New reporting by independent journalists Laura Poitras, working with the New York Times’ James Risen, shows that the National Intelligence Agency is using its massive data collections capabilities to develop ‘social profiles’ of individuals based on their telephone calls and online habits.

In a story published online Saturday and slated to appear in Sunday’s print edition of the Times, Poitras and Risen cite documents made available to them by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden and report:

According to their review of internal documents provided by Snowden, Poitras and Risen explain how the NSA uses the fruits of its massive data-mining operation to then cross-references what they can discover with other information, including “bank codes, insurance information, Facebook profiles, passenger manifests, voter registration rolls and GPS location information.”

The report continues:

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