23 September 1998: Add Japanese report.
22 September 1998
Date: Mon, 21 Sep 1998 22:21:24 +0100 To: ukcrypto@maillist.ox.ac.uk From: Duncan Campbell <duncan@gn.apc.org> Subject: Information on Menwith Hill Station 21/9/98 The debate about ECHELON - last week in the European Parliament - has again highlighted the role of the NSA station at Menwith Hill, Yorkshire. The report prepared earlier this year for the STOA (Scientific and Technical Options Assessment) of the European Parliament resulted in widespread coverage in Europe and the US. We have recently made a new batch of copies of the 1993 Dispatches documentary on Menwith Hill - "The Hill" - based on revelations based on NSA documents obtained by women peace protesters at the Hill. It also covers ECHELON and other NSA activities in the UK. Tapes (45 mins) can be ordered from : Ian Hide IPTV Ltd 1 Meadowbank Edinburgh EH8 8JE At £10.95 including postage. I will e-mail trancripts of the programme free of charge to anyone requesting it. Duncan Campbell [See DC on ECHELON: http://jya.com/echelon-dc.htm ]
Date: Mon, 21 Sep 1998 20:40:14 -0700 (PDT) To: jya@pipeline.com From: Sanho Tree <stree@igc.apc.org> Subject: Another ECHELON story Baltimore Sun Sep 19 1998 NSA listening practices called European `threat' European Parliament report accuses agency of widespread spying By Neal Thompson Sun Staff The National Security Agency has incurred the wrath of some U.S. allies and triggered debate about increased global eavesdropping, thanks to a new report that accuses the agency of spying on European citizens and companies. With the help of a listening post in the moors of northern England, NSA for nearly a decade has been snatching Europe's electronic communications signals, according to a report for the European Parliament. "Within Europe, all e-mail, telephone and fax communications are routinely intercepted by the United States National Security Agency, transferring all target information to Fort Meade," said the report. `Powerful threat' It warned that the NSA's tactics represent a "powerful threat to civil liberties in Europe" at a time when more communication -- and commerce -- is conducted electronically. A preliminary version of the report circulated overseas in recent months, touching off heated debate, with front-page stories in Italy, France, Scotland, England, Belgium and even Russia. The NSA won't discuss the report or even admit that the listening post exists. But this week, two days of debate in the European Parliament continued the extraordinary public disclosure of comprehensive post-Cold War spying by the agency. On Wednesday, the Parliament passed a resolution seeking more accountability from such eavesdropping arrangements and more assurances that they won't be misused. "We want to make sure that somebody's watching them," said Glyn Ford, a British member of the European Parliament, the legislative body for the 15-member European Union. Observers say this was the first time a governmental body has described in detail -- and then criticized -- the NSA's tactics. "The cat's well and true out of the bag," said Simon Davies, director of the London-based watchdog group Privacy International. "I would argue that we have made the grandest step in 50 years toward accountability of such national security transparencies." The report describes a sophisticated program called Echelon, which the NSA established in conjunction with British intelligence agencies. The program includes a listening post in Menwith Hill, in Yorkshire, whose satellite dishes soak up the satellite and microwave transmissions carrying Europe's telephone conversations, faxes and e-mail. Unlike Cold War spying aimed at the military, Echelon is a global electronic surveillance system that targets individuals, businesses, governments and organizations, the report says. The U.S. shares the information with Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand as part of an intelligence-sharing agreement called UKUSA. Each nation has its own set of key words, so it can seek information on specific issues, the report states. Europe is but a fraction of Echelon's target area -- and the Menwith Hill post is one of at least 10 around the world, the report adds. "One reason it's a bigger deal over there than it is over here [in the U.S.] is because the SIGINT [signals intelligence] systems are over their heads and not our heads," said Jeffrey Richelson, an analyst with the National Security Archives, a U.S. group seeking to declassify intelligence related documents. Echelon repercussions But the disclosure of Echelon could soon resonate across the Atlantic after the European Parliament action. Furthermore, it could complicate current negotiations between the U.S. and the European Union over encryption programs that scramble or encode computer information, said Parliament member Ford. The U.S. has been lobbying for back-door access to such codes for security reasons. *************************************************************************** Sanho Tree Project Director, 202/234-9382 ext. 266 (voice) Citizen Truth Commision 202/387-7915 (fax) Institute for Policy Studies 202/234-6854 (home) 733 15th St., NW, #1020 E-mail: stree@igc.org Washington, DC 20005-2112 Website: www.ips-dc.org/drugs.htm ***************************************************************************
U.S. Spy Agency Helped U.S. Cos Win Business Overseas-Report September 21, 1998 Nikkei English News: TOKYO (AP)--A U.S. intelligence agency electronically eavesdropped on foreign companies and passed information to U.S. competitors to help them win business overseas, a major Tokyo newspaper reported Saturday. The National Security Agency monitored phone calls, faxes and electronic mail of European and Japanese companies since at least 1990, the Mainichi newspaper said, citing a report Wednesday by the European Parliament, the European Union's legislature. The newspaper quoted the report as saying the NSA, in an operation named "Echelon," used its vast eavesdropping network to listen to business negotiations. The Central Intelligence Agency and British intelligence were also involved, the paper said. The paper said the report was submitted Wednesday to parliament by its research bureau. Some of the findings also appeared in a January report, the paper said. In one case, the NSA monitored talks between French electronics company Thomson-CSF and the Brazilian government over sale of a radar system. An unnamed U.S. company ended up winning the contract, the paper said. The paper also said the NSA listened in on 1990 negotiations between Japan's NEC Corp. and the Indonesian government over the purchase of telecommunications machinery. It used the information to urge Jakarta to award half the contract to AT&T, the paper said. <<Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Inc. -- 09-19-98>>