The WikiLeaks revelation last week about alleged CIA hacking into web-connected consumer devices immediately prompted comparisons with the leaks by fugitive National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, which exposed highly classified U.S. intelligence gathering activities.

But this posting of thousands of documents by WikiLeaks, purporting to reveal the tools used by the CIA to get into smartphones, TVs and other consumer devices that make up the Internet of Things, comes in a different policy environment and is likely to have a substantially different impact.