31/01/2014 16:43
Snowden leaks: Canada 'spied on airport travellers'
Canada's electronic spy agency collected data from travellers passing through a major airport, the BBC reports, citing Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).
The CSEC collected information captured from unsuspecting passengers' wireless devices by the airport's free wi-fi system over two-weeks, the report says.
The revelations come from documents leaked by Edward Snowden, CBC says.
The CSEC is prohibited by law from targeting Canadians or anyone in Canada without an appropriate warrant.
Its primary mission is to collect foreign intelligence by intercepting overseas phone and internet traffic.
The CSEC (Communications Security Establishment Canada), in a statement to CBC, reiterated that it is "mandated to collect foreign signals to protect Canada and Canadians.
"And in order to fulfil that key foreign intelligence role for the country, CSEC is legally authorised to collect and analyse metadata."
Metadata is the information about a communication - such as the date and location of a call or email - rather than the details of what was actually said or written.