NSA: Our systems are so complex we can’t stop them from deleting data wanted for lawsuit

The National Security Agency recently used a novel argument for not holding onto information it collects about users online activity: it's too complex.

The NSA argued that holding onto the data would be too burdensome. "A requirement to preserve all data acquired under section 702 presents significant operational problems, only one of which is that the NSA may have to shut down all systems and databases that contain Section 702 information," wrote NSA Deputy Director Richard Ledgett in a court filing submitted to the court. The complexity of the NSA systems meant preservation efforts might not work, he argued, but would have "an immediate, specific, and harmful impact on the national security of the United States." Part of this complexity, Ledgett said, stems from privacy restrictions placed on the programs by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. The government's explanation raises more concerns, said Cindy Cohn, the Electronic Frontier Foundation's legal director. "To me, it demonstrates that once the government has custody of this information even they can't keep track of it anymore even for purposes of what they don't want to destroy," she said. "With the huge amounts of data that they're gathering it's not surprising to me that it's difficult to keep track -- that's why I think it's so dangerous for them to be collecting all this data en masse," Cohn added.