In flooding the internet with malware, and by increasing wariness of data sharing, the NSA's actions have had a negative impact on the fight against cybercrime
Thousands of the world's security professionals, most of them middle-aged white males, gathered in San Francisco last week for the annual RSA Conference.
Traditionally, it's the time of year vendors hawk their gear in halls containing a perturbing whiff of ammonia, research announcements provide relief from the festival of commerce, and government mandarins hobnob with corporate types - all with the implied intent to work together to protect people's data.
Yet 2014's event was always going to be a bit different. RSA, the security company hosting the event, had to defend itself against criticism over an alleged $10m deal with the National Security Agency (NSA) to include flawed encryption in its products.
The company's chief, Art Coviello, outright denied any wrongdoing, saying RSA was only following advice given by the US government's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).