Snowden denies stealing passwords to access secret files

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/snowden-denies-stealing-passwords-to-access-secret-files/2014/01/23/d1f7d9e4-8472-11e3-8099-9181471f7aaf_story.html

Snowden denies stealing passwords to access secret files
By Greg Miller, Published: January 23

Former U.S. intelligence contractor Edward Snowden denied Thursday that he had ever stolen his co-workers’ passwords or otherwise tricked them to gain access to thousands of classified documents that he leaked to news organizations.

In an extensive online question-and-answer session, Snowden also indicated that he would like to return to the United States, but made clear that he would do so only if he were protected from prosecution.

“Returning to the US, I think, is the best resolution for the government, the public, and myself, but it’s unfortunately not possible in the face of current whistleblower protection laws,” he wrote in an exchange recorded on a Web site run by his supporters.

The session marked the first time that Snowden has fielded questions submitted by the public on subjects including his rationale for stealing a trove of classified documents from the National Security Agency, and his views on the intense debate triggered by the exposure of far-reaching surveillance programs described in those secret files.