Like countless other organizations, the National Security Agency made its pitch to attendees of the world’s largest IT security conference this week. But instead of offering flashy gadgets to test or raffling off smart phones, the agency went with a subdued and sober message: come serve your country.
Nearly two years after the revelations of NSA bulk-data collection by former contractor Edward Snowden, the agency was still the elephant in the room at the RSA conference in downtown San Francisco.
Retired Gen. Keith Alexander, the former NSA director, said April 24 at the conference :
How do we heal their wounds? I think part of it is getting those companies the facts
“That’s a classified set of briefings and the director of national intelligence, the White House, or someone, has got to bring them in and show them the facts.”
The companies have actually done nothing wrong
He added, referring to tech companies enlisted in the NSA data-collection programs. “They were left here holding this court order to comply with the government and I think all of that has to be more transparent to some of them.”
Hands up, you got caught !