Phone/Internet Providers Selling Our Info To Law Enforcement And 'Spy Agencies'

Phone/Internet Providers Selling Our Info To Law Enforcement And 'Spy Agencies'

www.wired.com

Want to know how much phone companies and internet service providers charge to funnel your private communications or records to U.S. law enforcement and spy agencies?

That’s the question muckraker and Indiana University graduate student Christopher Soghoian asked all agencies within the Department of Justice, under a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed a few months ago. But before the agencies could provide the data, Verizon and Yahoo intervened and filed an objection on grounds that, among other things, they would be ridiculed and publicly shamed were their surveillance price

(visit the link for the full news article)

I would wager that the U.S. Law Enforcement Agencies and 'Spy Agencies' have been doing this since before there was a Patriot Act to make it easier/legal. While some of the providers were forthcoming, others like Verizon and Yahoo weaseled their way out of complying with the Freedom of Information Act. If it is a simple as crying 'the info you request could damage my rep' to get the FOIA appeal overturned then we will never see much good come of its use. Either way I am not sure I fully agree with tax dollars going for this. Nor am I certain I agree with service providers charging the government agencies, hence those of us paying the taxes, for a service that THEY will claim is for National Security or Homeland Defense. After all, the service providers live and work here, why not grant free access to those agencies as their way of aiding them in improving alleged security instead of profiting off of it?

www.wired.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

[edit on 6-12-2009 by ch1ldofthe70s]

reply to post by ch1ldofthe70s


Before the patriot act what they found by spying on us citizens would have been thrown out in court. The patriot act needs to needs repealed.