Barack Obama defends NSA's spying on US citizens
US President Barack Obama has defended the collection of data from phone calls and internet accounts by the National Security Agency (NSA) as “legal and necessary to combat terror.”
"Nobody is listening to your telephone calls," Obama said in San Jose, California, on Friday.
Obama also defended a joint NSA-FBI initiative called PRISM in which agents tap into the servers of nine US internet giants, including Facebook, Google, and YouTube, saying the measure does not apply to American citizens or those living in the US.
Internet giants like Apple and Facebook denied claims that they opened their doors for US spy agencies.
The Washington Post reported late Thursday that the NSA had direct access to internet firm servers, saying their source, a career intelligence officer, was horrified of the capabilities of the systems used by the top US spy agency.
The Guardian also revealed on Thursday a top secret court order in the US that allows the NSA to collect data on millions of Americans who are customers of Verizon Communications.
According to the order Verizon should, “on a daily basis,” give the NSA data, including phone numbers of both parties, location, the time and duration of all phone calls in its systems, both in the US and between the US and other countries.
The president admitted that the two programs made "modest encroachments" on privacy, adding that providing absolute security would certainly create some “inconvenience” when it comes to people’s privacy.
Obama also tried to calm nerves by saying that the measures enjoy the full support of Congress and are being monitored by federal and secret intelligence courts for any abuse by the authorities.
MA/MHB
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