Binary code: Mystery number one - стр. 55

Ruthra noticed how attentively his audience was listening. Clearly they had not expected this. Of course, the audience included employees and officials with high security clearances.

– No sooner had the public digested the information about metadata than Snowden bombarded them with a story about another area of the NSA's work, labeled US-984XN. Every search platform, every source of raw intelligence information gets its own designation and code name. The SIGAD US-984XN service is known by the oft-mentioned code name PRISM. The PRISM system is the collection of digital photographs, files stored somewhere and sent somewhere, emails, chats, videos, and video conversations. This information is being seized from nine leading internet companies. The schemes made public by Snowden show that the NSA, among other things, uses real-time surveillance tools in its operations. The agency's analysts can receive alerts when a user connects to a service or sends an email, or logs into a particular chat room. Snowden published a top-secret report that described software that could look at hundreds of different databases. It is now no longer a secret that these programs allow the lowest level analyst to interfere unchecked with other people's information sharing processes. The report gives examples such as, "My client speaks German but is in Pakistan. How do I find him?" or "My client uses Google Maps to find his targets. Can I use this information to determine his email address?" The described program allows, having asked one such question, to simultaneously search through 700 servers scattered all over the world.

Ruthra was silent for a moment and then continued. He described the various schemes of the tracking systems and gave examples.

– Among other things, the NSA itself is asking other agencies to help. So-called information-sharing cooperation. The essence is that, for example, the German intelligence agency BND, commissioned by the NSA, conducts surveillance of targets throughout Europe. Intelligence activities are carried out in accordance with a list of tens of thousands of criteria for information retrieval. These include IP addresses, phone numbers, social media accounts, and email domains.

Ruthra fell silent, then looked at the lecturer who had invited him and said:

– I'm done. Thank you for your attention.

The audience clapped approvingly. The audience tried to get through to Rutre, who was being hurried away by Zhidkov. They were followed by the lecturer, who, in English, suggested that Rutra give periodic lectures as part of the existing arrangements for the exchange of experience. Vasilievich nodded approvingly, arching his eyebrows. The latter nodded back. Rutra did not quite understand the meaning of this gesture, but he noticed that he had made an impression on everyone.