Bruce Schneier leaving ‘security futurologist’ position at telco employer BT

Bruce Schneier leaving ‘security futurologist’ position at telco employer BT: The Register first reported the employment change after receiving a leaked BT internal email.

Schneier has spent months analyzing NSA documents leaked by Edward Snowden and writing about government surveillance; the telco denied that Schneier’s outspoken criticism played any role in ending the work relationship as of the end of December 2013.

The Guardian previously reported that BT, Vodafone and Verizon gave Britain’s spy agency GCHQ “secret unlimited access to their network of undersea cables” and has been “passing on details of their customers’ phone calls, email messages and Facebook entries.” However, BT brushed it off by saying it was “no different from any other large private sector firm in the UK.”

According to The Register, the BT internal email from Mark Hughes, CEO, BT Security, stated, “I would like to announce that Bruce Schneier, BT’s security futurologist, is leaving the company after eight years. Bruce joined BT in 2006 as part of the Counterpane acquisition and has been a great asset to the company.”