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12/22/2024 02:58:54 pm

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Snowden Willing To Be Jailed In U.S. For ‘Right Purpose’

Edward Snowden

(Photo : Reuters / Bobby Yip) Protesters supporting Edward Snowden, a contractor at the National Security Agency (NSA), hold a photo of Snowden during a demonstration outside the U.S. Consulate in Hong Kong June 13, 2013.

Former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden told Wired magazine in an interview that he is willing to go to jail in the U.S. for the right reasons.

The exiled NSA whistle-blower left for Moscow in June 2013 to arrest after revealing numerous files he stole from the security agency. He admitted the crime and said he took thousands of NSA documents electronically before seeking asylum in Russia, Tech Times detailed.

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In an interview with Wired magazine, Snowden said he told the U.S. he would voluntarily go to jail as long as it was for the "right purpose." He explained that he did not want the government to use the law as a "political weapon" nor to keep people from upholding their rights.

Snowden also said he no longer possess the controversial NSA documents. The files are now in the hands of First Look Media, which is led by journalist Glenn Greenwald. However, British news firm The Guardian claims the New York Times has the files and the NSA may not be able to retrieve them.

He also addressed the espionage allegations thrown his way by saying he left an electronic record of the documents he stole and those that he just read. He did this to give the government a heads up on what could happen in the future and allow them to control the damage through necessary security measures.

The former NSA contractor told Wired he feared a bot called Monster Mind could drag the U.S. in a critical situation. The bot is designed to counter cyber attacks launched against the U.S. by other countries and retaliate accordingly to hackers that it discovers.

Since Monster Mind is fully automated, the lack of human interaction could allow hackers to spoof the system and hide their real location. This could cause Monster Mind to fire back at an innocent country.

Snowden said his main goal was to let everyone know about the electronic spying of the NSA on their cell phones, emails, and other communication methods. He said ordinary citizens and leaders of U.S. allies are not exempted from the NSA's eavesdropping activities.

Furthermore, Snowden claimed that he was spurred on to continue doing what he does because of his love for his country.

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