 Edward Snowden is an American computer specialist, a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee, who, while working as a Booz Allen Hamilton contractor, disclosed top secret NSA documents to various media outlets, initiating the NSA leaks, which reveal operational details of a global surveillance apparatus run by the NSA and other members of the Five Eyes alliance, along with numerous commercial and international partners.The release of classified material was called the most significant leak in US history by Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg.A series of exposés beginning June 5, 2013 revealed Internet surveillance programs such as PRISM, XKeyscore, and Tempora, as well as the interception of US and European telephone metadata, among other disclosures.