Forwarded from Interesting People -- Perry E. Metzger [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- "Ask not what your country can force other people to do for you..." ------- Start of forwarded message ------- Date: Mon, 12 Jun 2000 17:12:26 -0700 From: Dave Farber <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: IP: Easy Listening (for Big Brother) >Date: Mon, 12 Jun 2000 18:06:48 -0600 >To: Dave Farber <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >From: Brett Glass <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: Easy Listening (for Big Brother) > >EDITORIAL: The opinion of the Mercury News > >EASY LISTENING: Government must rewrite cell phone eavesdropping rules to >provide judicial oversight and incorporate privacy concerns > >SIX years ago, Congress approved a bill to help law enforcement keep pace >with the digital world. The purpose was straightforward: Make sure that >the FBI and police hold onto the same kind of wiretapping capabilities >they had before cellular phones complicated electronic surveillance. > >Skip ahead to this month. > >Within weeks, the government will have new powers to eavesdrop on you that >go beyond maintaining the status quo. That's when the first set of >defective rules crafted by the Federal Communications Commission is >scheduled to be implemented. Others take effect next year. > >The rules need to be revised. If not, law enforcement agencies will be >able to follow and monitor cellular phone users in ways that Congress >never envisioned. Here's one example: Investigators will be able to track >the physical locations of cellular phone users, pinpointing your >whereabouts at the beginning and end of every call. In essence, wireless >phone systems will be transformed into giant tracking networks.... > >http://www.mercurycenter.com/premium/opinion/edit/CELLPHONES.htm > ------- End of forwarded message -------
