Judge orders Google to give customer data to FBI

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-Excite

By PAUL ELIAS

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal judge has ruled that Google Inc. must comply with the FBI's warrantless demands for customer data, rejecting the company's argument that the government's practice of issuing so-called national security letters to telecommunication companies, Internet service providers, banks and others was unconstitutional and unnecessary.

FBI counter-terrorism agents began issuing the secret letters, which don't require a judge's approval, after Congress passed the USA Patriot Act in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

The letters are used to collect unlimited kinds of sensitive, private information, such as financial and phone records and have prompted complaints of government privacy violations in the name of national security. Many of Google's services, including its dominant search engine and the popular Gmail application, have become daily habits for millions of people.

In a ruling written May 20 and obtained Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Susan Illston ordered Google to comply with the FBI's demands.

FULL story at link.



Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20130601/DA6KQT6O1.html

[In_The_Wind]

1. Where I buy my undies isn't any of the FBI's business!

[img][/img]

[hobbit709]

3. There will be at least one poster here who will agree with the FBI so that he will be "Safe"

I still call the Patriot Act the Enabling Act of 2001

[JustAnotherGen]

2. It's a pain in the

Ass and completely unnecessary. At a company on the receiving end. That ruling is utter bullshit. Those "investigations" never lead to anything. They are better off listening to us when we get robbed. It's like a roadmap to the bad guys. I literally mapped out fraudulent sales and subsequent deliveries last year over a two year period valued at $17 million dollars. Know when the Feds touched it? Four months later.

And the guys who did it? Bad. Really bad.

Enough. I don't care if they have to throw every single employee at our line of business in jail . . . Shutter the stores, let google go dark, let the Internet die while we are jailed, the cable tv flatline etc etc - I'm proud of Google for trying and those in our industry need to stand up with them in defiance.

[Chef Eric]

4. There are good alternatives to Google's search engine.

One of them is https://duckduckgo.com/. Unlike Google, duckduckgo promises not to track you.

[hobbit709]

6. And when the Feds suboena every other search engine?

[Chef Eric]

7. If a search engine does not track information...

then there is nothing for it to hand over to the feds.

[hobbit709]

8. You really believe that?

[Chef Eric]

9. Yes.

The claim about privacy is made at 1:13 in the video:
https://duckduckgo.com/about

If the information is not tracked, then there is nothing to hand over.

[shawn703]

26. Which probably means

That the discerning criminals and terrorists are probably using duckduckgo instead of google anyway, making the FBI's requests for this information from google pretty much a waste of time.

[onestepforward]

24. This one is good too:

https://ixquick.com/eng/

(added)
I got it off of DU some time ago.

[YeahSureRight]

5. This is really messed up but it was to be expected at some point

This will have no impact to me because I go to considerable lengths to protect my real identity and location while I am on line. I have never done social media and there are no pictures of me on the internet, phone calls are made with disposable phones paid for in cash so no name is required. Even though I like the convenience of online bill paying, banking, and shopping I stopped all that due to security concerns.

I think it is nuts to even put ANY real identifying info into cyberspace anymore.

[warrprayer]

27. ^^^^^ THIS!!! n/t

[Gore1FL]

10. When did subpoenas become so unfashionable? n/t

[snot]

11. K&R'd.

[onehandle]

12. Like I've said a thousand times. Don't Use Google! nt

[heaven05]

14. never

have had luck with google as search engine, it would always freeze my computer. Would have to reboot. In hindsight that was a good thing. duckduckgo is pretty reliable, so far.

[edhopper]

13. Does Google still track people

who choose the "Do not track" option?

[onehandle]

15. If you sign up for their 'free' services, they track you no matter what.

It's a hundred fold worse if you use an Android device.

[Lenomsky]

17. Agreed ...

I have an android HTC and although a zillion apps for all manner of things I don't use any of them but I'm old skool a phone is for making calls.

I use ..

https://startpage.com/eng/

and it's sister

https://ixquick.com/eng/

No tracking read their Privacy Statements.

[valerief]

16. What does the FBI want (not what they say they want)? nt

[pam4water]

18. :(

[mtasselin]

19. again

Again I ask, where is the nra, are they not the ones who are always talking about the constitution? They were not around when the anti-patriot act was passed almost 12 years ago, do you think that they don't know that there are more than two amendments to the constitution.

[christx30]

33. They only focus on

That one amendment. It's like when I start my 'No Quarter' club next spring, to protect Americans against violations of the 3rd amendment.

[Laelth]

20. k&r for exposure. n/t

-Laelth

[Ian David]

21. All those times I googled "Santorum." n/t

[tom_kelly]

22. I Switched

over to duckduckgo.com and will now use it instead. Thanks for the tip!

[WinkyDink]

23. Well, the judge is a traitor, pure and simple. But then so are those who passed the PA.

[premium]

25. Well, it's now official,

we have the American version of the old Soviet KGB.
When is this country going to wake the fuck up and take it back from these fascists?

This needs to go all the way to the SCOTUS, although I don't hold out much hope there.

[warrprayer]

28. Welcome

... to the Constitution Free Zone!

[TRoN33]

29. Funny because...

FBI won't issue the subpoena orders on Karl Rove's PACs' bank accounts. It is an insult to the constitutional rights that Americans are embracing. Ever since the beginning of Reagan era, the wealth are killing America one by one and I fear we are already about 90% there.

[They_Live]

30. But if I was a "News organization" it would not be allowed??

Last edited Sat Jun 1, 2013, 05:35 PM - Edit history (1)

is that right regarding who has rights anymore? They can track my every phone call and email, but not a "news company"?

[quadrature]

31. AG Mitchell, oops... Holder, needs to go ..nt

nt

[brett_jv]

32. I've just switched to duckduckgo as my homepage and will use that to search from now on ...

Not because I really care that much about people seeing what I search for, but just on sheer principle.

I wonder if Google protested this/forced it to court because they REALLY care about our liberties/privacy, or if it was just because it would cost them a lot of money (esp. in the longer term, if it happens often)?

Kinda sad that there was a time I'd have believed the former about Google in a heartbeat, but ... it's no longer a 'given' to me at all anymore.