u.s. national security agencies is gathering billions of records from mobile phones around the world. that's according to leaked top secret documents given to the washington post by whistleblower edward snowden. it is said to track the movement of people in ways previously unimaginable. they use code traveller to map relationships and movements. american oticials say what they said was legal and reports were used on what they call foreign targets. civil rights campaigner say it's a breach of privacy. >> you are walking along minding your business thinking you'd never be of interest. if you have one of these there's every possibility that they are tracking where you've been and who you were speaking to. according to new documents, it's revealed that the american spy agency is somewhere snt region of the 5 billion pieces of information. here is how it works. you identified as an intelligence target. it's sending out signals as you are walking around. it can work out where you've been and who you've been speaking to. and if they also have a mobile phone. when you go online you may be abl

u.s. national security agency the times of collection the book microphones and video cameras t.v.'s that watches are nothing compared to what we have today snowden revealed that a secret court rubber stamps warrants for telecommunication companies to hand out the data of millions of their customers he also leave to the programs that the government uses to track virtually anything anybody does on the internet and also store that information. and he showed how the u.s. government had lie about mass surveillance does the n.s.a. collect any type of data all on millions or hundreds of millions of americans. no sir while most americans think to edward snowden the u.s. government tectum as a spy and a traitor the united states government classified its evidence of its own criminal misconduct its its violations of the bill of rights what we're doing is advocating to tell what tarion procedures which is gathering information about all the individuals in the world. the former intelligence contractor is now in exile knowing for certain that he'd go to jail should he return to the u.s. like br

u.s. national security agency the types of collection the book microphones and video cameras t.v.'s that watches are nothing compared to what we have today snowden revealed that a secret court rubber stamps warrants for telecommunication companies to hand out the data of millions of their customers he also leaked the programs that the government uses to track virtually anything anybody does on the internet and also store that information and he showed how the u.s. government had lie about mass surveillance does the n.s.a. collect any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of americans no sir while most americans think to edward snowden the u.s. government tectum as a spy and a traitor the united states government classified its evidence of its own criminal misconduct its its violations of the bill of rights what we're doing is advocating to tell a tarion procedures which is gathering information about all the individuals in the world. the former intelligence contractor is now in exile knowing for certain that he'd go to jail should he return to the u.s. like bradle

u.s. national security agency, he says his criticism well on the years -- on deaf ears. >> over time, that awareness of wrongdoing builds up, and you feel compelled to talk about it, and the more you talk about it, the more you are ignored. >> snowden did see it as a problem and decided to go public. >> edward snowden has done us a very great service. we must be grateful to him. the issue is the right to privacy and the individual's right to control the dissemination of personal information. >> a german green party lawmaker may be grateful. many other politicians are not. in october, he visited snowden in moscow, where he has been given asylum by the russian government. >> he indicated that he knows a lot more about the documents that have been in his possession, though he no longer has them, and that he could say a lot about them. he has an endless supply of knowledge that should be available to us as we shed light on these matters, because we cannot expect any help from the nsa. >> the bugging of german chancellor angela merkel's cell phone, the existence of a secret listening post at th

u.s. national security agency is directing billions of records of mobile phone locations every day. how a mobile phone can be turned into a tracking device. >> wherever you are in the world, as soon as you switch on your mobile phone, it tries to connect to the mobile network. usually through the closest tower. as soon as it does, your phone number is logged with the network, along with which tower you have connected to. which means your location. >> if you are on the move, anyone with tract your rout. by gathering and processing 5 billion records each day, to see which individuals are traveling or meeting together. here is how it works. >> you may be connected to a tower, along with 100 other people. you move down the street, and automatically connects to the next closest tower. say 20 of the 100 are moving in the same direction you move further down the road, and say just five of the original 100 people, join you. a couple more towers and some time later just one person who is mirrored your movements. the assumption, you have some reason for being together. >> it raise as lot of q

u.s. national security agency is collecting billions of records of mobile phone locations from around the world every day. it is provided by edward snowden. we explain how a horrible phone can be turned into a tracking device. >> wherever you are in the world, as soon as you switch on your mobile phone, it tries to connect to the mobile network at the closest tower. when it does, your phone number is logged by the network, along with the tower you connected to, which means your location. if you're on the move, anyone with access to this information can track your route. the latest revelations suggest the n.s.a. is doing much more than just tracking individual suspects. by gathering and processing around 5 billion records each day, it is able to see which individuals are meeting or tracking together. >> you might be connected to a tower along with 100 other people. you move down the street and automatically you, fuel find connects to the next closest tower. let's say 20 of the 100 are moving the same direction you. move further down the road and say just five of the original 100 people joi

u.s. national security agency is gathering billions of records from mobile phones worldwide according to leaked top secret documents given to the paper by former edward snowden. the report says 5 bill yop records every 24 hours allows u.s. intelligence officials to track the movement of people in ways that were unimaginable. using tools such as code traveller, which can map relationships geographically with people and their most. american people say it is legal. it's a breach of privacy. let's discuss it with the ceo of spark digital, a digital marketing and social media company. to know the n.s.a. is spying on people using their mobile phones, sure that is no surprise. what is interesting about that to you. >> what is interesting is what they are tracking. date, time, speed, trajectory. that's what they are keeping historical records of. what is a lot of people don't know is they are not just looking at it just at this moment, but backwards in time when the phone came online. >> code traveller, meaning they can work out which group of people from in proximity to each other. that's fascinating.

u.s. national security agencies started leaking documents in june. he's now living in russia under temporary asylum. talking to an u.s. neighborhood he said for me in terms of person satisfaction the mission is already accomplished. i already won. as soon as the journalists were able to work everything that i was trying to do has been validated. i didn't want to change society. i wanted to give society a chance to determine if it should change itself. >>> the greenpeace activists known as the arctic 30 will be freed from russia. they were charged with hooliganism after trying to climb an oil rig in the arctic in november. they will have to wait until thursday for their papers because there was no translator available. >>> anti-government protest necessary ukraine are demanding an investigation after a brutal attack on a prominent journalist. she was beaten and left in a ditch just after hours she published an article about politicians. protesters say the attack is linked to her work. president yanukovych is urged to find those responsible. the opposit

security leaks in u.s. history and now some officials at the national security agency say they are willing to consider givingesty and he is believes to have more than one million top secret files, only a tiny proportion of which have been made public and a white house correspondent patty has the latest. >> we know if you are anywhere in the world the nsa can find out who you are calling. who you are e-mailing. where you go on the web or on the planet, in some cases they can even listen to everything you say, whether you are a powerful politician or just a regular person but when it comes to the person who made sure we know that, edward snowden, turns out the nsa can't quite figure out what other information he has. the office he worked at in hawaii didn't have the technology to keep track. >> the "new york times" says we won't. >> we won't. >> what are repercussions. >> he has a negotiating edge on this because he has an over hangover us in terms of negotiating. >> reporter: that is the big question in washington, should the u.s. government negotiate with snowden and offer amnesty for 1 point 5 million docum

u.s. national security agency was intercepting traffic inside kugels and yahoos private networks.rosoft fears that the nsa may have broken into their global communications as well. microsoft plans to encrypt data flowing through all of its communication, productive and the services. google. and yahoo have announced they will also move forward with encryption initiatives. >>darya: starbucks is selling its limited edition $450 gift cards. and they are expected to go fast. these cards are metal every loaded with $400 a enough money to keep decaffeinated coffee year long. however, there is a catch, you can't get these cards and stores. you can only buy them on the flash still website gilt.com. they're also expected to be an even higher demand a share because these are your cards to buy. -there are fewer cards to buy. the company is only selling 8000 parts instead of the 5000 cards it offered last year. the cards go on sale today at noon. last year the cars sold out and about six minutes. >>james: and this year into the more exclusive. a >>darya: whose drinking that much coffee? 743 co

u.s. national security agency has won a round in the fight over surveillance. a federal district judge in new york ruled today that bulk collection of phone records is legal, in the fight against terrorism. in a written opinion, judge william pauley said, "this blunt earlier this month, a federal judge in washington d.c. ruled the surveillance is probably unconstitutional. a powerful car bomb in beirut, lebanon killed six people today, and wounded more than 70. the dead included mohammed chatah, a former ambassador to the united states, and the target of the bombing. we'll have an on-the-ground report from beirut right after the news summary. in afghanistan, a suicide car bomber killed three international troops in kabul. the target was a military convoy, about half a half mile from a nato base. so far this year, 151 coalition troops have died in afghanistan, most of them americans. there was talk today of ending the fighting in south sudan. the government agreed to a truce after a summit of east african leaders in nairobi, kenya. back in juba, the u.s. envoy t

u.s. national security agency is doing.basically seemed to be defending whatever they're doing at the same time as something that is dealing with a lot of controversy here in this country. >> well, he is defending the existing practices. and he also is engaged in a delicate blaing act. he is very tough, in defending russia initial interests as he understands them. he would frankly be fully prepared to challenge the united states on syria, as he has done before. >> woodruff: on syria. >> certainly on iran when he said that he is opposed to sanctions, particularly unilateral american sanctions but at the same time he wants to a per reasonable. and he particularly wanted to make clear that he can work with president obama. angela and i were at an event with putin several months ago. and putin went out of his way to be magnan muss with o bam -- obama after he-- he wanted to say no, obama had choices, he made courageous choice, principal choice, he does not want to create an impression that the russian lead kerr not work with th

u.s. national security agency secretly tagged along and companies like google are tracking the whereabouts-- new documents from a trove exposed by edward snowden. it suggests tracking ability, the nsa can access personal information just like google. president obama has admitted. joining us is mark young. former legal adviser at the nsa. this story is kind of amazing, that they're actually using the same,logy, exactly the piggybacking on google. i am not quite sure what they mean by piggybacking when you're talking about technical aspects like cookies and internet access and piggybacking just seems like a trite term. example it is another of how our intelligence community uses advanced technology to target the nation. >> this raises a lot of questions. number one is, does google even know this is happening at the debt happening? sure, but i would say based on my spirit they would have to know, but not in the way you are presenting it. for example, if you have read any of the material that has been declassified by the office director of national intelligence, you will see an awful lot of in

u.s. national security agency is necessary to fight terrorism. but he also said the government must "limit the appetite" of the agency with a clear set of ground rules. the ap says the comment is a support for the obama administration, facing criticism over the espionage program disclosed by former nsa leaker edward snowden. who has temporary asylum in russia. warn. panel looking to crimes and seriousness civilians are systematically vanishing without a trace. the panel has found a countrywide pattern of syrian armed forces and government malicious easing people from mass arrests, checkpoints, and hospitals. sometimes claiming they do not exist after they have disappeared. groups such as the al qaeda- linked islamic state in iraq are seizing people. officials frustrated that military shipments heading out of afghanistan have been stop ped through pakistan face the possibility of flying equi of oneut at a cost billion dollars. this a week after pakistani officials promised secretary hegel they would take action to solve the problems. protesters ar

u.s. congress passes a new law that seeks to cut back upon some of the things the national security agency is doing the n.s.a. is going to a bay the law and do as the congress and the president direct and they're not going to be able to do what they want to do but on their own accord a bit but mr allen if the oversight is indeed so strict and so strong why do you think there is such an uproar. with regards to all these revelations not only among the general public but also among the members of congress and the white house itself president obama for one sad that he had no idea that german chancellor's phone was tapped so i think that shows that the control may not be as as strong as you are suggesting no we'll look we've got to do and we're always striving to have better oversight in the united states to have better control of what we're doing but i think the people in the white house knew exactly what the national security agency was doing the reason there has been some public anger about what the n.s.a. was doing is because it's been distorted in many cases by responsible media organizati

>> a federal judge delivers a strong blow to the national security agency saying the collection of u.s. phone numbers is unconstitutional. >> the united nations asking for billions for the conflict in syria. >> newly released audio with video recordings capture the final moments of 19 arizona firefighters who died covering a fire last summer. >> it's the end of an era. saying goodbye to an icon of the road, the volkswagen bus. >> welcome to al jazeera america, i'm stephanie sy. edward snowden is claiming victory now that a federal judge came out against the bulk collection of telephone records, saying it may be unconstitutional. al jazeera's mike viqueira has more from washington. >> it was a surprise ruling from a federal judge in washington. judge richard leon ruled that the phone metadata collection is likely in violation of the constitution, specifically the fourth amendment prohibitions against unreasonable search and seizure. >> the judge wrote: >> in the ruling judge leon stayed the injunction, he wants to give the government time to appeal. for the time being the metadata colle

u.s. eavesdropping. documents from the national security agency showed it spied on more than 1,000 people since 2008 and 2011. among them an israeli prime minister, united states directors and others. it was leaked by ex-n.s.a. contractor, edward snowden. >> fbi director james koby met with the family of missing contractor bob levinson, who went missing seven years ago on a mission in iran. his family wanted to meet with the fbi director since he took office in september. they wanted to meet with president obama also. it's been two years since photos or videos were received. secretary of state john kerry says the united states has not abandoned bob levinson. >> the barack obama administration is sending an envoy to south sudan where violence has escalated. secretary of state john kerry made the announcement declaring that peace is the only option. kerry's comment came after speaking by phone with the president of south sudan, urging him to protect civilians and work towards reconciliation with armed groups. hundreds died in a wave of ethnic violence. we have this report. >> this woman is angry because t

u.s. over allations of the national security agency spy spying on israel.the behavior was not acceptable. new documents released by edward snowden detail the nsa and britain targeting the defense minister from 2009. meanwhile, talks between iran plemenng last month's nuclear dealwill resume after christmas. and an ditorial explaining how one wants to impre bilateral relations of the u.s. and al qada watching for a very public apology. a military leader said they are willing to pay blood money to the victim's family. and ndreds are being killed, some 62,000 are hommeless. aircraft is now being moved o provide security and help with evacuations. joining us now is general jack keane. and former army vice chief of staff. he is also a fox news military analyst. thank you so much for joining us. let's begin. a very dangerous pt of the world. not much known about it. how involved should the united states be? >> we have noto much in that couny. we have peacekeepers that are helping. and they evolved out of a lack oftability and oers are vying for that ower and this

national security so anything to improve the situation in effort to eradicate drugs would be extremely, extremely beneficial for the colombia site. loosh b -- looking to other concerns to the u.s., have the national security agencies had relations between the colombia and the u.s.? >> we have been sharing information on this for a long time. colombia's very particular country in the sense that we share with the u.s. and other intelligence agencies, all the information, and, therefore, we have spied on our common enemy ies. it has been done with a cooperation of the colombia authorities and the u.s. authorities. now, i don't know of information of spying outside that sphere of cooperation. if i knew about that, then, of course, i would condemn it immediately. >> some of your neighbors in latin america, of course, have been infuriated by revelations of u.s. eves dropping. is their anger justified? >> well, nobody likes to be spied, and i think, yes, nor somebody spies on you, you have all the right to get mad, and so they have all the right to get mad. they are spied without commission. >> looking to china, china's investment in latin america, of course, continues to grow, and the country signed more than 50 bilater

u.s. judgment is looking at the judgment. is expecting to appeal it. the national security agency is going to far to monitor the data of american citizens. it doesn't protect those are are not citizens under the law in the u.s. >> two men released from guantanamo bay without charge after 11 years. >> on the road but not for much longer. volkswagen puts the brakes on its iconic van. it >> good to have you with us. these are the top stories on al jazeera. heavy gun fire continued in juba after government forces stopped and attempted coup. many people are said to have fled their homes and are sheltering in compounds. thousands of north koreans marked the second anniversary of the death of kim jong-il. days ago new leader kim jong un or the execution of his uncle. >> a federal judge says a national security agency surveillance program appears to violate the constitutional ban on unreasonable searches. >> german chancellor angela merkel will be sworn in for a third term on tuesday. she was re-elected in september, but it has taken her a month to put together a cabinet with her new soci

national security. anything that will improve the situation in our effort to eradicate drugs from colombia beneficial.remely other concerns involved in the u.s., has a national security agencies monitoring and mitigation scheme to diplomatic relations between colombia and the u.s.? -- monitoring communications, kate e maddock between clinton and the u.s.? between colombia and the u.s.? >> we share with the u.s. and other intelligence agencies all of the information in there for spied therefore if we had on our common enemies, it has been done with the cooperation of the colombian authorities and u.s. authorities. information off spying outside that spirit of cooperation. if i knew about that, of course i would condemn it immediately. >> some of your neighbors in latin america have been furious by revelations of u.s. eavesdropping. is there anger justified? >> nobody likes to be spied. , if some and spies on you, you have all the right to get mad. they are spying without permission. to china, china's investment in latin america continues to grow. the country signed bilateral agreements last week. can you tell us more about that columbia-china economic relationship? do you see

u.s. judge ruled today that the national security agency program that collects massive amounts of data about american telephone calls is almost certainly unconstitutional. in the decision he wrote this, i cannot imagine a more indiscriminant and orbtrary invasion than this systemic and high-tech collection and retention of personal data on . rtually every single citizen analyzing it without judicial approval. for more on the ruling and what it means, i spoke a short time ago with the former general counsel for the n.s.a. were you surprised think about case today? >> i was a little. it's a result that is not inconceivable but the tone was deeply confrontational, almost celebrity are atory. and that was a bit of a surprise. >> how much of a blow is it to the n.s.a.'s program of collecting these telephone call datas? >> this is the opinion of one district judge. and you can find a district judge in america who will say almost anything. it's s conservative and a long and detailed opinion. so it will pose a real burden for the u.s. government when it takes it up on appeal to overcome. it's certai

u.s. citizens when the national security agency's mandate is to collect foreign intelligence overseas. >> that is a good question. that is what the nsa is all about. catherine, thank you. >> you're welcome. >>> president obama is taking hits on the handling of his signature health care reform law. 59% of those surveyed in our fox news poll disapprove on how he's doing on that front, just 37% approve, and two thirds want the mandate delayed for a year and fewer than one in three disagree. a vote of confidence tonight for the economy. the federal reserve said it will tighten the financial belt by starting to pull back the $85 billion a month pump up of the economy. the news comes amid a flurry of the countries financial being. here is doug mickelway. >> it is a change in the monetary policy. the fed voted to pull back quantitative easing since 2008, gently weaning the frag imu.s. economy from an $85 million purchase of bonds per month. >> the job market has continued to improve with the unemployment rate having declined further. >> reporter: the decision came after the release of november h

. >> kroft: tonight, cbs news national security correspondent john miller on assignment for "60 minutes." >> miller: no u.s. intelligence agencyever been under the kind of pressure being faced by the national security agency after details of some of its most secret programs were leaked by contractor edward snowden. perhaps because of that pressure, the agency gave "60 minutes" unprecedented access to n.s.a. headquarters, where we were able to speak to employees who have never spoken publicly before. full disclosure-- i once worked in the office of the director of national intelligence, where i saw firsthand how secretly the n.s.a. operates. it is often said "n.s.a." stands for "never say anything," but tonight, the agency breaks with that tradition to address serious questions about whether the n.s.a. delves too far into the lives of americans. >> keith alexander: the fact is, we're not collecting everybody's email, we're not collecting everybody's phone things, we're not listening to that. our job is foreign intelligence and we're very good at that. >> miller: the man in charge is keith alexander, a four-star army general who

starting off this hour a landmark ruling could pave the way for more regulations of the national security agency u.s. district court judge richard leon ruled that the n.s.a.'s spying program violates the fourth amendment prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures the decision says quote the court concludes that plaintiffs have standing to challenge the constitutionality of the government's bulk collection and querying of phone records metal data that they have demonstrated a substantial likelihood of success on the merits of their fourth amendment claim and that they will suffer irreparable harm absent collimator injunctive relief ruling applies to the metadata collected from phone calls that take place from or within the u.s. judge leon also said the department of justice failed to demonstrate how collecting . data actually warrants terror plots joining me now to talk about this is rachel levinson wildman counsel to the brennan center is a liberty and national security program rachel thank you so much for joining me so let's start off by talking about this ruling how important how long your