Mind Deprogramming Jukebox

Friday 9 October 2009

Telephone Company is Arm of Government, Feds Admit in Spy Suit

Telephone Company is Arm of Government, Feds Admit in Spy Suit

AT&T was the first of many telcos sued for helping the NSA spy on Americans without warrants

AT&T was the first of many telcos sued for helping the NSA spy on Americans without warrants

The Department of Justice has finally admitted it in court papers: the nation’s telecom companies are an arm of the government — at least when it comes to secret spying.

Fortunately, a judge says that relationship isn’t enough to squash a rights group’s open records request for communications between the nation’s telecoms and the feds.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation wanted to see what role telecom lobbying of Justice Department played when the government began its year-long, and ultimately successful, push to win retroactive immunity for AT&T and others being sued for unlawfully spying on American citizens.

The feds argued that the documents showing consultation over the controversial telecom immunity proposal weren’t subject to the Freedom of Information Act since they were protected as “intra-agency” records:


“The communications between the agencies and telecommunications companies regarding the immunity provisions of the proposed legislation have been regarded as intra-agency because the government and the companies have a common interest in the defense of the pending litigation and the communications regarding the immunity provisions concerned that common interest.”

U.S. District Court Judge Jeffery White disagreed and ruled on September 24 that the feds had to release the names of the telecom employees that contacted the Justice Department and the White House to lobby for a get-out-of-court-free card.

“Here, the telecommunications companies communicated with the government to ensure that Congress would pass legislation to grant them immunity from legal liability for their participation in the surveillance,” White wrote. “Those documents are not protected from disclosure because the companies communicated with the government agencies “with their own … interests in mind,” rather than the agency’s interests.”

The feds were supposed to make the documents available Friday, but in a motion late Thursday, the Obama administration is asking for a 30-day emergency stay (.pdf) so it can file a further appeal.

Read more at the EFF’s blog.

Monday 5 October 2009

Spy on your own people for cash from Government in Britain.


Internet game that awards points for people spotting real crimes on CCTV is branded 'snooper's paradise'

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 12:27 PM on 05th October 2009



A new internet game is about to be launched which allows 'super snooper' players to plug into the nation's CCTV cameras and report on members of the public committing crimes.

The 'Internet Eyes' service involves players scouring thousands of CCTV cameras installed in shops, businesses and town centres across Britain looking for law-breakers.

Players who help catch the most criminals each month will win cash prizes up to £1,000.
Internet Eyes

Crime deterrent or snoopers paradise? The CCTV website allows access to a network of cameras where watchers can report crimes to camera owners

The Internet Eyes' website will also feature a rogue's gallery of the so-called 'criminals' along with a list of their offences and which internet user caught them.

But civil rights campaigners today condemned the game, which launches in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, next month, and branded it 'a snoopers paradise'.

They claim nosey neighbours could snoop on homeowners putting the wrong rubbish in bins and even motorists guilty of the most minor misdemeanors.

But businessman Tony Morgan, a former restaurant owner, said it would give local businesses protection against petty criminals, and act as a deterrent once 'Internet Eyes patrol here' signs are prominently displayed.

He will charge those who use the service, which could eventually include local authorities and even police forces as well as shop owners, £20 a week per camera to have their CCTV included on the site - amounting to thousands each year.
Internet Eyes

He said: 'This could turn out to be the best crime prevention weapon there's ever been.

'I wanted to combine the serious business of stopping crime with the incentive of winning money.

'There are over four million CCTV cameras in the UK and only one in a thousand gets watched.

'Crimes are bound to get missed but this way people the cameras will be watched by lots of people 24-hours-a-day.

'It gives people something better to do than watching Big Brother when everyone is asleep.

'We've had a lot of interest from local businesses and hope to roll it out nationwide and then worldwide.'

He said the team had seen a wave of support and denied that liberties were being affected.

'There are more than four million cameras in the UK so everybody is on camera already, it is just that no one is watching the cameras.'

Players collect points by watching the cameras, which show CCTV images in real-time, and click a button every time they see something suspicious taking place.

An SMS or text message, along with a still image of the alleged crime, is sent to whoever controls the camera. They can then decide whether or not to take action.

The camera controller will send a feedback email back to the player indicating whether a crime has taken place.

Players are awarded one point for spotting a suspected crime and three points if they see someone committing an actual crime. Players also lose points if the camera operator rules that the alert was not a crime.

The game has been condemned by civil rights campaigners who claim it will encourage people to spy and snitch on each other.

Charles Farrier, director of the No-CCTV pressure group, said: 'It is an appalling idea for a game and will create a snoopers paradise.

'It is something which should be nipped in the bud immediately. It will not only encourage a dangerous spying mentality by turning crime into a game but also could lead to dangerous civil rights abuses.

'What if a group of racists decide to send alerts every time a black person is seen on screen and what's stopping criminals using the cameras to scope out where to commit crimes.'

James Woodward, head of the technical team for Internet Eyes, which is based in Devon and Stratford-upon-Avon, said safeguards - including blocking players out for sending three incorrect alerts - would prevent the game being abused.

He said: 'For privacy reasons users will not know the location of the cameras. They will find it very difficult to work out where the camera is.

'It is possible that someone who is blocked out could see a crime taking place but be unable to alert the operator.

'But it is probably safe to assume someone else looking at the same camera will raise the alarm.

'Whoever has a CCTV camera, be it the police, local authorities or business or home owners can sign up to have their cameras watched. We hope to include police cameras very soon.'

The game will initially use CCTV cameras in shops and businesses in Stratford-upon-Avon but will be rolled out across Britain by December before going worldwide next year.

Last month it was revealed that Britain has 4.2 million CCTV cameras - the equivalent of one per 14 people - one-and-a-half-times as many as Communist China.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1218225/Internet-game-awards-points-people-spotting-crimes-CCTV-cameras-branded-snoopers-paradise.html#ixzz0T6TFjU6E