SALT LAKE CITY – Officials are marking the start of construction on a $1.2 billion National Security Agency cyber security centre at a Utah National Guard camp near Salt Lake City.
A Thursday groundbreaking on 200 acres (80 hectares) at Camp Williams in this western state might be the last glimpse the public gets of the first-of-its-kind project.
The data centre is about 30 miles (50 kilometres) south of Salt Lake City on the sprawling National Guard base.
It’s designed to help the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and other agencies protect national security networks and identify cyber threats, though the NSA has refused to disclose its full purpose or function.
Many believe the centre is meant for analysis of domestic and international telecommunications. A high percentage of Utah’s population, predominantly Mormon, speaks a foreign language.
Category: Government Security Watch