The documents released through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, submitted by Russ Kick, reveal annual reports from the National Security Agency (NSA) for fiscal years 2017 and 2018. These reports were created in compliance with the Federal Agency Data Mining Reporting Act and provide insights into the agency’s data mining activities.

In a letter dated March 4, 2021, the NSA responded to Kick’s original FOIA request. Although the NSA released some of the requested documents, certain information was withheld under the provisions of Executive Order 13526, which classifies sensitive information as TOP SECRET due to potential risks to national security. Additionally, other withheld data was protected under statutory laws such as Title 18, U.S. Code 798, and Title 50, U.S. Code 3024(i).

The released reports highlight that the NSA conducts data mining as part of its mission to gather foreign intelligence, particularly to detect terrorist activity. The agency employs advanced analytics to identify predictive patterns within the data. The goal is to discover previously unknown individuals or groups that pose potential threats to national security.

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