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                  NSA Seeks Criminal Investigation into Leaks

   by VOA News

   U.S. intelligence officials say the National Security Agency has
   requested a criminal probe into the leak of highly classified
   information about a secret surveillance program it has run.
   The scope of the investigation requested by the super-secret NSA
   remains unclear, but a spokesman for National Intelligence Director
   James Clapper said a "crimes report has been filed."
   The report goes to the Justice Department, which will determine whether
   an investigation is warranted.  Prosecutors do not accept all requests,
   but they have brought a series of high-profile leak investigations
   under President Barack Obama.
   U.S. officials said the NSA leaks were so astonishing they expected the
   Justice Department to take the case.
   Meanwhile, British Foreign Secretary William Hague says eavesdropping
   by its GCHQ security agency is legal and no threat to privacy.  But he
   refuses to confirm or deny reports it received data from the secret NSA
   program.
   In his first remarks on the subject Hague said the two countries share
   intelligence, but that GCHQ's work is governed by a very strong legal
   framework.
   Confirmation that the NSA had filed a "crimes report" about the leaks
   to newspapers came a few hours after Clapper blasted what he called
   "reckless disclosures" of the highly classified and previously secret
   PRISM data collection program.
   In a statement Saturday, he acknowledged PRISM's existence by name for
   the first time and said it had been mischaracterized by the media.
   Clapper said the project was legal, not aimed at U.S. citizens and had
   thwarted threats against the country.
   The Guardian newspaper reported Friday that U.S. President Barack Obama
   ordered various government agencies to prepare for offensive
   cyberwarfare operations, including drawing up a list of potential
   overseas targets for U.S. cyber-attacks.
   It is the third secret U.S. security document to be published by The
   Guardian, which reported Thursday that the NSA was collecting the phone
   records of millions of Americans.
   Later, The Guardian, along with The Washington Post, reported on the
   separate PRISM program that provides the NSA and FBI with direct access
   to the servers of nine major U.S. Internet companies.
   Obama defended the programs that allow intelligence agencies to collect
   information on U.S. phone records and access the servers of major
   Internet companies.
   The revelations have drawn sharp criticism from civil liberty groups
   and lawmakers who objected to the government's broad surveillance
   powers in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.
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   -leaks/1678346.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/nsa-seeks-criminal-investigation-into-leaks/1678346.html