U.S. Wants Companies to Keep Web Usage Records (AND e-mail)

[rodeodance]

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/02/washington/02records.html?pagewanted=print
June 2, 2006
U.S. Wants Companies to Keep Web Usage Records
By SAUL HANSELL and ERIC LICHTBLAU

The Justice Department is asking Internet companies to keep records on the Web-surfing activities of their customers to aid law enforcement, and may propose legislation to force them to do so.

The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Robert S. Mueller III, and Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales held a meeting in Washington last Friday where they offered a general proposal on record-keeping to a group of senior executives from Internet companies, said Brian Roehrkasse, a spokesman for the department. The meeting included representatives from America Online, Microsoft, Google, Verizon and Comcast.

........

The Justice Department is not asking the Internet companies to give it data about users, but rather to retain information that could be subpoenaed through existing laws and procedures, Mr. Roehrkasse said.

While initial proposals were vague, executives from companies that attended the meeting said they gathered that the department was interested in records that would allow them to identify which individuals visited certain Web sites and possibly conducted searches using certain terms.

It also wants the Internet companies to retain records about whom their users exchange e-mail with, but not the contents of e-mail messages, the executives said. The executives spoke on the condition that they not be identified because they did not want to offend the Justice Department.

[silverojo]

1. Do you hear the jackboots stomping?

Time we all subscribed to those overseas anonymous surfing sites to circumvent this little Nazi's attempt to take over the "internets".