Because internet: NSA spies on porn habits of Muslim radicals

The NSA seeks to exploit the porn-viewing habits of Muslim radicals to discredit them.

The National Security Agency (NSA) headquarters at Fort Meade, Maryland, as seen from the air, January 29, 2010. New documents show the NSA has targeted the porn viewing habits of Muslim “radicalizers” in order to discredit them.

Saul Loeb

Despite all the recent revelations about the National Security Agency's spying on foreigners (oh, and the stray US citizen that may get tangled in its surveillance nets), you wouldn't think the US intelligence agency would be interested in online porn habits.

Unless you're a Muslim radical.

The NSA has reportedly been collecting records on the pornography-viewing habits of those thought to be "radicalizers" of other Muslims.

The Huffington Post published a report, based on documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, which identified six Muslim targets whose personal vulnerabilities could be exploited to undermine their credibility among their followers.

The NSA noted in the document that highlighting hypocrisy could be a powerful method to discredit the radicalizer's reputation and authority.

“Focusing on access reveals potential vulnerabilities of character or credibility, or both, of the message in order to shape the perception of the messenger as well as that of his followers,” the document read.

More from GlobalPost: Twitter vs. NSA: Social media site tightens security against snooping

The appendix of the document listed the names of possible targets and what their vulnerabilities were. One suffered from a propensity for "online promiscuity," while another led a "glamorous lifestyle."

The report in The Huffington Post was co-authored by Glenn Greenwald, who was Snowden's point of contact and until recently wrote about the NSA revelations for the Guardian.

WikiLeaks, which provided Snowden with assistance seeking asylum in Russia, tweeted this: