EAVESDROPPING 101: WHAT CAN THE NSA DO? he recent revelations about illegal that act as gateways” at “some of the main NSA has no prior reason to suspect you, and eavesdropping on American citizens by arteries for moving voice and some Internet you are in no way tied to any other suspicious Tthe U.S. National Security Agency have traffic into and out of the United States.”1 individuals – you have just been plucked out raised many questions about just what the of the crowd by a computer algorithm’s analy- agency is doing. Although the facts are just This new level of direct access apparently sis of your behavior. beginning to emerge, information that has includes both some of the gateways through come to light about the NSA’s activities and which phone calls are routed, as well as other Use of these statistical fishing expeditions capabilities over the years, as well as the recent key nodes through which a large proportion has been made possible by the access to reporting by the New York Times and others, of Internet traffic passes. This new program communications streams granted by key cor- allows us to discern the outlines of what they also recognizes that today’s voice and porations. The NSA may also be engaging in are likely doing and how they are doing it. Internet communications systems are “geographic targeting,” in which they listen in increasingly converging, with a rising propor- on communications between the United The NSA is not only the world’s largest spy tion of even voice phone calls moving to the States and a particular foreign country or agency (far larger than the CIA, for example), Internet via VOIP, and parts of the old tele- region. More broadly, data mining has been but it possesses the most advanced technol- phone transmission system being converted greatly facilitated by underlying changes in ogy for intercepting communications. We to fiber optic cable and used for both data and technology that have taken place in the past know it has long had the ability to focus pow- voice communications. While data and voice few years (see page 3). erful surveillance capabilities on particular sometimes travel together and sometimes do individuals or communications. But the cur- not, and we do not know exactly which This dragnet approach is not only bad for civil rent scandal has indicated two new and sig- “switches” and other access points the NSA liberties – it is also a bad use of our scarce nificant elements of the agency’s has tapped, what appears certain is that the security and law enforcement resources. In eavesdropping: NSA is looking at both. fact, the creation of large numbers of waste- ful and distracting leads is one of the primary The NSA has gained direct access to the And most significantly, access to these reasons that many security experts say data telecommunications infrastructure through “switches” and other network hubs give the mining and other dragnet strategies are a some of America’s largest companies agency access to a direct feed of all the com- poor way of preventing crime and terrorism. The agency appears to be not only targeting munications that pass through them, and the The New York Times confirmed that point, with individuals, but also using broad “data min- ability to filter, sift through, analyze, read, or its report that the NSA has sent the FBI a ing” systems that allow them to intercept and share those communications as it sees fit. “flood” of tips generated by mass domestic evaluate the communications of millions of eavesdropping and data mining, virtually all people within the United States. of which led to dead ends that wasted the DATA MINING FBI’s resources. “We’d chase a number, find The ACLU has prepared a map (see page 2) The other major novelty in the NSA’s activities it’s a schoolteacher with no indication they’ve illustrating how all this is believed to work. It appears to be the exploitation of a new con- ever been involved in international terrorism,” shows how the military spying agency has cept in surveillance that has attracted a lot of one former FBI agent told the Times. “After you extended its tentacles into much of the U.S. attention in the past few years: what is com- get a thousand numbers and not one is turning civilian communications infrastructure, monly called “data mining.” Unlike the up anything, you get some frustration.”2 including, it appears, the “switches” through agency’s longstanding practice of spying on which international and some domestic com- specific individuals and communications COMBINING TELECOMMUNICATIONS munications are routed, Internet exchange based upon some source of suspicion, data AND OTHER PRIVATE DATA? points, individual telephone company central mining involves formula-based searches The NSA has historically been in the business facilities, and Internet Service Providers through mountains of data for individuals of intercepting and analyzing communica- (ISP). While we cannot be certain about these whose behavior or profile is in some way sus- tions data. One question is whether or not secretive links, this chart shows a represen- piciously different from the norm. this communications data is being combined tation of what is, according to recent reports, with other intimate details about our lives. A the most likely picture of what is going on. Data mining is a broad dragnet. Instead of few years ago, the Pentagon began work on targeting you because you once received a an breathtaking data mining program called CORPORATE BEDFELLOWS telephone call from a person who received a Total Information Awareness, which envi- One major new element of the NSA’s spying telephone call from a person who is a sus- sioned programming computers to trawl machinery is its ability to tap directly into the pected terrorist, you might be targeted through an extensive list of information on major communications switches, routing sta- because the NSA’s computers have analyzed Americans (including, according to the pro- tions, or access points of the telecommunica- your communications and have determined gram’s own materials, “Financial, Education, tions system. For example, according to the that they contain certain words or word com- Travel, Medical, Veterinary, Country Entry, New York Times, the NSA has worked with binations, addressing information, or other Place/Event Entry, Transportation, Housing, “the leading companies” in the telecommuni- factors with a frequency that deviates from Critical Resources, Government, cations industry to collect communications the average, and which they have decided Communications”) in the hunt for “suspicious” patterns, and has gained access “to switches might be an indication of suspiciousness. The patterns of activity. Congress decisively EAVESDROPPING 101 2 THE NSA SURVEILLANCE OCTOPUS NSA NSA TAP TELCO NSA TELCO TAP ISP CENTRAL NSA UNDERSEAS INTERNET NSA SWITCH CABLE TAP NSA UNDERSEAS NSA EXCHANGE TAP N CENTRAL T A CABLE TAP S SWITCH TAP A NSA NSA P ISP INTERNEISPT EXCHANGE HQ ISP INTERNET EXCHANGE NSA INTERNET N TAP EXCHANGE T A S A T T P ERNE INT INTERNET N NGE XCHA E NSA EXCHANGE T A CENTRAL S A DATA HUB NSA P SWITCH ISPENTRAL C TELCOCENTRAL TCH SWI SWITCH NSA facilities INTERNET INTERNET EXCHANGE civilian EXCHANGELCO TE NSA TELCO TAP communications Schematic diagram - facilities shown are CENTRAL representational only SWITCH Yakima listening post One way that telephone calls divided into Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 exchanges. The Tier 1 TELCO and other communications are sent from the United NSA exchanges, typically located in big cities, are the ones that States to Asia and other destinations is via satellite and DATA HUB have national and global reach and are likely to be of most microwave transmissions. This NSA satellite facility on interest to the NSA. a restricted Army firing range in Yakima, Washington ISP NSA SA N sweeps in millions of communications an hour from NSA UNDERSEAS Underseas cable tap According to published reports, HUB ATA D international communications satellites. CABLED ATATAP HUB American divers were able to install surveillance INTERNET devices onto the transoceanic cables that carry phone Sugar Grove listening post One way that telephone EXCHANGE calls and data across the seas. One of these taps was NSA RSEAS UNDE SA callsN and other communications are sent from the NSATAP UNDERSEASdiscovered in 1982, but other devices apparently contin- AP AP T E ABL C United States to Europe and other destinations is via CABLE TAP ued to function undetected. The advent of fiber-optic satellite and microwave transmissions. This NSA satel- ISPISP cables posed challenges for the NSA, but there is no NSA NSA lite facility, located in an isolated valley in Sugar Grove, NNSACSAENTRALNSA reason to believe that that problem remained unsolved SWITCH NAP SAT West Virginia, sweeps in millions of communications an HQ TAP by the agency. DATA HUB HQ hour from international communications satellites. INTINTERNEERNET T ISP The NSA’s headquarters Tens of thousands of peo- NSA TEEXCHAELCOXCHANSANGENGE SA N Internet Service Provider (ISP) The NSA may be NSA ple, including intelligence analysts, linguists and com- NSA UNDEISPHQ HQ RSEASforcing ISPs to provide it with information in the form of HQ puter professionals, work at this complex in Fort Meade, CABLE TAP INTERNET a computer tap (similar to a controversial FBI device Maryland outside of Washington, DC. NSA headquarters EXCHANGE dubbed “Carnivore”) that scans all the communications CENTRALCENTRAL is where the millions of intercepted communications are INTERNENSA T that reach that ISP. SWISWITCHTCH processed and analyzed. EXCHATAPNGE Central switch These facilities, one in New York and Telco: Domestic telephone company The NSA is CENTRAL one in Northern California, are operated by major TETELCOLCO apparently hooking in to U.S.