CIA Director John Brennan on Monday said that he suspects the Islamic State could be working on more terrorist plots against the West. His statement follows Friday's attack in Paris which killed at least 129 people and left hundreds more injured.

Brennan criticized new privacy protection laws passed after Edward Snowden disclosed the U.S. government's surveillance operations.

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At the Center for Strategic & International Studies' Global Security Forum, John said that the attacks in Paris were not a one-time event, CBS News reported.

He highlighted that he would not consider the terrorist attack a one-off event at the Center for Strategic and International Studies during a standing-room-only crowd.

He said he thinks this is not the only operation ISIL has in the line. ISIL is an alternate acronym for ISIS. Right now, in Europe and other places, security intelligence services are working tirelessly to see what they can do in terms of uncovering security loopholes.

Brennan said that it was not a surprise that security agencies failed to detect the attackers planning. Nonetheless, he believes there were obvious warning signs.

The attacks carried out in Paris on Friday evening came two weeks after 224 people died in a Russian plane that crashed in Egypt and a day after ISIL claimed responsibility for the deaths of 43 people in a suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, The Hill reported.

Many view this string of incidents across the globe as a sign that the extremist organization is highly increasing its focus beyond the Middle East in which it has established an Islamic state.

While intelligence agencies may have had strategic warning ahead of the Paris attacks, it was difficult for them to uncover a detailed plot due the terrorists' covert communication methods.

Brennan told an audience in the District of Columbi on Monday that the ISIS had gone to "school" on what they needed to do to keep their activities hidden.

According to US News, Brennan blamed the intelligence failure in part on former National Security Agency contractor Edward and his leaks to the press about watch programs conducted by U.S. and U.K. agencies.

In a preview of a new stage in the fight over global spying powers, Brennan said he hopes this is going to be a wake-up call, particularly in parts of Europe where a misrepresentation of what the intelligence and security services are doing is rampant.

The long-simmering frustration that national security hawks and intelligence officials have faced following Snowden's leaks were highlighted by the CIA chief's remarks. Those against this say that the ball has swung too far in the direction of privacy in the years after the former government contractor's leaks.

Brennan said there have been some policies and legal actions that made the ability of intelligence agencies to collectively and internationally find these terrorists much more challenging. To him, this might be because of a number of unauthorized disclosures and a lot of handwringing over the government's role in the effort to try to uncover these terrorists.

French media have revealed that one of the architects behind the operation that left many dead and injured on Friday was Abdelhamid Abaaoud. He is a Belgian citizen of Moroccan descent who had gone to fight in Syria. Also connected with the attacks is Salah Abdeslam. Salah is on the run. An international warrant has been issued for his arrest.

TagsCIA Director, Edward Snowden, john brennan, Paris Attack, ISIS, ISIL, National Security Agency, Center for Strategic & International Studies' Global Security Forum, surveillance, US Privay Laws, CIA Director Cal for Surveillance