LONDON — When people turn on their smartphone to play "Angry Birds," spies may be watching. Top secret papers suggest that spy groups can collect information from smartphones across the globe.
The secret papers were leaked by Edward Snowden. He used to do work for the National Security Agency (NSA). He took the papers from the U.S. spy agency and gave them to a newspaper. They show that the NSA tracks Americans' phone calls and emails.
The newest papers were published Monday by The New York Times. The British newspaper the Guardian and ProPublica also published the secret papers.
Apps are common on the world's roughly 1 billion smartphones. People download map apps, games, and social networking apps, like Facebook. The leaked papers show that America's NSA and Britain's GCHQ spy agency have worked together. They're both trying to gain information from the apps.
Watching Google Maps
Some apps are considered "leaky." Those apps may be feeding huge amounts of information to the spy agencies. A person's location can be found. What groups a person joins can be found out too.
The size of the spying program isn't known. Yet, the reports suggest that the spy agencies can easily collect information from apps. Two of the biggest apps mentioned in reports are "Angry Birds" and Google Maps.
The NSA says that it watches phones for good reason. Often, they are used in planning terrorist attacks like bombings.
The NSA says it is not interested in "everyday Americans." The agency says it only collects information "that we are authorized by law to collect."
GCHQ said its activity was legal and "necessary."
It's no surprise that spy groups are interested in tracking cellphones. Snowden's other leaks have shown that. However, the interest in apps is new.
Tracking The Apps
"Angry Birds" was one of the most eye-catching examples. The game has been downloaded more than 1.7 billion times worldwide. In the addictive game, birds attack pigs. The Times and ProPublica said a 2012 British intelligence report explained how to gather information on "Angry Birds" players.
Another document published to the Web was a 14-page-long NSA slideshow. It listed several other apps. Facebook, photo sharing site Flickr, and the film app Flixster were watched.
It wasn't clear what information can be collected. And from which apps. A cellphone's settings, where it connected to, and which websites it had visited could be tracked. Also, which documents it had downloaded. The names of a cellphone users' friends can be found.
Google did not comment on the reports. Neither did the maker of "Angry Birds."
The Times briefly posted a secret U.S. document to the Web Monday. Computer experts said it revealed some information. The experts were able to discover the name of an NSA worker in the documents. They also picked out the name of a Middle Eastern terror group the NSA was targeting. Details about the types of computer files the NSA considered useful were also found.
Snowden began leaking secret NSA papers in June. His supporters say they have been careful not to give away the names of any spies. They claim they have not put ongoing spying at risk.
A Times spokeswoman said the information had been posted by accident. The material has since been removed.
LONDON — When people turn on their smartphone to play "Angry Birds," spies may be watching. Top secret papers suggest that spy groups can collect information from smartphones across the globe.The secret papers were leaked by Edward Snowden. He used to do work for the National Security Agency (NSA). He took the papers from the U.S. spy agency and gave them to a newspaper. They show that the NSA tracks Americans' phone calls and emails.The newest papers were published Monday by The New York Times. The British newspaper the Guardian and ProPublica also published the secret papers.Apps are common on the world's roughly 1 billion smartphones. People download map apps, games, and social networking apps, like Facebook. The leaked papers show that America's NSA and Britain's GCHQ spy agency have worked together. They're both trying to gain information from the apps.Watching Google MapsSome apps are considered "leaky." Those apps may be feeding huge amounts of information to the spy agencies. A person's location can be found. What groups a person joins can be found out too.The size of the spying program isn't known. Yet, the reports suggest that the spy agencies can easily collect information from apps. Two of the biggest apps mentioned in reports are "Angry Birds" and Google Maps.The NSA says that it watches phones for good reason. Often, they are used in planning terrorist attacks like bombings.The NSA says it is not interested in "everyday Americans." The agency says it only collects information "that we are authorized by law to collect."GCHQ said its activity was legal and "necessary."It's no surprise that spy groups are interested in tracking cellphones. Snowden's other leaks have shown that. However, the interest in apps is new.Tracking The Apps"Angry Birds" was one of the most eye-catching examples. The game has been downloaded more than 1.7 billion times worldwide. In the addictive game, birds attack pigs. The Times and ProPublica said a 2012 British intelligence report explained how to gather information on "Angry Birds" players.Another document published to the Web was a 14-page-long NSA slideshow. It listed several other apps. Facebook, photo sharing site Flickr, and the film app Flixster were watched.It wasn't clear what information can be collected. And from which apps. A cellphone's settings, where it connected to, and which websites it had visited could be tracked. Also, which documents it had downloaded. The names of a cellphone users' friends can be found.Google did not comment on the reports. Neither did the maker of "Angry Birds."The Times briefly posted a secret U.S. document to the Web Monday. Computer experts said it revealed some information. The experts were able to discover the name of an NSA worker in the documents. They also picked out the name of a Middle Eastern terror group the NSA was targeting. Details about the types of computer files the NSA considered useful were also found.Snowden began leaking secret NSA papers in June. His supporters say they have been careful not to give away the names of any spies. They claim they have not put ongoing spying at risk.A Times spokeswoman said the information had been posted by accident. The material has since been removed.
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