CIA and Google invest in web monitoring company

The World

Google Ventures and In-Q-Tel, the investment arms of Google and the C.I.A., are both backing a start-up company called Recorded Future that monitors activity and text on the Web in real time and uses the information to spot early trends and events. The company also attempts to take current data and model what’s going to happen in the future…

Google is not directly collaborating with the C.I.A., but its actions are likely to cause some unease for those already worried about whether the company can be trusted to protect consumers’ privacy.

We speak with Noah Shachtman, a contributing editor at Wired Magazine and the editor of its national security blog, Danger Room, who broke the story.

Are you with The World?

The story you just read is available to read for free because thousands of listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Every day, the reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you: We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.

When you make a gift of $10 or more a month, we’ll invite you to a virtual behind-the-scenes tour of our newsroom to thank you for being with The World.