ISP snooping gaining support

[Deja Q]

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6061187.html

Top Bush administration officials have endorsed the concept, and some members of the U.S. Congress have said federal legislation is needed to aid law enforcement investigations into child pornography. A bill is already pending in the Colorado State Senate.

Mandatory data retention requirements worry privacy advocates because they permit police to obtain records of e-mail chatter, Web browsing or chat-room activity that normally would have been discarded after a few months. And some proposals would require providers to retain data that ordinarily never would have been kept at all.

CNET News.com was the first to report last June that the U.S. Department of Justice was quietly shopping around the idea of legally required data retention. But it was the European Parliament's vote in December for a data retention requirement that seems to have attracted broader interest inside the United States.

[Trillo]

1. They're just going ahead with full transparency for citizens,

no matter what opposition exists. Presuming that this continues, the only justice will be found in 100% government transparancy. Seems to me more like we'll simply have a lack of justice.

Maybe the collapse of civilization won't be such a bad thing with respect to the bigger picture if freedom is completely gone for everyone except the tyrant. It's going to be hard for those of us alive while it collapses.

Is this Rumsfeld's 50-year war? The war to control civilization's collapse?

[EFerrari]

2. I have an idea. Why don't they retain the records of their own

freakin' employees for a couple of years and see what they find. To test this idea. :)

[EVDebs]

5. An outfit called the Finders some time ago, when Rep Charlie Rose

was around, couldn't get to the bottom of this scandal. They appeared to be intel/IT types. Maybe they're already in the DHS. You might be right.

[simonm]

3. Electric Bills

Law enforcement already has direct access to the utility company's records. This is a little known fact.


There is nothing stopping them from sniffing the ISP network. However, keeping logs of everything is a logistic problem. Now the ISPs can do it for them and we will all be safer from terrorists. :sarcasm:

[NorCalDem]

7. How much electricity I use and what I search for on the internet

are two different things :D

[simonm]

10. Both are related

No respect for someone's privacy. It is all about control and monitoring.

A person can be flagged as a possible marijuana grower if electric bills are high enough. The system can also be used to track someone down.

[NorCalDem]

11. I guess, but the electric company is going to know anyway

I guess the government knowing my kWhr usage is ok with me. They should not be able to gain a warrant into my house or ask me questions because "something out of the ordinary" occurs with my usage however, but I guess that fear will always happen if you give them the information.

[simonm]

12. My point is, the records can be abused

They should not be able to gain a warrant into my house or ask me questions because "something out of the ordinary" occurs

For access, they can come by and claim someone was screaming or smell illegal drugs from inside. I'm basing this from personal experience as I have friends in law enforcement and a family member with a habit of getting in trouble.

[NorCalDem]

13. I agree with you :) n/t

edited to add: you convinced me

[don954]

4. i hope they want DNS logs and not actual copies of content

as it would take several terrabytes of data storage PER DAY at my small ISP. I cant even imagine at a large one...!

[flobee1]

6. It boggles my mind

People scream bloody murder when somebody suggests keeping a record of gun purchases, but keeping a record of your internet habits is ok?

[don954]

8. exactly

you would think the wingers would be going crazy over this...!!

[don954]

9. FYI, i just put an alert out to several ISP industry mailing lists

Some senators and congress people should be getting several thousand phone calls representing a large fraction of the small to mid size Internet Service Providers tomorrow...