The
CIA’s vast database of software vulnerabilities has not only been
putting the cyber security of millions of Americans at risk for
years, it has also cost American taxpayers millions of dollars, as
the agency has had to pay for a monopoly on the vulnerabilities.
Considering that the CIA lost control of this database over a year
ago, those dollars have essentially been wasted.
Part
1
The past
week has not been a good one for the CIA. Ever since Wikileaks
published a trove of documents exposing the agency’s ability to
hack everything from smartphones to smart televisions to PCs, the CIA
has been on the defensive, framing its shady behavior as necessary
for protecting national security.
Despite the
oft-used excuse of “national security” to justify a reduction in
constitutionally-guaranteed civil liberties, the fact remains that
the CIA – as Wikileaks has revealed – is able to hack any device
that is Internet-enabled, meaning no one is safe from the prying eyes
of the government’s ever-expanding surveillance state.
In addition
to revealing the CIA’s hacking capabilities, the documents –
nicknamed “Vault 7” by Wikileaks – also exposed the agency’s
hoarding of software vulnerabilities in smartphones and other
devices. These vulnerabilities, specifically those known as
“zero-day” exploits, were amassed by U.S. intelligence agencies
not for the purpose of fixing them, but in order to intentionally
keep them open for the purpose of undisclosed surveillance.
These
vulnerabilities were hidden from both technology manufacturers and
consumers alike. It remains unknown how long the CIA allowed
technology used by millions of Americans to remain vulnerable after
the agency became aware of their existence.
And the
controversy doesn’t end there. The “Vault 7” release also
officially confirmed that the CIA is spending millions of dollars to
have monopolistic control over these exploits, paying up to 1.5
million dollars (or perhaps more) per exploit. Even worse, the CIA –
according to Wikileaks – recently lost control of its vast arsenal
of hacking tools and exploits, meaning the large amount of money
spent to control them was essentially wasted on an effort that has
now made the entire world significantly more vulnerable and less
secure.
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