Editing National Security Agency (section)

=== War on Terror ===
In the aftermath of the [[September 11 attacks]], the NSA created new IT systems to deal with the flood of information from new technologies like the Internet and cell phones. [[ThinThread]] contained advanced [[data mining]] capabilities. It also had a "privacy mechanism"; surveillance was stored encrypted; decryption required a warrant. The research done under this program may have contributed to the technology used in later systems. ThinThread was canceled when Michael Hayden chose [[Trailblazer Project|Trailblazer]], which did not include ThinThread's privacy system.<ref name="Sun">{{cite news|first=Siobhan|last=Gorman|title=NSA killed system that sifted phone data legally|url=http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nationworld/bal-te.nsa18may18,1,5386811.story|work=[[The Baltimore Sun]]|publisher=[[Tribune Company]] (Chicago, IL)|date=May 17, 2006|access-date=March 7, 2008|quote=The privacy protections offered by ThinThread were also abandoned in the post–September 11 push by the president for a faster response to terrorism.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927193047/http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nationworld/bal-te.nsa18may18%2C1%2C5386811.story?ctrack=1&cset=true|archive-date=September 27, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[Trailblazer Project]] ramped up in 2002 and was worked on by [[Science Applications International Corporation]] (SAIC), [[Boeing]], [[Computer Sciences Corporation]], [[IBM]], and [[Litton Industries]]. Some NSA [[whistleblower]]s complained internally about major problems surrounding Trailblazer. This led to investigations by Congress and the NSA and DoD [[Inspectors General]]. The project was canceled in early 2004. [[Turbulence (NSA)|Turbulence]] started in 2005. It was developed in small, inexpensive "test" pieces, rather than one grand plan like Trailblazer. It also included offensive cyber-warfare capabilities, like injecting [[malware]] into remote computers. Congress criticized Turbulence in 2007 for having similar bureaucratic problems as Trailblazer.<ref name=Bamford325>Bamford, [[Shadow Factory]], pp. 325–340.</ref> It was to be a realization of information processing at higher speeds in cyberspace.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation-world/bal-nsa050607,0,1517618.story|title=Management shortcomings seen at NSA|author=Baltimore Sun|date=May 6, 2007|work=baltimoresun.com|access-date=January 31, 2013|archive-date=April 22, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130422092946/http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation-world/bal-nsa050607,0,1517618.story|url-status=dead}}</ref>