From the readings and in your opinion, is Edward Snowden a hero or a traitor? Should the US government pardon him for any possible crimes or should they pursue extradition and prosecution for treason?
What exactly did he leak and how did he expose that information? Regardless of the legality of his actions, is what he did ethical and moral?
Utimately, is what Snowden did beneficial to the public or did he harm the security of the United States and its allies? Personally, how have these revelations impacted you (or not) and your views on government, national security, encryption, and technology in general?
Edward Snowden is no hero. In fact, in the literal sense of the word, he is a traitor. He used his position within the government and technical prowess to take matters of national security into his own hands, and in doing so, he released many documents to the world that were meant to be kept as US secrets. His actions jeopardized national security, and because of this, he is a fugitive of the US, stuck in Russia. The United States government owes him nothing, and I don’t see a future where Uncle Sam welcomes Snowden back with open arms.
All that being said, I don’t think he’s the villain some make him out to be.
Edward Snowden released thousands of documents he had ascertained regarding the large-scale data collection sponsored by the NSA. He used a number of journalists as outlets to leak information and left the publication of those leaks up to them. Shortly after Snowden learned that many of his leaks would go public in the coming days, he fled the country. Everything Snowden did – using his security clearance for nefarious purposes, accessing and storing documents outside of his purview, and leaking that information (more or less) to the public – was entirely illegal. He knew it, the US government knew it, and the journalists knew it. That’s why Snowden fled, and that’s why it’s initially hard to reconcile such a decision.
But I believe that what Snowden did was because he truly cares about citizens’ privacy, even if the average US citizen knows very little about it. Edward Snowden was appalled by the sheer volume of data collection the US government had undertaken, and he was shocked by the reach the government had. Take a look at Section 215 of the Patriot Act. It states the US government can ask for
… any tangible things… for an investigation to protect against international terrorism
That’s incredibly broad to say the least, and I can understand where Snowden is coming from. The NSA would argue that, though they have incredible data collection reach and tactics, they don’t necessarily use them. In fact, to use them requires an approval process from an internal review board of sorts – but that board has only denied a handful of requests in the past decade. Snowden likened this scenario to the NSA holding a loaded gun to your head and saying, “Don’t worry, I won’t shoot. Trust me.”
What he did was illegal, though he was trying to be ethical and moral, but did he succeed in being moral in his decision. I would argue no. He betrayed his government and the trust that many government officials placed in him. I don’t believe that data collection on US citizens is as large a deal as Snowden has made it out to be, which is evidenced by the fact that still roughly half of US citizens either don’t care or care very little about their privacy with respect to the US government. I think there’s something to be said here about, if you have nothing to hide, what’s there to worry about. Would I like to have to sit in front of a board and answer for every text I’ve sent to a significant other for the past year? No, but I also don’t believe that’s a scenario that would ever pan out. Maybe I’m just being naive, but just because the government has that much information at their disposal, I don’t think it necessarily follows that it’s going to matter significantly in the future.
Now maybe I’m wrong. John Oliver did show in his segment on Snowden that US citizens care very little about their privacy abstractly, but when put into context of, er, well, “sensitive photos between loved ones,” they cared a great deal. When it was made aware that the current data collection policies in place gave the government access to otherwise personal photos, several people were shocked and disgusted. In this way, I believe Snowden positively benefited the public. He put into the light what was previously kept dark to many people, but I still don’t believe that he did it in the right context. His leaks did lead to mishandling of information by the New York Times that went public and negatively affected operations in the Middle East.
For me, the information Snowden leaked concerns me very little, but I’m willing to accept that I may be in the minority in that regard. Technology will always continue to move forward, and I think that what will continue to follow is monitoring of technology and data. The Snowden leaks slowed that progression, but I don’t believe anything will ever truly stop it. I’m not being cynical, and I don’t think it’s an issue. I just think that in generations to come, people will accept that they have to be cognizant of their digital footprint and what that really says.
Jesse's Ethics Blog 