FW: COURT SAYS FCC GIVES FBI TOO MUCH WIRETAP POWER

[mark ~ roth <sinergi@yahoo.com>]

[: hacktivism :]


interesting info regarding our recent discussions about wireless security
and location "features".


-----Original Message-----

COURT SAYS FCC GIVES FBI TOO MUCH WIRETAP POWER
Issue: Privacy/Security
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of
Columbia has ruled that the Federal Communications Commission has given the
FBI too much authority to wiretap cellular phones. The ruling challenges
rules passed by the FCC to implement a 1994 electronic wiretap law, the
Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA).
Telecommunications companies and civil liberties groups have argued that the
rules allow the FBI to make demands that overstepped the powers granted by
Congress. They say that the FCC required companies to provide technology
that could allow law enforcement agents to track the location of cell-phone
users and to monitor data sent in the digital format used by computers. The
decision suggests that the courts could also raise questions about similar
forms of wiretapping, such as the Internet wiretap system Carnivore, created
by the FBI for use at Internet service providers
[SOURCE: Washington Post (E1), AUTHOR: John Schwartz]
(http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A32193-2000Aug15.html)
See Also:
COURT CURBS AGENTS' ABILITY TO MONITOR CELLULAR PHONES
[SOURCE: New York Times (A18), AUTHOR: Stephen Labaton]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/08/biztech/articles/16privacy.html)
APPEALS COURT LIMITS USE OF NEW SURVEILLANCE TECHNIQUES
[SOURCE: Electronic Privacy Information Center]
(http://www.epic.org/)



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