Information security

NSA contractor pleads guilty to data theft

A former computer contractor who stole terabytes of data from the US National Security Agency (NSA) has pleaded guilty to taking classified documents.

Harold T Martin amassed documents and disk drives at his home, but is not believed to have sold or shared them.

Mr Martin is reported to have pleaded guilty as part of a sentencing deal struck with the prosecutors.

The deal means some charges have been dropped but also lets prosecutors seek a nine-year jail sentence.

Mentally ill

The crime that Mr Martin has pleaded guilty to is one count of wilfully retaining national defence information. In return, prosecutors have dropped 19 separate charges, including spying, levelled in the early stages of the case.