Citizenfour – Edward Snowden documentary

Edward SnowdenWhat is Citizenfour?

It’s the name of a new documentary, from Academy Award nominee director Laura Poitras.

It’s also the pseudonym that Edward Snowden used when he reached out to Poitras in January 2013, explaining that he wished to blow the whistle on covert surveillance operations being run by NSA and other intelligence agencies around the world.

The Guardian has called the documentary “gripping”, and the Telegraph commented that “everybody needs to see it”

Sign up to our free newsletter.
Security news, advice, and tips.

Here is a video trailer to whet your appetite:

Citizenfour Official Trailer 1 (2014) - Edward Snowden Documentary HD

If you’re in the UK, you can get your chance to see the documentary tonight at 8pm. as it sees its premiere at cinemas up and down the country. The screening will be followed by a live satellite Q&A with Laura Poitras.

I understand that Poitras is doing the interview via Skype, because she’s too afraid to come to the UK in case she’s arrested.

If you get the chance, go see “Citizenfour” and leave a comment with your thoughts.


Graham Cluley is an award-winning keynote speaker who has given presentations around the world about cybersecurity, hackers, and online privacy. A veteran of the computer security industry since the early 1990s, he wrote the first ever version of Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit for Windows, makes regular media appearances, and is the co-host of the popular "The AI Fix" and "Smashing Security" podcasts. Follow him on Bluesky, Mastodon, and Threads, or drop him an email.

What do you think? Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.