AT&T let NSA tap phones, monitor customer Internet use

[kpete]

AT&T let NSA tap phones, monitor customer Internet use

Ex-AT&T Worker Tells Of NSA Op
11:15 AM Apr, 07, 2006

AT&T provided NSA eavesdroppers with full access to its customers' phone calls, and shunted its customers' internet traffic to data mining equipment installed in a secret room in its San Francisco switching center, according a former AT&T worker cooperating in the Electronic Frontier Foundation's lawsuit against the company
.....................

According to a statement released by Klein's attorney, an NSA agent showed up at the San Francisco switching center in 2002 to interview a management-level technician for a special job. In January 2003, Klein observed a new room being built adjacent to the room housing AT&T's #4ESS switching equipment, which is responsible for routing long distance and international calls.

"I learned that the person whom the NSA interviewed for the secret job was the person working to install equipment in this room," Klein wrote. "The regular technician workforce was not allowed in the room."

Klein's job eventually included connecting internet circuits to a splitting cabinet that led to the secret room. During the course of that work, he learned from a co-worker that similar cabinets were being installed in other cities, including Seattle, San Jose, Los Angeles and San Diego.

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,70619-0.html?tw=rss.index
via:http://www.rawstory.com/

[Blaze Diem]

1. Asswipes!!

Why we all need to be suspicious of our own Government, which our own hard earned $$$ are used for suspicious behavior just like this!

[FormerRepublican]

2. This story just gets worse and worse.

No way this could be constitutional. Oh, but I forget. The constitution doesn't apply to Bush!

:scared:

[caligirl]

3. just got my At&T bill and am calling to see about cancelling service.

plan to read this to the customer service rep. on hold now.

[Neil Lisst]

4. there's your corporate responsibility in America

Sure, go ahead. Spy on Americans. They're just customers.

[htuttle]

5. "We Don't Care, Because We Don't Have To. We're The Phone Company."

I think that's a line from The President's Analyst...

[Neil Lisst]

9. sounds like Lily Tomlin, too, from her years with Laugh in

about the same time as the film you mention

[Swamp Rat]

6. My local ISP was just bought by an Israeli company, run by ex-Israeli

military. I will be dropping it ASAP, but I was considering BellSouth (cheap DSL). Then I find out BellSouth is being bought out by the company who bought (or is buying?) AT&T.

What they HELL? Where can I find a decent ISP with DSL?

[caligirl]

10. SBC bought AT&T out here in Cali. I posted my conversation with

the SBC assistant down below. SBC apparently is not one who is helping * to our personal business.

[Catrina]

11. Don't forget that in the Abramoff revelations, he got Congress to approve

an Israeli 'security' company to wire Congress ~ I don't know why that story didn't get more attention ~ first of all, I would think that Congress of all places, should be dealing with an American company, if all this talk of security means anything. And if I were a Democrat, I would have been super worried about anything that had to with Abramoff. Don't we have American companies here who need work?

This truly is an outrage. I don't have AT&T but I would cancel it immediately if I did. I know they will try to talk every company into doing this so we have no choice.

Since Congress isn't doing anything about this, maybe the people have to. Why can't there be a massive lawsuit against any company that has participated in this illegal activity.

I am furious right now, and I'm sending this to everyone I know and if they have AT&T they need to cancel it right away, imo.

They need to go out of business, they are unAmerican ~

[Swamp Rat]

14. So what ISP do you recommend?

I want to drop this company IMMEDIATELY, and was considering BellSouth, but THEY are being bought by AT&T! :mad:

[Catrina]

15. We have a small, local company ~ we've had it forever. I wanted to

get off dial-up, but we like this company so much we didn't want to leave them. They are like a local store, you get to know everyone there. Now, I'm glad we didn't leave them.

I don't know much about servers ~ so I'm afraid I'm not much help ~ aren't there others besides AT&T and Bell South? How about a foreign server, can we do that?

[SammyWinstonJack]

7. "Good night and Good luck" nt

[caligirl]

8. SBC purchased At&t according to the SBC rep I just spoke to and told

her all about the wiretapp stuff. She said the merger isn't complete that SBC is not using any of AT&T equipment yet. Phone and DSL is not routed through AT&T equip. yet. I told her I would have to cancel my contract for these two services when and if that changes, then she wanted the web site to read about it all, said she too didn't want her calls handled this way. I read some of what Klein said in his affidavit and she was pretty shocked. She is sending my concern to a supervisor as I told her as soon as they use AT&T equipment-I'm out of there.

[Swamp Rat]

12. So what ISP is safe from this type of intrusion?

I want to change my ISP immediately.

[caligirl]

16. don't know.

[caligirl]

17. I'm looking into comcast, we left them for a better deal, will

be coming back I guess. Then for phone service we could use vonnage and then we have 4 cell phones, one for each member of our family.

[RoyGBiv]

19. None of them ...

Here's the problem. Companies with large, international networks like AT&T, Global Communications, etc. form the largest part of the backbone to Internet traffic. You may have an ISP that doesn't divulge any information to the NSA or any other intelligence gathering group, but you ISP contracts with a backbone provider to give you service to anything outside the immediate network you ISP handles, which in some cases can be fairly small. So, say you get service from wetellnosecrets.com and you visit a website that has a server in Germany. The outbound traffic between you and that German server is going to go through your computer, to your ISP, eventually to a backbone, and across the Atlantic. That backbone is probably Global Communications, which has a long history of cooperation with the NSA and other agencies. Wetellnosecrets.com may not give the NSA anything, but everything that goes through Global Comm will be handed over willingly.

[Swamp Rat]

23. Right

I just want to be protected (as best as possible) from my ISP to my comuter. I want to control what remains on the server, etc. I am aware that the NSA will pick up anything they want, outside this level of networking. That's why I tell folk not to worry about them hacking PCs because they can get all they want on the other end. Firewalls are good for keeping out thieves and hackers.

[KansDem]

13. AT&T gave (is giving) more to GOP than Dems...

From "Open Secrets"

AT&T
AT&T is the top long-distance service provider in the country, but the company is downsizing other segments of its business. AT&T spun off its wireless service in 2001 and sold its cable TV operations to Comcast in 2002. AT&T now plans to focus its efforts on its business services unit, which accounts for more than 70 percent of the company’s revenues. AT&T lobbied heavily on the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the first major reform of the telecommunications industry in more than 60 years. The Act allows regional and long distance phone companies to dip into each other’s business under certain conditions. AT&T and other long-distance carriers continue to fight the regional phone companies—and the Federal Communication Commission—over enforcement of the act.




Dems vs. Repubs Source of Funds

Election Cycle
Total Contributions
Dems
Repubs
% to Dems
% to Repubs

2006
$1,305,186
$454,681
$850,505
35%
65%

2004
$733,319
$352,299
$380,440
48%
52%

2002
$3,808,026
$1,756,562
$2,050,214
46%
54%

2000
$5,075,311
$2,048,877
$3,016,882
40%
59%

1998
$2,119,171
$823,123
$1,300,739
39%
61%

1996
$2,756,187
$1,138,342
$1,623,393
41%
59%

1994
$1,857,711
$1,086,080
$776,981
59%
42%

1992
$1,714,895
$1,016,673
$708,607
59%
41%

1990
$1,696,288
$957,278
$746,010
56%
44%

TOTAL
$21,066,094
$9,633,915
$11,453,771
46%
54%

http://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/summary.asp?ID=D000000063&Name=AT%26T

Of course, the greater amount given to the GOP might be simply a reflection of corporate America giving more to the party in power...

[watrwefitinfor]

20. Why are they allowed to give ANYTHING? n/t

[file83]

18. FB&I, CI&A, NS&A, AT&T....

[Jose Diablo]

21. When ATT was split-up

That new logo they had, it looked like the Death Star in "Star Wars".

[kentuck]

22. I had AT&T as ISP for first 3 years on DU...

Until they magically discovered I owed them almost $900.00, which I did not owe or had no idea where the charge came from, and they dropped me without notice. I hope they get their due...