SALT LAKE CITY: Three activist groups flew a blimp emblazoned with the words “Illegal Spying Below” over the National Security Agency’s data centre in Utah on Friday in protest against the federal government’s mass surveillance programs.
The one-hour flight over the high-tech facility was launched by the environmental group Greenpeace, digital rights activists the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and a conservative political organization, the Tenth Amendment Center.
The 135-foot-long blimp, which is owned by Greenpeace, was adorned with a sign that read, “NSA Illegal Spying Below.”
But a spokesman did note there is no restricted airspace over the data centre.
The facility, which the NSA says provides the government with intelligence and warnings about cyber security threats, is thought to be the agency’s largest data storage centre. The blimp protest coincided with the launch of an online campaign that rates members of Congress on actions the activists say either further or stop data collection efforts by the NSA.
Reuters
