© Lindsay MillsEdward Snowden
In a phone interview to mark the anniversary of the day the Guardian broke the story, he recalled the day his world - and that of many others around the globe - changed for good. He went to sleep in his Hong Kong hotel room and when he woke, the news that the National Security Agency had been vacuuming up the phone data of millions of Americans had been live for several hours.
Snowden knew at that moment his old life was over. "It was scary but it was liberating," he said. "There was a sense of finality. There was no going back."
What has happened in the five years since? He is one of the most famous fugitives in the world, the subject of an Oscar-winning documentary, a Hollywood movie, and at least a dozen books. The US and UK governments, on the basis of his revelations, have faced court challenges to surveillance laws. New legislation has been passed in both countries. The internet companies, responding to a public backlash over privacy, have made encryption commonplace.
Comment: The actions of the one can far-reachingly affect the actions of the many. The Snowden revelations were perhaps a pivotal point forcing many changes to the intelligence agencies and likewise, the marketplace. Did he just prod our awareness or was there, as some speculate, something more? See also: