The man who blew the whistle on mass spying by the U.S. National Security Agency is calling on the public to protect their privacy.
Speaking via video link, former NSA contractor Edward Snowden told a packed house at the South by Southwest Interactive Festival to fight against mass surveillance.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) EDWARD SNOWDEN, FORMER SECURITY CONTRACTOR, SAYING:
"The NSA, the sort of global mass surveillance that's occurring in all of these countries, not just the U.S. and it's important to remember that this is a global issue, they are setting fire to the future of the internet and the people who are in this room now, you guys are all the firefighters."
Snowden revealed last year in an interview with The Guardian that the U.S. was storing telephone and internet data of millions of Americans, which prompted him to speak up.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) EDWARD SNOWDEN, FORMER SECURITY CONTRACTOR, SAYING:
"If data is being clandestinely acquired, and th
