US News FBI admits to internet spying

[The Helper]

The FBI has admitted that it repeatedly broke its own rules in spying on internet communications.

FBI director Robert Mueller said that for the fourth straight year his agency collected information on people's emails and web activity which was beyond its legal remit.

However, Mueller claimed that this was partly the fault of telecoms companies which had provided the FBI with "too much information".

"We are committed to ensuring that we not only get this right, but maintain the vital trust of the American people," he said.

FBI had privacy violations in 2006 before reforms

The FBI improperly obtained personal data on U.S. citizens while investigating terrorism and spy suspects in 2006, but later adopted reforms to prevent future lapses, FBI Director Robert Mueller said on Wednesday

www.reuters.com

 

[UnknowVector]

And now it is painfully obvious why the phone companies want their retroactive immunity so bad ...

 

[EatShrooms]

Well at least they told us right?

 

[Wiseman_2]

I thought the FBI had its phone lines cut off because they forgot to pay the bill

 

[Varine]

Well at least they told us right?

After the PATRIOT act was passed, things like this were bound to happen. Bad news for people that are looking up how to make bombs for terrorists, though.

 

[Centreri]

Well, I think that the FBI and other such government-funded agencies should have full access - I don't really mind that they did this.

 

[sqrage]

Well, I think that the FBI and other such government-funded agencies should have full access - I don't really mind that they did this.

I guess you wouldn't mind giving up your freedom of speach either then? :nuts:

 

[esb]

Come on people... Don't act surprised.

Yes, what they are doing isn't right, becuase slowly but surely they are taking away our rights, and they have a reason to justify it.

 

[WastedSavior]

Well, I think that the FBI and other such government-funded agencies should have full access - I don't really mind that they did this.

Do you feel that the government has the right to open all the letters you receive in the mail? or listen in on your phone conversations? how about keep a detailed log of everything you put out in the trash?

If you let the government read all your Instant messages, emails, and things you've bought, browsed, or deleted when do you stop? When do you draw the line? Giving up all your freedoms for the sake of freedom doesn't exactly make sense to me.

"A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have"

 

[Varine]

I guess you wouldn't mind giving up your freedom of speEch either then? :nuts:

Freedom of speech is completely different than tapping phones and the Internet. I don't care if they listen to what I say, but I would be pretty pissed off is they said I can't say something.

Do you feel that the government has the right to open all the letters you receive in the mail? or listen in on your phone conversations? how about keep a detailed log of everything you put out in the trash?

Fine with me. I'm not hiding anything from anyone... except my discharge papers.

If you let the government read all your Instant messages, emails, and things you've bought, browsed, or deleted when do you stop? When do you draw the line? Giving up all your freedoms for the sake of freedom doesn't exactly make sense to me.

I've not given up much in the way of freedom. I'd draw the line when they do something that affects me. Having the FBI going through stuff is fine. Not like they're going to see anything I don't want them to, anyway.

 

[Uberplayer]

>Do you feel that the government has the right to open all the letters you receive in the mail?
I really think that they're not interested in emails sent you by your girlfriend(s).

 

[WastedSavior]

Freedom of speech is completely different than tapping phones and the Internet. I don't care if they listen to what I say, but I would be pretty pissed off is they said I can't say something.

Fine with me. I'm not hiding anything from anyone... except my discharge papers.

It's not that any of us has anything to hide, its that this is a gateway to larger infringes on our freedoms. Don't kid yourself, if you keep letting the government take things away from you under the guise of good intent, you'll end up with nothing.

I've not given up much in the way of freedom. I'd draw the line when they do something that affects me. Having the FBI going through stuff is fine. Not like they're going to see anything I don't want them to, anyway.

Listening in is the closest thing you can get to a Censor before you actually do it. You think they'll stop at that? It's not unreasonable to suspect that the government will push to limit freedom of speech if they find any minuscule reason to on the internet.

I really think that they're not interested in emails sent you by your girlfriend(s).

The government has interest in everything of value. If they can find one piece of evidence that gives them "Reasonable Doubt" they can do nearly anything to you. Freeze your assets, put you in jail, interrogate you, tap your phones. There is very little the government can't do as long as everyone else thinks they are doing it for your own good.

 

[Bartuc08]

i don't care if they listen to my conversations or read my letters to loved ones. if you don't support the government and your afraid where they're leading you, then why not leave the country? Nobody is forcing u to stay in a place you don't like after all.

 

[Varine]

It's not that any of us has anything to hide, its that this is a gateway to larger infringes on our freedoms. Don't kid yourself, if you keep letting the government take things away from you under the guise of good intent, you'll end up with nothing.

They've not taken much 'under the guise of good intent' that really affects me. As I said, if there's something that actually causes issues with my feeling of freedom, then that's going to end. But I don't care what they read of mine. They don't seem to care about the majority of what I say if they're listening anyway, I've talked with my friends about how we could kill Clinton if she wins, and so far no one's showed up to yell at me. Besides, it's not like they're going to run out and discuss things I do with everyone, so it's not like my privacy is really being threatened by exposure. If they find someone that's going to kill me via this espionage, then I'd be overzealous about the whole thing.

Listening in is the closest thing you can get to a Censor before you actually do it. You think they'll stop at that? It's not unreasonable to suspect that the government will push to limit freedom of speech if they find any minuscule reason to on the internet.

Okay, let's go over this again. WHEN--THEY--DO--SOMETHING--THAT--IS--THREATENING--MY--FREEDOM--I--WILL--HAVE--AN-ISSUE. Besides, we're in war with a nonconvential enemy that could quite possibly be capable of producing mass damage to the populace of the United Sates, so freedoms can be suspended right now anyway.

The government has interest in everything of value. If they can find one piece of evidence that gives them "Reasonable Doubt" they can do nearly anything to you. Freeze your assets, put you in jail, interrogate you, tap your phones. There is very little the government can't do as long as everyone else thinks they are doing it for your own good.

I don't think my Emails to my friends and fiance are really that valuable to the FBI. If they want to come interrogate me, that's fine. If they found someone tomorrow who was sending Emails relating to a huge attack on San Fransico, and let's pretend your family and friends live there, and because of this it was stopped, would you think 'Yeah that's good and all, but I still feel that I'm being personally invaded,'? If you would then you're lying or somethings wrong with you. That's what they do this for, they don't care about you buying your little drugs or sending Emails to your friends. Well... if you were buying like fifteen pounds of cocaine from Columbia, then that might be an issue. But really, this isn't based on finding small time, domestic criminals and I seriously doubt it'll get to the point where they will ban our freedom of speech... which is still unrelated to this.

And with your picture, are you implying that the government has stuck you into a cave of ice and won't let you out?

 

[sqrage]

i don't care if they listen to my conversations or read my letters to loved ones. if you don't support the government and your afraid where they're leading you, then why not leave the country? Nobody is forcing u to stay in a place you don't like after all.

Do you know how emigration/immigration and acquiring citizenship works?

It's not that easy. And it'd be much better to fix a problem than to just run away from it. Even if you do leave, who's saying that other country's governments aren't corrupt as well?

 

[EatShrooms]

i don't care if they listen to my conversations or read my letters to loved ones. if you don't support the government and your afraid where they're leading you, then why not leave the country? Nobody is forcing u to stay in a place you don't like after all.

Some people can't leave the country.

 

[Varine]

Some people can't leave the country.

And most all of them have legal restrictions on them because of a previous crime, in which case this wouldn't have much affect on them because people are doing it anyway.

Do you know how emigration/immigration and acquiring citizenship works?

It's not that easy. And it'd be much better to fix a problem than to just run away from it. Even if you do leave, who's saying that other country's governments aren't corrupt as well?

It's not that hard. It just takes a while, and it's not like you can't live in the country you intend to move to while the papers are being processed. And if the other governments are corrupt, then I guess you're just plain screwed. You could always to to Sweden, though... or Greenland. I can't imagine them being too bad.

 

[UnknowVector]

You are suggesting, that instead of opposing degradation and destruction of our freedoms and the rights that have been dreamed up in one form or another since The Enlightment, we should leave?

[] Where shall we go, the South American jungles following our radical spiritual leader who will establish a perfect society of wood and kool-aid? [/]

EDIT: tags

 

[Varine]

You are suggesting, that instead of opposing degradation and destruction of our freedoms and the rights that have been dreamed up in one form or another since The Enlightment, we should leave?

You aren't guarunteed freedom of privacy. But yes, I wouldn't mind if the majority of the current population were to leave.

Where shall we go, the South American jungles following our radical spiritual leader who will establish a perfect society of wood and kool-aid?

If you want. Or Australia. You can live with those little aborigine people. Or Kangaroos... and go basejumping to your heart's desire!

 

[UnknowVector]

>You aren't guarunteed freedom of privacy.

It wasn't always possible to destroy privacy on such a pervasive scale. Rather or not it is guaranteed is a non-issue, it should be protected.

Off-topic: Kangaroos basejump?