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from the we-can't-tell-you-what-we-can't-tell-you dept.
Google has published some of the National Security Letters (NSLs) it has received from the FBI:
Google is providing for the first time a look into the world of national security letters -- demands from the Federal Bureau of Investigation to hand over details about account holders and keep quiet about it.
The letters are a part of business for Google and other major internet companies, but traditionally they have been barred from acknowledging the letters' existence. That changed in 2013 when, in light of revelations about Internet surveillance by U.S. intelligence agencies, Google and others started fighting to disclose more about the demands.
That led to the creation of Google's "transparency report," which revealed the company receives thousands of requests for user data each month from law enforcement agencies around the globe. The national security letters remained secret, but on Tuesday, Google published a handful that are no longer covered by nondisclosure rules.
Google has redacted the email addresses of the users targeted as well as the names of the FBI employees who made the requests, so don't expect anything exciting in the letters.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by quintessence on Thursday December 15 2016, @02:56AM
It is a VAST improvement to have a clear intent and record from law enforcement rather than giving the "inference" their activities are above board, only to deny it after the fact, stating telecos "misunderstood" their requests (see the Teleco Immunity Act).
Not to mention now you can see for yourself the particulars of how law enforcement conducts itself, and decided whether they require more oversight and if they are in compliance with their regulations.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by jelizondo on Thursday December 15 2016, @05:52AM
Even Stalin signed execution orders [independent.co.uk] and they even had trials [wikipedia.org] does that make it better too?
A fucking order you can't show to your lawyer or seek redress from a judge, how is it better?
PLEASE stop denying reality. The U.S. has become a totalitarian state with "democratic" decor. I hope I don't have to google for you the many cases of police shooting to death people for not raising their hands (even if they were mentally impaired and presented no danger), the treatment of Water Protectors at the hands of the oil police, the many indignities of flying from any U.S. airports, the infamous "no-fly" list and many other clear manifestations of a totalitarian regime we must endure every day.
Oh, look! Kardashian has posted a new photo of her behind! Wow!... What was I talking about?
Fucking sheeple
(Score: 2) by quintessence on Thursday December 15 2016, @06:40AM
Fine. Let's accept your premise the US is a totalitarian state.
What do you do about it now? Are you taking up arms against the government? Have you fled the boarders before the FEMA camps open? What do you do?
You might note the bit about challenging the legality of all these requests, including the non-disclosure requirement.
It would appear that the law is still your best recourse, although that requires more effort than calling everyone else sheeple.
You sound like you are 13.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 15 2016, @08:58AM
You sound like you are 13.
He sounds like he understands the reality of the situation better than you do. No amount of 'But... but... Country X is worse!' will change that.
(Score: 2) by jelizondo on Thursday December 15 2016, @01:17PM
First, please accept my apology for the last sentence in my previous post. I do get carried away when people fail to understand that they are being manipulated into accepting things that are contrary to their interests.
The whole “the Russians did it” charade illustrates the point. Who says the Russians, now even Putin personally, intervened in the recent elections? A “high-ranking officer”? What’s the evidence? Oh, it’s secret. Trust us. In other words, “pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.” [youtube.com]
I watched recently the town hall meeting that Bernie Sanders held at Kenosha, WI and saw a woman adamantly arguing against free college education. What? Yes, she said more or less, that everyone had the opportunity to go to college but it should not be considered a right. Why? Because she won’t be paying for someone else’s kids to go to college! So we should not build public roads, they might be used by some free-rider bum who hasn’t paid his fair share of taxes, like Warren Buffett [cnn.com] or Donald Trump [nytimes.com].
Would it not be sensible to close the loopholes that allow rich people and companies to pay little to no taxes? Hell no! They are the job creators, except that the jobs created are in China, India, Mexico and other places. What does the voting taxpayer does? He votes for the guy offering such tax-dodging people a break! [fortune.com] (For the record, I hate HRC and Trump; both are part of the oligarchy.)
Go to court you say? I donate to the EFF and they have gone to court in our collective behalf, with disappointing results [eff.org]. and so has the ACLU, with meager results [aclu.org].
The solution is for more people to realize we are being manipulated into voting into office people who serve corporate interests and start electing independents and progressives, one House seat at the time to reform a system that is dangerously tilted toward the rich.
(Score: 2) by Nerdfest on Thursday December 15 2016, @03:06PM
Let's not forget the "Constitution-=Free zone" with 100 miles of the border where anyone can be stopped. "Papers please". How about "Free Speech zones" during protests? How about the TSO searching and questioning people at bus and train stations within the country, having nothing to do with foreign travel?