WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. National Security Agency collects hundreds of millions of contact lists from personal email and instant messaging accounts around the world, including many from Americans, The Washington Post reported on Monday.

The collection program intercepts email address books and "buddy lists" from instant messaging services as they move across global data links, the newspaper said in an article posted on its website, citing senior intelligence officials and documents provided by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden.

The Post said analyzing that data lets the NSA search for connections and map relationships among foreign intelligence targets.

The data collection takes place outside the United States, but sweeps in the contacts of many Americans, the report said, citing two senior U.S. intelligence officials.

A spokesman for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversees the NSA, said the agency is focused on discovering and developing intelligence about foreign intelligence targets. "We are not interested in personal information about ordinary Americans," he told the Post.

Snowden's revelations about the reach and methods of the NSA, including the monitoring of vast volumes of Internet traffic and phone records, have upset U.S. allies from Germany to Brazil. Admirers call him a human rights champion and critics denounce him as a traitor.

The 30-year-old is now living in a secret location in Russia, beyond the reach of U.S. authorities who want him on espionage charges because he leaked the details of top-secret electronic spying programs to the media.

He traveled to Hong Kong in May and later, under pressure from China, flew to Moscow, where he has been granted a year's asylum.

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

As I cant embed the picture here, This is the NSA in UTAH

based on the size of the drive in doors and the span of support used in such buildings, I estimate these are 2 story buildings, that are 500 x 100 FT. Thus 100,000 SF buildings , so about 500,000 SF of activities. But if you notice the parking is very limited and the vehicles are limited for 500,000 SF, so this has to be almost all computers and tech recordings.

I think it is one of about 20 such sites in the US.

#CHANGE Yes, I mock because I figure for all that has come out under Obama that he has had to change his tune on, there is probably a ton more that Obama campaigned against of which he now supports.

http://nsa.gov1.info/utah-data-center/photos/high-res-utah-data-center.jpg

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

I once watched a special about 3 years ago (forgot the cable channel) about how the government has a special location that monitors every phone call going in and out of the country. It doesn't "listen" but is set up to extricate key words that might illicit further investigation. One of these offices were about 2 miles from where the 911 terrorists were living.

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

They have way more than ONE location

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”