Were any of the companies listed on the PRISM slide consensual partners? My understanding is that the NSA tapped the internal network in an era where mTLS wasn't rolled out. Everyone then saw the slides and rolled out mTLS.
I believe that some companies making layer two network encryption gear also got a big boost around the same time.
I'm quite sure NSA had at least one backup plan, provably more. It is also impossible to know how much of Apple's stance is just for show.
Sure. I would think that the NSA had plenty of insiders. So do other security agencies, probably. Background checks aren't that thorough against a state-level adversary. (This is one reason why big companies can't trust insiders. I guess small companies should be cautious as well, but sometimes you don't have the funding to protect against insiders and still do your actual work.)
read "when google met wikileaks", tech giants are more than happy to help with national security
It's certainly not a good option. It's also one of the best options available on the market, save completely opting out of tech.