According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, the surveillance network set up by the National Security Agency (NSA) intercepts more U.S. Internet communications than has been publicly revealed. The system, allegedly designed to target foreign communications for intelligence purposes, has the ability to reach approximately 75 percent of all U.S. Internet activity—including, in some cases, the ability to retain written content of e-mails sent between Americans and domestic phone calls made via the web, the report states. One U.S. official, however, said the NSA is “not wallowing willy-nilly” though domestic communications, adding, “We want high-grade ore.” Meanwhile, The New York Times reports that the federal government is developing a facial recognition surveillance system that ties cameras to computers to scan crowds to automatically identify faces. One specialist familiar with a program initiated by the Department of Homeland Security noted, “I would say we’re at least five years off, but it all depends on what kind of goals they have in mind” for a given system. (Registration may be required to access this story.)
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