NSA Stops Journalist From Taking Pictures of Massive New Data Collection Center

Agency values its own privacy

Kashmir Hill covers privacy issues for Forbes magazine. She does this job very well. She is, in fact, so dedicated to her beat that when she had a few hours to kill while visiting Utah she decided it would be fun to go take a look at the massive data center that the National Security Agency is building about 30 minutes south of Salt Lake City.

She took some pictures, and got in some trouble. Not too much trouble — some browbeating from NSA security officials, run-of-the-mill low-level intimidation. She ended up deleting a couple of her photographs — and then  wrote a column that makes a really important point.