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WASHINGTON — The C.I.A. said Friday that it did not suspect Edward J. Snowden of gaining access to computer files without authorization when he was working as a technician for the agency in Geneva in 2009, and did not send him home as a result.The New York Times reported Thursday that Mr. Snowden’s supervisor in Geneva wrote a derogatory report in his personnel file, noting a distinct change in the young man’s behavior and work habits, as well as a troubling suspicion about how he was using his computer.The Times cited two senior American officials with direct knowledge of the episode who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the continuing criminal inquiry into thousands of classified documents Mr. Snowden leaked four years later, when he was a contractor for the National Security Agency.Asked repeatedly for comment over the past several weeks, most recently on Thursday, the C.I.A. declined. But on Friday, the C.I.A. responded with a statement, the first public acknowledgment that Mr. Snowden had worked for the agency.“The C.I.A did not file any report on Snowden indicating that it suspected he was trying to break into classified computer files to which he did not have authorized access while he was employed at the C.I.A., nor was he returned home from an overseas assignment because of such concerns,” Todd Ebitz, an agency spokesman, said in the statement.In dispute is what Mr. Snowden did on his computer, and the agency’s response to it. The two officials cited by The Times said the C.I.A. suspected Mr. Snowden was trying to gain access to classified computer files he was not authorized to view. But other officials on Friday characterized the activity as much less serious, not involving potential security violations.It was unclear why there was a divergence of opinion.
