No privacy! Snowden claims US can spy on even intimate photos

Former US National Security Agency technician (NSA), Edward Snowden, continues to make revelations that put the US government in check. Snowden which made public details of various programs that make up the global surveillance system of the US has recently details of its history presented in the documentary citzenfour, which was awarded the Oscar in the category that year. The film shows several conversations between Laura Poitras (documentary director) and Snowden.

Breasts unknowingly started an email conversation with a person who called himself CitizenFour (“Citizen Four”, literally translated). After a few exchanges of messages, she arranged a meeting in Hong Kong to meet him, and thus discovered that she had a crush on the former CIA agent. Citizenfour was made available online by its director. The feature, which still has no date and no release date in Brazil, can be watched around here (or by clicking on the image below).

But anyone who thinks that Snowden's allegations only reveal details of American surveillance and espionage in the public sphere is mistaken. In an interview with Last Week Tonight for the presenter John Oliver, the former CIA agent shared some interesting information about the US government's ability to intercept people's private data - including intimate photos ("dick pics” in the words of the interviewee). 

Oliver flew to Moscow to conduct the interview with Snowden in an attempt to show that there is a growing segment of people concerned about the government prying into his privacy. Despite denying that there is a government program specifically for this purpose, Snowden argues that this does not mean they cannot have access to this type of information. "Well, the good news is that there is no named program,'the dick pic program' (sic). The bad news is that they keep collecting all sorts of information from everyone, including their 'dicks pics' (sic)“, Snowden said.

The interview had very relaxed moments, like the time when Snowden tries to explain in detail to Oliver how a surveillance program that could monitor and collect intimate images of Internet users would work, and the interviewer takes the opportunity to give him a lesson on truck nuts (accessories for pickup trucks and other vehicles that resemble a pair of testicles). But John Oliver also didn't spare the former NSA technician from thornier questions. Many of them referred to the fact that Snowden had not read some of the documents he leaked to the press. 

Answering a question about a problematic article published by The New York Times, based on information he leaked, Snowden dodged the misunderstanding, arguing that this is typical of the journalistic process. “In journalism, we have to accept that some mistakes will be made. This is a fundamental concept of freedom,” Snowden replied.

Oliver still presses the interviewee: “You have released official documents with information that could be harmful to people's safety.” he says. But Snowden, aware of the ethical dilemma, does well in the answer: “You'll never be completely risk free if you're free“, he philosophized.

Snowden also spoke about his exile in Russia, where he has lived since June 2013. "I miss my country. I miss my home. I miss my family,” he says. Despite being a controversial personality, Edward Snowden is undeniably an element that constantly raises the question of privacy that has been taken over on the web. Check out the full interview in the video below.

Source: Mashable