NSA Internet Spying Guide Made Public

[steve2470]

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2418780,00.asp?google_editors_picks=true

In the movies, government spies are often seen in high-tech lairs, creeping into the dark corners of the Web with ease and cracking codes with a few clicks. But if a recently released NSA "Guide to Internet Research" is any indication, the life of an online spy is not exactly a high-octane, Web-powered thrill ride.

The document, which was made public via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, dates back to 2007, so much of the information is a tad antiquated. The report author even comments that it was "out of date before it reached your desk." The topic of social networking is mentioned, but not discussed in any great detail, for example, which is not entirely shocking since Twitter was still in its infancy in 2007.

Still, there is enough information to fill almost 650 pages. There are tips for maximizing online searches, how to look up email address and find people online, domain name lookups, finding Internet access points, and more. As Wired pointed out, there are some interesting search tips, or "Google Hacks," (find confidential spreadsheets by typing filetype:xls site:za confidential), but the information is not exactly going to help you crack the NSA and learn the government's secrets.

The document, however, was labeled as "unclassified" (but for official use only), so the really juicy secrets and Internet tricks are probably still filed away. There's also a stamp on the guide that says the opinions in the guide "do not represent the official opinion of [the] NSA."

*end of excerpt*

NSA report here