espionage

The United States is preparing to announce first-of-its-kind criminal charges Monday against Chinese military officials in an international cyberspying case, a government official said. The indictments will accuse individuals of participating in cyber-espionage on behalf of a foreign government, said the official, who revealed this information only on grounds of anonymity because this person wasn't authorized to publicly discuss the case in advance of the official announcement.

Among the snooping revelations of recent weeks, there have been tantalizing bits of evidence that the NSA is tapping fiber-optic cables that carry nearly all international phone and Internet data. The idea that the NSA is sweeping up vast data streams via cables and other infrastructure — often described as the “backbone of the Internet” — is not new. How do they do it? And what exactly are they doing?

A recent piece called “In Defense of PRISM” has brought about a wide array of criticism from those who see the labor organizer’s argument as falling too closely in line with the Obama administration's. Surveillance, privacy and whistle blowers are hot topics that may transcend party lines — but the necessary implementation of oversight rules and transparency aren't so universal.

The charge connects Velazquez to a highly damaging spy case. During the 16 years Montes was a U.S. intelligence analyst for the DIA, she revealed the identities of four undercover agents to Cuban officials.