Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the computer scientist who created the world wide web, has called for a "full and frank public debate" over internet surveillance by the National Security Agency and its British counterpart, GCHQ, warning that the system of checks and balances over these two powerful bodies has failed.

As the inventor of the global system of inter-connectivity known as the web, with its now ubiquitous www and http, Berners-Lee is uniquely qualified to comment on the internet spying that has been revealed by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden.

In an interview with the Guardian, he expressed particular outrage that GCHQ and NSA had weakened the security of the internet by cracking much of the online encryption on which hundreds of millions of users rely to protect the privacy of their data.

He said the agencies' decision to break the encryption software was "appalling" and "foolish", as it directly contradicted the efforts of both the US and UK governments to fight cybercrime and cyberwarfare, which they have identified as a top national security priority. Berners-Lee also decried the move as a betrayal of the technology industry.

Read the full report on The Guardian