< Schedule
Friday, March 20, 2026 · 20:00–22:00
Intelligence & Cybersurveillance
» Tickets
» HAU Hebbel am Ufer (HAU1) · Berlin
» English with German simultaneous translation
» Streaming (English, free) at disruptionlab.org and HAU4
Speakers · Read more
Terry Albury (Former FBI Agent, Whistleblower, US), Thomas Drake (Whistleblower, former Senior Executive at the National Security Agency, US), Suelette Dreyfus (Technology Researcher, Executive Director, Blueprint for Free Speech, AU), Andy Müller-Maguhn (Wau Holland Foundation, DE). Moderation: Mark Curtis (Co-Director, Declassified UK, Journalist, UK).
Introduction
This panel conversation relates to a body of documents published by WikiLeaks from 2012 until 2017, including the e-mail correspondence of the global intelligence firm Stratfor, the e-mails from the Italian malware surveillance vendor Hacking Team, documents about the world NSA massive surveillance, and the related Bundestag Inquiry into BND and NSA, and the NSA France Inquiry, as well as the Spy Files Russia, and the series of Vault documents (Vault 7 and Vault 8) about electronic surveillance and cyber warfare by the CIA.
These leaks in the context of intelligence and cybersurveillance have been crucial to enable investigative journalists, forensic experts and the general public to better identify and understand hidden surveillance mechanisms from private corporations as well as governments, and provide accountability – for example, shedding light on the NSA global surveillance and CIA infrastructure components. Furthermore, the leaks demonstrated the abuse of malware and privacy risks that can affect a variety of connected devices that an average person uses every day, showing the importance of working in depth with anonymity, privacy and data protection. Alongside, the leaks demonstrated that every connected device can be hacked and repurposed for surveillance.
The speakers of this section involve Terry Albury, a former FBI counterterrorism agent who witnessed first-hand mechanisms of power executed from within, and whose leaks (The FBI’s Secret Rules, published by “The Intercept”) revealed systemic profiling and surveillance tactics deployed on journalists, vulnerable and marginalised communities (e.g. LGBTQ+, racial, ethnic and religious minorities, as well as women and migrants). He was prosecuted under the Espionage Act and sentenced to four years in federal prison.
Thomas Drake, a former senior executive at the National Security Agency, blew the whistle on 9/11 intelligence failures, massive multi-billion fraud, waste and abuse as well as a secret mass surveillance regime authorised by President Bush that violated the Constitution. He was indicted under the Espionage Act facing decades in prison but went free in a plea deal. He also served as an enlisted aircrew member in the Air Force and as a commissioned intelligence officer in the Navy and a short stint as an intelligence analyst at the CIA. He has dedicated the rest of his life to defending personal privacy and human rights against the abuse of power.
Suelette Dreyfus, who wrote with Julian Assange the book “Underground: Tales of Hacking, Madness and Obsession on the Electronic Frontier” in 1997, is a long-standing witness of the reasons that inspired the work of Julian Assange since the early start. She has been campaigning about the impact of Julian Assange and WikiLeaks and advocating on whistleblowing as a form of freedom of expression.
Andy Müller-Maguhn is a privacy and security expert and the vice president of the Wau Holland Foundation. In 2010 he met Julian Assange and WikiLeaks, after which the Foundation began collecting donations for Assange’s legal defence following a boycott by several US banks and credit card companies. He has been a long-term target of surveillance.
The panel is moderated by Mark Curtis, the co-founder and co-director of the media organisation Declassified UK. As an investigative journalist, he specialises in UK foreign, military and intelligence policies.
Read more about EXPOSING CRIMES IS NOT A CRIME
Exposing crimes is not a crime · The Real-World Consequences of WikiLeaks
Programme
Thu March 19 2026
» The Reasons Behind
» War & Military
Fri March 20 2026
» Government & Diplomatic Cables
» Intelligence & Cybersurveillance
Sat March 21 2026
» Global Economy & Corporate Secrets
» Art as Evidence & Resistance
Sun March 22 2026
» Activation Day
A Symposium by Disruption Network Lab. Funded by Hauptstadtkulturfonds and the Reva & David Logan Foundation. In cooperation with the Wau Holland Foundation and HAU Hebbel am Ufer.