Purely rhetorical exercise. If we’re not already in their networks, NSA isn’t doing its job. To make the penetration overt would be like telling the Germans or the Japanese that we had broken their codes. The point is to continue data collection on the sly, not engage in chest-thumping that results in discovery and termination of that data stream.
I agree, this is a simple thing to understand it shows how little people know and understand about cyber security.
Every country with any kind of Cyber Capability is constantly trying to hack into other countries.
The would include allies trying to understand what other allies are doing....
Israel is likely into every network we have, plus any network in the EU and certainly into every network int he Arab World.......
It’s a SOP thing....
BINGO!