Normally, if a target of U.S. foreign intelligence is under surveillance while speaking with an American citizen, the citizen’s identity is “masked” in the intelligence report with a placeholder such as “US Person 1.” Unmasking was routine when an intelligence or other official needed to know the identity of the U.S. citizen in order to understand the report. For example, if a foreign ambassador were to speak to a U.S. citizen while under surveillance, it would be routine for an intelligence official reviewing the report to request the unmasking of the name of the citizen.
