I knew about PRISM before snowden
 

It was very common knowledge. :2 cents:

Which knowledge isn't common anyways??

Was covered in Wired magazine in March 2012.

Wasn't the plot of Swordfish - the "Carnivore" software?

"Carnivore, later renamed DCS1000, was a system implemented by the Federal Bureau of Investigation that was designed to monitor email and electronic communications. It used a customizable packet sniffer that can monitor all of a target user's Internet traffic. Carnivore was implemented in October 1997. By 2005 it had been replaced with improved commercial software such as NarusInsight.[1]"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnivore_(software)