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First Echelon Source

------- Forwarded message follows ------- Date sent: Fri, 25 Feb 2000 17:17:03 -0500 To: cryptography@c2.net From: John Young <jya@pipeline.com> Subject: First Echelon Source

Making history: the original source for the 1988 first Echelon report steps forward

London, Friday 25 February, 2000

By Duncan Campbell

In the circumstances of the extensive worldwide political and media attention that is currently focussed on the Echelon communications surveillance network, I wish to pay tribute to the person who first alerted the United States legislature and the world to the existence of Echelon.

Following the presentation of my report on Echelon and related Sigint systems to the European Parliament in Brussels earlier this week, my principal original source has said that she may be identified.

I published the first-ever report about Echelon in the British political weekly New Statesman on 12 August 1988. The information about Echelon in that report came principally from Margaret Newsham, a computer systems manager who is now in retirement.

Margaret Newsham, better known as Peg, was formerly employed by a contractor at the National Security Agency Field Station at Menwith Hill, Yorkshire, England.

Now - finally - 12 years late, CBS has invited her to repeat the information we first published in 1988 on their programme Sixty Minutes, to be shown on Sunday evening, 27 February.

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Full article:

http://cryptome.org/echelon-mndc.htm

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