--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The US government still has no idea what…" description: "\"The US government still has no idea what documents I have because encryption works\" — Edward Snowden" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/edward-snowden-555_documents_the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what_1607042.jpg" --- # The US government still has no idea what documents I have… ![“The US government still has no idea what documents I have because encryption works” quote by Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/edward-snowden-555_documents_the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what_1607042.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/edward-snowden-555_documents_the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what_1607042.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/edward-snowden-555_documents_the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what_1607042.jpg) > “The US government still has no idea what documents I have because encryption works” [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Government agencies lack insight into encrypted data because strong encryption effectively conceals information. **In simple terms:** Encryption hides data from government. Key Takeaway Support strong encryption to protect privacy. Themes privacy security technology Mood analytical concerned Type political technical When to use this quote - online banking - messaging apps - government investigations Key Concepts encryption surveillance information control Questions to Reflect On - Should privacy outweigh security? - How can balance be achieved? A Different Perspective Encryption can hinder lawful investigations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Documents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documents/) [Documents Encryption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documents-encryption-6121596/) [Encryption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/encryption/) [Encryption Works](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/encryption-works-1774924/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Hacker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hacker/) [Idea Documents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idea-documents-6121597/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [No idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/no-idea/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) ## Related quotes > [Let's put it this way. The United States government has assembled a massive investigation team into me personally, into my work with the journalists,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/let-s-put-it-this-way-the-united-states-government-has-assembled-a/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [Encryption works. Properly implemented strong crypto systems are one of the few things that you can rely on. Unfortunately, endpoint security is so terrifically…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/encryption-works-properly-implemented-strong-crypto-systems-are-one/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [I don't need to understand how encryption works to understand how it's helping the criminals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-rudd/i-don-t-need-to-understand-how-encryption-works-to-understand-how-it/) [Amber Rudd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-rudd/) > [There are programs such as the NSA paying RSA $10 million to use an insecure encryption standard by default in their products. That's making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/there-are-programs-such-as-the-nsa-paying-rsa-10-million-to-use-an/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [We need to think about encryption not as this sort of arcane, black art. It's a basic protection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/we-need-to-think-about-encryption-not-as-this-sort-of-arcane-black/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [You don't need to be a spook to care about encryption. If you travel with your computer or keep it in a place where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/you-don-t-need-to-be-a-spook-to-care-about-encryption-if-you-travel/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [There are two types of encryption: one that will prevent your sister from reading your diary and one that will prevent your government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-schneier/there-are-two-types-of-encryption-one-that-will-prevent-your-sister/) [Bruce Schneier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-schneier/) > [“Encryption matters, and it is not just for spies and philanderers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-greenwald/encryption-matters-and-it-is-not-just-for-spies-and-philanderers/) [Glenn Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-greenwald/) > [Clipper took a relatively simple problem, encryption between two phones, and turned it into a much more complex problem, encryption between two phones but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-blaze/clipper-took-a-relatively-simple-problem-encryption-between-two/) [Matt Blaze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-blaze/) > [Using encryption on the Internet is the equivalent of arranging an armored car to deliver credit card information from someone living in a cardboard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-spafford/using-encryption-on-the-internet-is-the-equivalent-of-arranging-an/) [Gene Spafford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-spafford/) > [In the years preceding my imprisonment, I worked as a software programmer, designing and developing web interfaces, secure databases, and communication software; later, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-manning/in-the-years-preceding-my-imprisonment-i-worked-as-a-software/) [Chelsea Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-manning/) > [On balance, the use of encryption, just like the use of good locks on doors, has the net effect of preventing a lot more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-blaze/on-balance-the-use-of-encryption-just-like-the-use-of-good-locks-on/) [Matt Blaze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-blaze/) > [I think it's interesting because the 1990s ended with the government pretty much giving up. There was a recognition that encryption was important. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-blaze/i-think-it-s-interesting-because-the-1990s-ended-with-the-government/) [Matt Blaze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-blaze/) > [The government does things like insisting that all encryption programs should have a back door. But surely no one is stupid enough to think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mitnick/the-government-does-things-like-insisting-that-all-encryption/) [Kevin Mitnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mitnick/) > [Encryption would help prevent a lot of cyber attacks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-lieu/encryption-would-help-prevent-a-lot-of-cyber-attacks/) [Ted Lieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-lieu/) ## More by Edward Snowden > [It is afraid of an informed, angry public demanding the constitutional government it was promised - and it should be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/it-is-afraid-of-an-informed-angry-public-demanding-the-constitutional/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [Much of what I saw in Geneva really disillusioned me about how my government functions and what its impact is in the world. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/much-of-what-i-saw-in-geneva-really-disillusioned-me-about-how-my/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [If it comes to a question of law, the charges they brought against me - the Espionage Act - is called the quintessential political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-it-comes-to-a-question-of-law-the-charges-they-brought-against-me/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [The NSA and Israel wrote Stuxnet together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/the-nsa-and-israel-wrote-stuxnet-together/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [As a general rule, so long as you have any choice at all, you should never route through or peer with the UK under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/as-a-general-rule-so-long-as-you-have-any-choice-at-all-you-should/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [ \[Brazil\] went to the UN and said, "We need new standards for this." We need to take a look at what they're calling "data… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/brazil-went-to-the-un-and-said-we-need-new-standards-for-this-we-need/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [You are also asked to take an oath, and that's the oath of service. The oath of service is not to secrecy, but to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/you-are-also-asked-to-take-an-oath-and-that-s-the-oath-of-service-the/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [We need to think about encryption not as this sort of arcane, black art. It's a basic protection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/we-need-to-think-about-encryption-not-as-this-sort-of-arcane-black/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [A lot of people in 2008 voted for Obama. I did not vote for him. I voted for a third party. But I believed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/a-lot-of-people-in-2008-voted-for-obama-i-did-not-vote-for-him-i/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [Too often we forget that social and political movements don't happen overnight. They don't bring change immediately - you have to build a critical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/too-often-we-forget-that-social-and-political-movements-don-t-happen/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [ There was a real choice when \[Barack Obama\] became president. It was a very difficult choice - to say, "We're not going to hold… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/there-was-a-real-choice-when-barack-obama-became-president-it-was-a/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [We've learned that we've allowed technological capabilities to dictate policies and practices, rather than ensuring that our laws and values guide our technological capabilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/we-ve-learned-that-we-ve-allowed-technological-capabilities-to/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [It's much easier, I think, to protect communications while they're in transit at least, than it is to enforce legislation in every country in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/it-s-much-easier-i-think-to-protect-communications-while-they-re-in/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [If an adversary didn't target our power plants but they did target the core routers, the backbones that tie our internet connections together, entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-an-adversary-didn-t-target-our-power-plants-but-they-did-target/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [I care more about the country than what happens to me. But we can't allow the law to become a political weapon or agree…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/i-care-more-about-the-country-than-what-happens-to-me-but-we-can-t/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) [Explore all 478 Edward Snowden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) ## More Documents quotes > [We released 400,000 classified documents, the most extraordinary history of a war to ever have been released in our civilization. Those documents cover 109,000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/we-released-400-000-classified-documents-the-most-extraordinary/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [Joel Lane documents a life we don’t quite live, in a city we can’t quite find: half glimpsed and half imagined, we know it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaz-brenchley/joel-lane-documents-a-life-we-don-t-quite-live-in-a-city-we-can-t/) [Chaz Brenchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaz-brenchley/) > [There's a story about how the program is organized, there's a story about the context in which the program is expected to operate. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-steele/there-s-a-story-about-how-the-program-is-organized-there-s-a-story/) [Guy Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-steele/) > [It's not coincidence that these attacks come at the exact same moment, and all together at the same time as WikiLeaks releases documents exposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/it-s-not-coincidence-that-these-attacks-come-at-the-exact-same-moment/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [Records used to be documents, but now record companies want product.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-getz/records-used-to-be-documents-but-now-record-companies-want-product/) [Stan Getz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-getz/) > [In Saudi Arabia, among other countries, Muslims are not free to convert to Christianity, and Christians are not free to practice their faith. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibn-warraq/in-saudi-arabia-among-other-countries-muslims-are-not-free-to-convert/) [Ibn Warraq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibn-warraq/) > [I doubt there's any government in the world that guides itself primarily by strategy or conceptual documents or worldview. Anybody who has the reins…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-doubt-there-s-any-government-in-the-world-that-guides-itself/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [What's insulting to the American people, the Senate, to this whole process is that the Republicans, with all other nominees, have said Democrats are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-maddow/what-s-insulting-to-the-american-people-the-senate-to-this-whole/) [Rachel Maddow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-maddow/) > [Utopian fiction is really boring. I had to read a lot of it, and it's not that much fun. But they're fascinating to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-jennings/utopian-fiction-is-really-boring-i-had-to-read-a-lot-of-it-and-it-s/) [Christine Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-jennings/) > [Others have questions about how it is that God and human beings can both be speaking through the one document such that you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson/others-have-questions-about-how-it-is-that-god-and-human-beings-can/) [D. A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson/) > [It can be lost, and it will be, if the time ever comes when these documents are regarded not as the supreme expression of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/it-can-be-lost-and-it-will-be-if-the-time-ever-comes-when-these/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [Document, evaluate, focus, test.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/document-evaluate-focus-test/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [The Magna Carta is widely known to be one of the foundational documents for our Constitution. I can only imagine that a mention of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-conyers/the-magna-carta-is-widely-known-to-be-one-of-the-foundational/) [John Conyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-conyers/) > [Altering the Constitution has become the daily business of the Federal Government which the document is supposed to guide and limit. Both Congress and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/altering-the-constitution-has-become-the-daily-business-of-the/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [There was an intervention of the foreign states in the Russian Far East, Archangel of the West border of Russia. The foreign troops were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-semichastny/there-was-an-intervention-of-the-foreign-states-in-the-russian-far/) [Vladimir Semichastny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-semichastny/) [Browse all 606 Documents quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documents/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The US government still has no idea what documents I have because encryption works", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Edward Snowden" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what-documents-i-have-because/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Documents" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what-documents-i-have-because/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/edward-snowden-555_documents_the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what_1607042.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/edward-snowden-555_documents_the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what_1607042.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/edward-snowden-555_documents_the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what_1607042.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The US government still has no idea what documents I have because encryption works” — Edward Snowden", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Edward Snowden", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The US government still has no...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what-documents-i-have-because/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/the-us-government-still-has-no-idea-what-documents-i-have-because/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```