--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What the NSA really wants is the…" description: "\"What the NSA really wants is the capability of retrospective investigation. They want to have a perfect record of the last five years of your life, so ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/edward-snowden-555_attention_what-the-nsa-really-wants-is-the-capabil_920203.jpg" --- # What the NSA really wants is the capability of… ![“What the NSA really wants is the capability of retrospective investigation. They want to have a perfect record of the last five years of your life, so when you come to their attention, they can know everything about you. I'm not down with that, but [Bill] Binney was trying to create something like…” quote by Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/edward-snowden-555_attention_what-the-nsa-really-wants-is-the-capabil_920203.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/edward-snowden-555_attention_what-the-nsa-really-wants-is-the-capabil_920203.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da9/edward-snowden-555_attention_what-the-nsa-really-wants-is-the-capabil_920203.jpg) > “What the NSA really wants is the capability of retrospective investigation. They want to have a perfect record of the last five years of your life, so when you come to their attention, they can know everything about you. I'm not down with that, but \[Bill\] Binney was trying to create something like that.” [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. The quote warns that surveillance agencies aim to collect detailed historical data on individuals, creating a comprehensive personal archive for future scrutiny. **In simple terms:** Surveillance seeks to build a full past record of people. Key Takeaway Guard your privacy against extensive data collection. Themes privacy surveillance government power digital rights Mood cautious critical concerned Type political warning informative When to use this quote - personal data protection - legal reforms - public awareness - technology design Key Concepts mass data collection retrospective investigation civil liberties Questions to Reflect On - How would you protect your digital footprint? - What limits should exist on historical data collection? A Different Perspective Such extensive records can be misused or become vulnerable to breaches. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Retrospective](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retrospective/) ## Related quotes > [ \[Bill\] Binney will argue with you all day about ThinThread, but his idea was that it would collect everything about everybody but be immediately… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/bill-binney-will-argue-with-you-all-day-about-thinthread-but-his-idea/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [I think the American people were saying we do not want to have further investigation. We want to close this off. They clearly made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-romer/i-think-the-american-people-were-saying-we-do-not-want-to-have/) [Roy Romer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-romer/) > [Here's one of the great things, and I may have said this somewhere, so forgive me. Curb ideas are not Veep ideas. I definitely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mandel/here-s-one-of-the-great-things-and-i-may-have-said-this-somewhere-so/) [David Mandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mandel/) > [When drawings of the main buildings I have designed in the last five years are juxtaposed, the fact that they all involve the pursuit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoshio-taniguchi/when-drawings-of-the-main-buildings-i-have-designed-in-the-last-five/) Yoshio Taniguchi > [ If \[Respulicans\] can't get rid of \[Obamacare\], they're going to have to tell their base, we've been lying to you for the last five… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-respulicans-can-t-get-rid-of-obamacare-they-re-going-to-have-to/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [We've grown from 18% of the profits of the top 25 companies in our industry to 23% of the profits of the top 25…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-ballmer/we-ve-grown-from-18-of-the-profits-of-the-top-25-companies-in-our/) [Steve Ballmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-ballmer/) > [I'm the ugly sister. I'm the fat one. I'm the transvestite. I have had those mean things said about me at least twice a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khloe-kardashian/i-m-the-ugly-sister-i-m-the-fat-one-i-m-the-transvestite-i-have-had/) [Khloe Kardashian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khloe-kardashian/) > [The problem is, is that President Bush and the Republican leadership in the Congress have resisted attempts to increase dramatically our fuel economy standards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-markey/the-problem-is-is-that-president-bush-and-the-republican-leadership/) [Ed Markey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-markey/) > [I want vasopressin, washed caffeine, Jumpstart, ginkgo biloba, guarana, and any intelligence enhancer introduced in the last five years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-ellis/i-want-vasopressin-washed-caffeine-jumpstart-ginkgo-biloba-guarana/) [Warren Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-ellis/) > [I spent a lot of the last five years on a set, and every once in a while you take stock of your life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-chastain/i-spent-a-lot-of-the-last-five-years-on-a-set-and-every-once-in-a/) [Jessica Chastain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-chastain/) > [I have been trying to heal my body from surgeries over the last five years - from my broken leg, tonsillectomy, wisdom teeth, eagle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-michael-montgomery/i-have-been-trying-to-heal-my-body-from-surgeries-over-the-last-five/) [John Michael Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-michael-montgomery/) > [We are very frustrated because we have a Supreme Court that seems determined to say that the wealthier have more right to free speech…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/we-are-very-frustrated-because-we-have-a-supreme-court-that-seems/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [And I've been lucky in that I haven't had another job besides acting in the last five years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-lea/and-i-ve-been-lucky-in-that-i-haven-t-had-another-job-besides-acting/) [Nicholas Lea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-lea/) > [“I only have two kinds of dreams: the bad and the terrible. Bad dreams I can cope with. They're just nightmares, and they end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-only-have-two-kinds-of-dreams-the-bad-and-the-terrible-bad-dreams-i/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I've grown up watching and admiring Norm. Sherie actually starred in the first off-Broadway show I ever saw in New York, which was The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tituss-burgess/i-ve-grown-up-watching-and-admiring-norm-sherie-actually-starred-in/) [Tituss Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tituss-burgess/) ## 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 Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What the NSA really wants is the capability of retrospective investigation. 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