Edward Snowden is going to live under Vladimir Putin's protection in Russia for as long as a year while his old employer, government contractor Booz, Allen, Hamilton is profiting as if nothing ever happened.

Whatever you think of Snowden, the Teflon character of his former employer, which is where the leaker got access to all of government intelligence secrets, is truly stunning. But, from a pecuniary perspective, the Snowden affair has been a non-event for Booz. Yesterday, Booz reported that quarterly sales held steady, year over year, at $1.4 billion while profits jumped 13 percent to $73.2 million. The higher profits are a result of Booz's ability to increase rates for its billable consulting hours, a measure of the company's prestige with clients. Booz stock is up nearly 50 percent this year.

A couple of weeks ago, the U.S. Air Force cleared Booz of any accountability for Snowden's data heist, saying that the firm could not have known. In the earnings call, Booz chief executive Ralph W. Shrader addressed the Snowden issue for the first time, saying that "Mr. Snowden was on our payroll for a short period of time, but he was not a Booz Allen person and he did not share our values."

No shit, Mr. Shrader. Most Booz contractors will do whatever the client wants them to do, without question and certainly without the urge to inform the public about anything controversial. For security minded readers, that's a blessing, though they are left wondering how it is that Snowden managed to slip past the loyalty test. They certainly have no assurance that it will never happen again.

For the more civil liberties minded observer, the issue is whether or not such sensitive functions are being turned over to the private sector where public accountability is so limited. Snowden's betrayal was informed by Libertarian zeal. The next data brigand might have malicious intent.

No matter, Shrader told investors. Booz is having no post-Snowden problems winning government contracts and is even raising prices as Snowden fades into its distant corporate memory.

Editor's note: This article has been corrected because it originally cited reports that Accenture planned to acquire Booz, Allen, Hamilton. Accenture is in fact seeking to acquire Booz & Co., the corporate consulting arm spun out of Booz, Allen, Hamilton in 2008.

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