PRISM: US formally charges Edward Snowden with espionage

The US government has formally charged the man behind a series of leaks on National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance programmes.

The Washington Post cites unnamed government officials in reporting that former contractor Edward Snowden will face charges of “espionage, theft and conversion of government property” should he be arrested or extradited by a foreign government.

The filing of charges was widely expected after Snowden leaked to the press a nuber of documents describing the programmes the NSA uses to keep track of user activity in its internal investigations of criminal matters.

The former contractor and systems analyst made himself an instant global celebrity and hero of the user rights movement when in early June he leaked information on the PRISM database project. The system aggregated data collected from many of the largest service providers to give intelligence agencies a collection of user activity.

Since the leak, Snowden has taken abroad and was last reported to be in Hong Kong. No word had been given on US demands for extradition.

In addition to domestic surveillance, the PRISM archive is said to have been accessed by foreign agencies, including the UK's GCHQ. The European Commission has already begun investigating the role the programme played in Europe.

Meanwhile, the companies associated with the PRISM archive have been scrambling to distance themselves from the scandal. Google, Apple, Microsoft and Yahoo have all come forward denying any knowledge of PRISM and any cooperation with government agencies beyond what is required by federal law.