4 ms·

The NSA doesn't need to illegally spy on Americans when an ally can do it for them and then share the data legally. https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukusa/

The NSA doesn't need to illegally spy on Americans when an ally can do it for them and then share the data legally. https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukusa/ https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukusa/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Eyes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Eyes

HamburgerEmoji 5y ago
Is it usually legal to compensate some other party to do something illegal? I don't think so. This situation seems something like paying an ambassador to steal something. The ambassador might not be prosecutable, but why isn't the local party? I think the real answer is "power", but that's not good enough.
freeflight 5y ago
That's not really how it works. Sure, it is also a way to circumvent such local legislature, but for that to work American allies would need to run actual surveillance structures in the US mainland proper out in the open.. You know, like the US does in the countries of it's "allies" like Germany [0] Do you really think the US would allow German intelligence agencies to build whole complexes, plugged right into the US's largest IPX? That's why this situation is not nearly as "symbiotic" as it's often made out to be. At best that applies to Five Eyes countries, and even there only to a very limited degree as no Five Eyes member as as much foreign presence as the US. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECHELON#Examples_of_industrial_espionage https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECHELON#Examples_of_industrial...
- the_optimist 5y ago
  To this rhetorical question, a resounding “yes” answer. There is credible suggestion that GCHQ has been invited to operate US facilities on US soil for this explicit purpose. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/aug/01/nsa-paid-gchq-spying-edward-snowden https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/aug/01/nsa-paid-gch...

4 ms·

The NSA doesn't need to illegally spy on Americans when an ally can do it for them and then share the data legally. https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukusa/

by phonethrowaway 5y ago

HamburgerEmoji 5y ago
Is it usually legal to compensate some other party to do something illegal? I don't think so. This situation seems something like paying an ambassador to steal something. The ambassador might not be prosecutable, but why isn't the local party? I think the real answer is "power", but that's not good enough.
freeflight 5y ago
That's not really how it works. Sure, it is also a way to circumvent such local legislature, but for that to work American allies would need to run actual surveillance structures in the US mainland proper out in the open.. You know, like the US does in the countries of it's "allies" like Germany [0] Do you really think the US would allow German intelligence agencies to build whole complexes, plugged right into the US's largest IPX? That's why this situation is not nearly as "symbiotic" as it's often made out to be. At best that applies to Five Eyes countries, and even there only to a very limited degree as no Five Eyes member as as much foreign presence as the US. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECHELON#Examples_of_industrial_espionage https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECHELON#Examples_of_industrial...
- the_optimist 5y ago
  To this rhetorical question, a resounding “yes” answer. There is credible suggestion that GCHQ has been invited to operate US facilities on US soil for this explicit purpose. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/aug/01/nsa-paid-gchq-spying-edward-snowden https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/aug/01/nsa-paid-gch...