The full ramifications of Donald Trump being the next president of the United States of America will not be known for months — perhaps years.
Yet uncertainty can itself be a motivator — and the risk of an authoritarian leader as commander-in-chief of the US government s mass surveillance apparatus has caused many to sound alarm bells already.
Let's not forget this: Trump is about to control the NSA, by far the most powerful and invasive surveillance machine in the world.
Back in 2013, speaking to documentary maker Laura Poitras, Edward Snowden warned of the US mass surveillance infrastructure enabling what he dubbed turnkey tyranny .
After the election result this week Snowden pointedly retweeted this warning…
Covering fears over how Trump will approach encryption and surveillance policy, Reuters quotes Hank Thomas, COO of cyber security-focused investment fund Strategic Cyber Ventures, arguing that Trump is probably going to mandate back doors .
