Fugitive from American justice Edward Snowden will give a talk at the South By Southwest (SXSW) conference Monday on protecting oneself from online spying. Ironically, he will do so via a web chat from Russia.
The whistleblower will talk with Christopher Soghoian, principal technologist with the American Civil Liberties Union's Speech, Privacy and Technology Project. The primary topic of conversation will be the impact of the NSA's spying on the tech community and how people can protect their privacy, SXSW said.
A Virtual Conversation with Edward Snowden will be streamed live by The Texas Tribune at 11 a.m. central time. The event itself will be shown in the Austin Convention Center and audience members will be able to ask Snowden questions.
The SXSW organizers expects online privacy issues to be one of the hot topics at this year's event which runs from March 7 to 15. The wide-ranging show in Austin, Texas covers activities ranging from technology to music and film.
Snowden, a former CIA and NSA worker, has to attend the show virtually because he would be arrested on sight if he were to re-enter the United States. Snowden had to flee the country after he exposed thousands of classified NSA documents with the help of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
Snowden face a laundry list of charges in the United States, but was granted temporary asylum in Russia last year. He has promised not to return to America until its whistleblower laws are changed.
Lining up Snowden was not an easy task. Hugh Forrest, director of SXSW Interactive told CNN that it took three months of work to get Snowden to participate. The time and effort were well spent as Forrest called Snowden's event an "essential part of this year's programming."
Meanwhile, Assange, who is also wanted by the American authorities, appeared via teleconference on March 8. In 'A Virtual Conversation with Julian Assange,' he conducted a one-on-one talk with Benjamin Palmer, co-founder and chairman of The Barbarian Group.
Assange discussed the importance of online privacy, the ethical and political implications of releasing classified information into the public realm, and the concept of the "Internet Nation." The interview also addressed subjects, including the relationship between government surveillance and national security, the implications of online democracy, and the future of the Internet, SXSW said.
Assange has called the NSa a "rogue agency." Wonder, what Snowden will call it.
