We failed to connect the dots. And so, we had to come up with a way of helping to stop attacks." - General Keith B. Alexander, Former Director of NSA, at Black Hat USA 2013.
There's been lot of hyperbole and misinformation about the NSA's collection of Americans' phone calls, emails, address books, buddy lists, calling records, online video game chats, financial documents, browsing history, video chats, text messages, and calendar data. Currently, a debate rages involving privacy advocates, the Congressional House and Senate Committees on Judiciary and Intelligence, and the Intelligence Community about the NSA's activities. Join the debate by hearing former Staff Director of the House Intelligence Committee and current Managing Director of Beacon Global Strategies, Michael Allen, debate and discuss these issues with Mark Jaycox, a Legislative Analyst with the Electronic Frontier Foundation who specializes in user privacy and surveillance law. The conversation will include an overview of the NSA's activities, argue positions for and against the activities, and end with questions from the audience.