The programme was first reported on in the media in February 2014, from documents leaked by the former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, but dates back to a prototype started in 2008, and was still active in at least 2012.
Optic Nerve as described in the documents collected one still image every 5 minutes per user, attempting to comply with human rights legislation.
expressed outrage at the programme,[3] when approached by The Guardian, and subsequently called it "a whole new level of violation of our users' privacy.
[1][2] Optic Nerve worked by collecting the information from GCHQ's large network of Internet cable taps, feeding into systems provided by the United States' National Security Agency.
[7] Unfortunately ... it would appear that a surprising number of people use webcam conversations to show intimate parts of their body to the other person.
[8] This is a truly shocking revelation that underscores the importance of the debate on privacy now taking place and the reforms being considered.