It remains to be seen whether Senate has the wherewithal to approve House version.
Source: US House unanimously passed bill requiring warrants for e-mail | Ars Technica
Category: Spying
FBI Says It Will Ignore Court Order If Told To Reveal Its Tor Browser Exploit, Because It Feels It’s Above The Law… | Techdirt
Ruling Unsealed: National Security Letters Upheld As Constitutional| Electronic Frontier Foundation
San Francisco – A federal judge has unsealed her ruling that National Security Letter (NSL) provisions in federal law—as amended by the USA FREEDOM Act—don’t violate the Constitution. The ruling allows the FBI to continue to issue the letters with accompanying gag orders that silence anyone from disclosing they have received an NSL, often for years.
Source: Ruling Unsealed: National Security Letters Upheld As Constitutional | Electronic Frontier Foundation
Reddit’s Warrant Canary On National Security Letters… Disappears | Techdirt
Well, here’s something to speculate about. On Thursday, Reddit posted its latest transparency report concerning government requests for user information or content removal. This is the second such report, following its 2014 report. As one Reddit user quickly noted, the 2014 transparency report had something of a “warrant canary” concerning National Security Letters (NSLs).
However, no such line is in the latest report.
Source: Reddit’s Warrant Canary On National Security Letters… Disappears | Techdirt
Mass Surveillance Silences Minority Opinions – Schneier on Security
Abstract: Since Edward Snowden exposed the National Security Agency’s use of controversial online surveillance programs in 2013, there has been widespread speculation about the potentially deleterious effects of online government monitoring. This study explores how perceptions and justification of surveillance practices may create a chilling effect on democratic discourse by stifling the expression of minority political views. Using a spiral of silence theoretical framework, knowing one is subject to surveillance and accepting such surveillance as necessary act as moderating agents in the relationship between one’s perceived climate of opinion and willingness to voice opinions online. Theoretical and normative implications are discussed.
Source: Mass Surveillance Silences Minority Opinions – Schneier on Security
Senator Wyden Warns That The Justice Department Is Lying To The Courts; Also Still Worried About Secret Law | Techdirt
We’ve been noting for years: when Senator Ron Wyden says that (1) there’s a secret interpretation of a law that is at odds with the public’s understanding of it, or (2) that government officials are lying, you should pay attention.
US Government Has Apparently Demanded, And Obtained, Tech Companies’ Source Code In The Past | Techdirt
The US government has made numerous attempts to obtain source code from tech companies in an effort to find security flaws that could be used for surveillance or investigations.
The government has demanded source code in civil cases filed under seal but also by seeking clandestine rulings authorized under the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), a person with direct knowledge of these demands told ZDNet. We’re not naming the person as they relayed information that is likely classified.
With these hearings held in secret and away from the public gaze, the person said that the tech companies hit by these demands are losing “most of the time.”
Fearing no punishment, Denver cops abuse crime databases for personal gain | Ars Technica
A nurse complained she got a phone call from an officer at a hospital crime scene.
Source: Fearing no punishment, Denver cops abuse crime databases for personal gain | Ars Technica
Law Enforcement Groups File Amicus Brief In Favor Of FBI… But Which Undermines DOJ’s Claim That This Is Just About One Phone | Techdirt
San Bernardino DA says seized iPhone may hold “dormant cyber pathogen” | Ars Technica
He says iPhone might be “a weapon” to trigger some nefarious worm of some sort.
Source: San Bernardino DA says seized iPhone may hold “dormant cyber pathogen” | Ars Technica