In a Guardian article yesterday Duncan Campbell reviewed
the multi-nation effort to coordinate law enforcement snooping
and access to all forms of telecommunications through the
ILETS program. A point he makes is that the operation is
run by LE officials without participation of government lawyers
and so that legal objections will not be raised before
implementation. ILETS is led by the FBI.
An expected outcome is that the multi-national LE agencies
(and spooks in nations where there is no separation) will cook
up their own procedures, implement them in union,
and either ignore legal challenges or procrastinate in
responding -- exactly what the FBI is doing with Carnivore
and the Brits are doing with RIP objections, barking national
security.
And as others have noted before, there is a methodical
testing of public concern by one nation after another
sending out stalking horses to measure the effect of
more openness or more closedness, even using a
see-saw probe of relaxation than tightening to confuse
the public as to what is permissable. This method has
been deployed by the US administration/BXA, as we
know, to drive export applicants into asking for
clarification -- which is then given in closed sessions.
Like the closed sessions in Congress and legislatures
worldwide.
It might also be noted that use of crypto is not really
getting easier, after years of calling for it, and that suspicions
might arise as to why that is the case.
There remains also a question of what other technologies
of privacy aggression (and delayed simplification of use of
privacy protection systems) are being implemented as
recommended by the National Academy of Sciences
CRISIS report as a corollary of relaxing strong crypto
controls.
Recent reports on NTT acquisiton of Verio and what is
being required of NTT to keep hands off Verio's compliance
with FBI surveillance orders, are instructive. These appear
to disclose how not that all ISPs are of necessity complying with
the Feds, but the details of how it is being done. Perhaps no
surprise, except that Verio is quoted as saying that it does
not want to be forced to do more than other ISPs or it will
lose customers. Now exactly how competition for privacy
protection could enhance it would be worth investigating
and telling all.
As a Verio customer we shall ask for a public statement
on the confidential agreement with the FBI expected today.
Without that assurance of privacy, Verio says, our customers
will walk, even walk out of the country. But what country
is not in the ILETS rogue nation?
Fucking rogue cult CIA is refusing to release records of its
criminal actions in Chile, crying that would reveal means and
methods vital to national security against shame.
The NY Times today argues that Polish informer, collaborators
and spies of the past should admit it and be forgiven in a dialogue
of healing. No such call for US counterparts happy as pigs
in shit that its illegal to reveal their names, fuck healing they
chuckle in ex-spy conclaves.
A couple of people have accurately ID'd my father-in-law.
Okay by me to post it here, not that it's mine to call.
