Edward Snowden Edward Snowden - fintech - not seeing the connection here? Neither were we until we learned that the famed whistleblower and former NSA contractor (or traitor, some may say), now living in exile in Russia, will be a keynote speaker at an event being held in Washington DC called K(NOW) Identity Conference, alongside noted fintech leader Pascal Bouvier of Santander Innoventures and others. Obviously, he will be STREAMING from Russia, and not appearing in person. It will be quite interesting to see if there are any "technical difficulties" with the feed during his speaking slot.

Anyway, according to their press release, the event is directed in great part toward the payments and fintech arenas. "(T)he K(NO)W Identity Conference brings together the innovators, regulators and policy-makers shaping the future of identity. From payments, biometrics and FinTech to access management and anti-fraud, the identity industry is at the core of conducting business in the internet era."

(Cindy Taylor/Publisher)

"One World Identity is proud to announce Edward Snowden—whistleblower and former NSA contractor—as the keynote speaker for the K(NO)W Identity Conference in

Washington, D.C.

which begins

May 15, 2017

. Appearing via live stream from

Russia

, Snowden will provide an exclusive talk to conference participants, in addition to holding a live Q&A session with members of the audience. Snowden became a fugitive of

the United States

in 2013 when he notoriously blew the whistle on a collection of documents revealing the NSA's vast and private surveillance network of the American citizens. The impact Snowden left across the technology sector had a lasting effect as it led tech giants like Apple and Facebook to begin encrypting people's communications to provide a key protection that not only protected citizens against mass surveillance but against potential cyber security risks. In 2014, Snowden joined the board of directors at Freedom of the Press Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on protecting the rights of journalists and whistleblowers around the world. Snowden currently remains in

Russia

in temporary refuge...." Source: PRNewswire