US govt whistleblower Snowden: Who is he?

After string of jobs with CIA, Snowden turns around & reveals US govt secret collection of info on US citizens (email, video, chat, videos, photos, file transfers, logins, social networks.

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US surveillance leaker 'not afraid'

By Olivia Hampton (AFP)

WASHINGTON — The 29-year-old government contractor who turned whistleblower to reveal vast US surveillance programs says he is not afraid, despite the intelligence authorities' threat to hunt him down.

In footage shot by The Guardian newspaper, Edward Snowden said he packed his bags for Hong Kong three weeks ago, leaving behind a "very comfortable life" in Hawaii, a salary of $200,000, a girlfriend, a stable career and a loving family.

"I'm willing to sacrifice all of that because I can't in good conscience allow the US government to destroy privacy, Internet freedom and basic liberties for people around the world," Snowden said.

He is behind one of the most significant security breaches in US history, joining the likes of Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg and Bradley Manning, who released US diplomatic cables and war logs to the WikiLeaks website.

Snowden cited both men as inspiration.

A former technical assistant for the CIA, Snowden worked for four years at the National Security Agency (NSA) as an employee of various outside contractors, including Dell and Booz Allen Hamilton, his current employer. 

"My sole motive is to inform the public as to that which is done in their name and that which is done against them," he said

In the video, posted on the newspaper's website, the bespectacled analyst appeared composed, speaking deliberately as he admitted: "I do not expect to see home again."

"I have no intention of hiding who I am because I know I have done nothing wrong," he said. "I am not afraid, because this is the choice I've made."

But Snowden admitted he was worried about possible retaliation from US authorities, who are seeking a criminal probe into the leaks. 

Before the whistleblower's identity was revealed, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has vowed to "track down whoever's doing this" and accused the leaker of causing "huge, grave damage" to US intelligence.

The Guardian said Snowden had mostly remained ensconced in his Hong Kong hotel room since boarding a flight on May 20, stepping outside for only about three times during his entire stay.

Worried about being spied on, he has lined the door of his hotel room with pillows and places a large red hood over his head and laptop when typing passwords so that any hidden cameras can't record them, the newspaper added.

"All my options are bad," Snowden said, with possible extradition proceedings, questioning by Chinese authorities or an extra-legal detention by the CIA hanging over his head.

"Yes, I could be rendered by the CIA. I could have people come after me. Or any of the third-party partners. They work closely with a number of other nations. Or they could pay off the Triads. Any of their agents or assets." 

Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China with its own legal system, has an extradition treaty with the United States

Snowden staked his best hope on possible asylum in Iceland, known as an Internet freedom champion, despite the huge challenges to realizing that goal.

Over many hours of interviews with The Guardian, Snowden only showed emotion when asked about the impact of his decisions on his relatives, many of whom work for the US government.

"The only thing I fear is the harmful effects on my family, who I won't be able to help any more. That's what keeps me up at night," he said, as his eyes filled with tears.

Snowden grew up in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, later moving to Maryland, near the NSA's headquarters at Fort Meade.

A less than stellar student, he studied computing at a Maryland community college to get the necessary credits to obtain a high school diploma, but never finished the course.

In 2003, he joined the US Army and began training with the Special Forces. But he was discharged after breaking both his legs in a training accident.

His first job with the NSA was as a security guard for one of the agency's secret facilities at the University of Maryland. He then worked on IT security at the CIA.

Despite his lack of formal qualifications, his computer wizardry allowed him to quickly rise through intelligence ranks. By 2007, he was given a CIA post with diplomatic cover in Geneva.

Snowden left the CIA in 2009 to work for a private contractor that gave him an assignment at an NSA facility on a military base in Japan.

Copyright © 2013 AFP. All rights reserved.

(Source: Bangkok Post, US surveillance leaker 'not afraid', By Olivia Hampton (AFP), link)


Whistleblower Vocabulary

whistleblower - "a person who tells the public or someone in authority about alleged dishonest or illegal activities (misconduct) occurring in a government department or private company or organization. The alleged misconduct may be classified in many ways; for example, a violation of a law, rule, regulation and/or a direct threat to public interest, such as fraud, health and safety violations, and corruption" (See Wikipedia)

leak - when private or secret information is given to journalists
leaker - a person who gives private or secret information to journalists
surveillance leaker

Wikileaks - "an international, online, non-profit organisation which publishes secret information, news leaks, and classified media from anonymous sources. Its website, initiated in 2006 in Iceland by the organisation Sunshine Press, claimed a database of more than 1.2 million documents within a year of its launch. Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activist, is generally described as its founder, editor-in-chief, and director" (See Wikipedia & website)
Julian Assange -  the founder of Wikileaks (See Wikipedia)

National Security Agency (NSA) - the US government agency responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and intelligence, as well as protecting U.S. government communications and information systems, which involves information security and cryptanalysis/cryptography.(See Wikipedia)

Daniel Ellsberg - "a former United States military analyst who, while employed by the RAND Corporation, precipitated a national political controversy in 1971 when he released the Pentagon Papers, a top-secret Pentagon study of U.S. government decision-making in relation to the Vietnam War, to The New York Times and other newspapers" (See Wikipedia)

Edward Snowden - the whistleblower who is the subject of this article (See Wikipedia & Washington Post)

surveillance - the process of carefully watching a person or place การเฝ้าตรวจตราอย่างเข้มงวด
US surveillance leaker 'not afraid'

PRISM surveillance program - "an electronic surveillance program run by the United States National Security Agency (NSA) since 2007. Documents leaked by Edward Snowden describe the program as "enabling in-depth surveillance on live communications and stored information. It provides for the targeting of any customers of participating corporations who live outside the United States, or American citizens whose communications include web content of people outside the United States. Data which the NSA is able to obtain under PRISM allegedly includes email, video and voice chat, videos, photos, voice over IP conversations, file transfers, login notifications and social networking details" (See Wikipedia)

contractor - a person or company whose job is to do work for another person, organisation, company, etc. ผู้รับเหมา
government contractor - a person who works for the government under a contract (not a permanent "employee")
government contractor who turned whistleblower

reveal - to let something be known เปิดเผยข้อมูลว่า เปิดเผย to show something that was covered or hidden ทำให้ปรากฎ
reveal vast US surveillance programs

vast - extremely large ส่วนใหญ่
intelligence - information collected about the secret plans of an enemy, criminal organisations, competitors, etc. ข่าวกรอง ข้อมูลลับ
intelligence authorities

threat - saying that you might do something bad or harmful, especially in order to make someone do something การขู่เข็ญ การคุกคาม ทำให้กลัว
threat to hunt him down.
intelligence authorities' threat to hunt him down.

The 29-year-old government contractor who turned whistleblower to reveal vast US surveillance programs says he is not afraid, despite the intelligence authorities' threat to hunt him down.

footage - film or video of a particular subject or event ฟิลม์หรือคลิปภาพยนตร์ หรือวิดีโอ ฟิลม์หรือคลิปภาพยนตร์ การเสนอข่าว
shoot footage
footage shot by the newspaper

pack bags - put clothes and things you need before you travel and go on a trip

salary - a fixed amount of money that you earn each month or year from your job เงินเดือน
a salary of $200,000 a year

stable - firmly fixed, not likely to move or change a lot, not likely to fail ไม่เปลี่ยนแปลง คงที่, มั่นคง
career - a job that a person does for much of their life
a stable career  

In footage shot by The Guardian newspaper, Edward Snowden said he packed his bags for Hong Kong three weeks ago, leaving behind a "very comfortable life" in Hawaii, a salary of $200,000, a girlfriend, a stable career and a loving family.

sacrifice - give up something you want เสียสละ ความเสียสละเพื่อส่วนรวม
willing to sacrifice everything

conscience  -  moral sense, inner voice ความรู้สึกผิดชอบชั่วดี
have a bad conscience - guilt-ridden, remorseful ที่รู้สึกผิด
have a good conscience

in good conscience
I can't in good conscience ...

privacy - the freedom to do things without other people watching you or knowing what you are doing ความเป็นส่วนตัว
liberties - freedoms that people have to behave and think the way they want without interference from government

"I'm willing to sacrifice all of that because I can't in good conscience allow the US government to destroy privacy, Internet freedom and basic liberties for people around the world," Snowden said.

security - the need to provide safety from attack, harm or damage ความปลอดภัย
breach - a failure to follow a rule, procedure or law
security breach - when security arrangements or rules have been broken (someone enters a place without permission, for example)

significant - big and important; large enough to be important or have an effect ที่สำคัญยิ่ง
significant security breaches

diplomat - people working in the area of relations between countries
diplomatic (adjective) - relating to relations between countries เกี่ยวกับการทูต
diplomatic cables - communications and messages between diplomats about their work with another country (which they sometimes say undiplomatic things which might be embarassing)

release - allow or let leave a place
release dipomatic cables to the public

He is behind one of the most significant security breaches in US history, joining the likes of Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg and Bradley Manning, who released US diplomatic cables and war logs to the WikiLeaks website.

cited - mentioned (to support a point you are making or arguing) กล่าวถึง
inspiration - someone or something that gives you new ideas or enthusiasm to do something แรงบันดาลใจ

Snowden cited both men as inspiration.

technical - requiring special detailed knowledge (example: computers, electronics, manufacturing) เฉพาะทาง
technical assistant

contractors - companies that do project work for another company or here the government
outside contractors

employee - someone who is paid regularly to work for a person or an organisation ลูกจ้าง
an employee of various outside contractors

current - of the present time ปัจจุบัน
employer - a person, company, or organisation that pays someone to work for them
as a member of their staff นายจ้าง
current employer

A former technical assistant for the CIA, Snowden worked for four years at the National Security Agency (NSA) as an employee of various outside contractors, including Dell and Booz Allen Hamilton, his current employer. 

sole - only เดี่ยวๆ
motive - a reason for doing something แรงจูงใจ เหตุผล
sole motive - the only reason he is doing something

inform - tell people about what happened, report new information to people who don't know about it yet
inform the public

My sole motive is to inform the public as to that which is done in their name and that which is done against them.

bespectacled - wearing glasses สวมแว่นตา
the bespectacled analyst

composed - calm, not upset, angry or showing much emotion
appeared composed - he looked calm, not angry, worried, upset

deliberately - 1. very slowly and carefully; 2. done intentionally; done on purpose จงใจ ตั้งใจ not an accident
speaking deliberately - speaking slowly and carefully (so that people can understand)

In the video, posted on the newspaper's website, the bespectacled analyst appeared composed, speaking deliberately as he admitted: "I do not expect to see home again.

intention - a goal; what you want to do or achieve; a plan in your mind to do something a plan for what you are going to do in the future ความตั้งใจ เจตนา แผนการ
I have no intention of ... - I am not planning to do .....

choices - ทางเลือก
make choice
this is the choice I've made

I have no intention of hiding who I am because I know I have done nothing wrong," he said. "I am not afraid, because this is the choice I've made."

retaliation - punishing someone for damage they caused you; harm someone in return, after they harm you
worried about possible retaliation

authorities - officials or organisation in charge, government ผู้มีอำนาจ เจ้าหน้าที่
US authorities

worried about possible retaliation from US authorities

probe - an investigation; investigation into crime and wrongdoing การสอบสวน to attempt to find out the truth about something; to examine การตรวจสอบ
criminal probe
a criminal probe into the leaks

But Snowden admitted he was worried about possible retaliation from US authorities, who are seeking a criminal probe into the leaks. 

identity - who someone is
revealed - made known or showed somthing that was surprising or that was previously secret เปิดเผย

track down -  to search for and find
track down whoever's doing this

vowed - promised
vowed to track down whoever's doing this

grave - very serious; very dangerous วิกฤติ, ร้ายแรง
grave damage - very serious damage

intelligence  - information collected about the secret plans of another government, an enemy in war or a competitor in business
grave damage to US intelligence  

Before the whistleblower's identity was revealed, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has vowed to "track down whoever's doing this" and accused the leaker of causing "huge, grave damage" to US intelligence

boarding a flight - getting on an airplane before it goes somewhere

The Guardian said Snowden had mostly remained ensconced in his Hong Kong hotel room since boarding a flight on May 20, stepping outside for only about three times during his entire stay

hood - part of your jacket or clothing that covers the head
a large red hood over his head

record - to write down on paper or on computer memory
hidden cameras can't record passwords 

Worried about being spied on, he has lined the door of his hotel room with pillows and places a large red hood over his head and laptop when typing passwords so that any hidden cameras can't record them, the newspaper added

options - choices; the different things that someone can choose to do ทางเลือก
all my options are bad

extradition - to send someone accused of a crime back to the country where the crime was committed for trial or punishment การส่งตัวผู้ร้ายกลับประเทศเพื่อดำเนินการทางศาล  การส่งผู้ร้ายข้ามแดน  ถูกเนรเทศ
extradition proceedings

detention - forced officially to stay in a place การกักตัว
extra-legal detention by the CIA - the CIA keeping him in prison outside the law

"All my options are bad," Snowden said, with possible extradition proceedings, questioning by Chinese authorities or an extra-legal detention by the CIA hanging over his head.