by the Daily Mail for endangering national security to defend their choice to publish

2013-10-10 - The Telegraph - Nick Clegg criticises Guardian Edward Snowden leaks

Summary: Nick Clegg says "technical information", from CIA whistleblower Edward Snowden, is of "immense interest" to "people who want to do us harm".

2013-10-11 - Guardian - Guardian was 'entirely correct' to publish NSA stories, says Vince Cable

Summary: Nick Clegg is to launch review of oversight of intelligence agencies, Vince Cable defends Guardian

2013-10-11 - Guardian - New York Times says UK tried to get it to hand over Snowden documents

Summary: New York Times Editor Jill Abramson says she was asked by UK officials to ‘hand over’ leaked documents.

September 2013

2013-09-16 - Guardian - Academics criticise NSA and GCHQ for weakening online encryption

Open Letter Open Letter From UK Security Researchers

Summary: 10 researchers warn that "by weakening all our security so that they can listen in to the communications of our enemies, [the agencies] also weaken our security against our potential enemies".

2013-09-19 - Guardian - UK information commissioner to examine Snowden disclosures impact

Summary: “Christopher Graham, has asked his expert advisers to investigate the impact of Edward Snowden's disclosures of the spy agencies' mass internet surveillance on the privacy of UK citizens.”

August 2013

2013-08-02 - Guardian - GCHQ accused of selling its services after revelations of funding by NSA

Summary: Shami Chakrabati says: “Once upon a time the rule of law was as great a British export as Beckham's right foot. Now it seems our most powerful security agency capitalises on weak legal privacy protections to sell its services to a foreign power.”

2013-08-18 - Guardian - Glenn Greenwald's partner detained at Heathrow airport for nine hours

Summary: “David Miranda, who lives with Glenn Greenwald, was returning from a trip to Berlin when he was stopped by officers at 8.05am and informed that he was to be questioned under schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000.”

2013-08-20 - Guardian - NSA files: why the Guardian in London destroyed hard drives of leaked files

Summary: “The decision was taken after a threat of legal action by the government that could have stopped reporting on the extent of American and British government surveillance revealed by the documents.”

July 2013

2013-07-03 - Guardian - Angela Merkel: NSA snooping claims 'extremely serious'

Summary: Merkel says: "Using bugs to listen in on friends in our embassies and EU representations is not on. The cold war is over. There is no doubt whatsoever that the fight against terrorism is essential, and it needs to harness intelligence about what happens online, but nor is there any doubt that things have to be kept proportionate. That is what guides Germany in talks with our partners."

2013-07-04 - Guardian - European firms 'could quit US internet providers over NSA scandal'

Summary: Neelie Kroes says:"If businesses or governments think they might be spied on, they will have less reason to trust cloud, and it will be cloud providers who ultimately miss out. Why would you pay someone else to hold your commercial or other secrets if you suspect or know they are being shared against your wishes?"

June 2013

2013-06-05 - Guardian - NSA surveillance: anger mounts in Congress at 'spying on Americans'

Summary: Intelligence chiefs private meeting briefs Congress but “senior figures from both parties emerged from the meeting alarmed at the extent of a surveillance program that many claimed never to have heard of” prior to the revelations

2013-06-22 - Guardian - GCHQ monitoring described as a 'catastrophe' by German politicians

Summary: Reacting to the Tempora revelations, Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, the German justice minister says. "If these accusations are correct, this would be a catastrophe … The accusations against Great Britain sound like a Hollywood nightmare. The European institutions should seek straight away to clarify the situation."

Links

• EFF timeline
• Guardian, the NSA Files
• Wikipedia