Re: FBI WATCH MAKING CRUELTY VISIBLE
Posted: Sat May 26, 2012 1:46 pm
Just what is the FBI's National Domestic Communications Assistance Center For?
Saturday, 26 May 2012 09:19
Just what is the FBI's National Domestic Communications Assistance Center For?
Written by Sean Kalinich
see link for full story
http://www.decryptedtech.com/index.php? ... Itemid=139
So the FBI has started a new club and one that involves the US Marshals, the DEA and apparently even the NSA. This clubs whole purpose is to find ways to monitor and decrypt data that transferred through electronic communications. Sounds fairly innocuous right? After all these law enforcement agencies should have the tools they need to investigate crimes and to prevent threats to national security. The problem comes from the fact that the club (called either the National Domestic Communications Assistance Center or Domestic Communications Assistance Center) might have been around since 2008 without anyone telling anybody.
According to a very detailed CNET article the FBI had internal communication about the DCAC’s budget as early as January 2008. Now this could be an indication that they were preparing a proposal for the new group, but as there have been additional budget requests it is more likely that the agency was established and has been working for three years to get up to speed.
One of the things to look for when something like this happens is for new legislation to be established during the timeline of the agency. According to an FBI post on Google + ( Interesting choice of social network) “The NDCAC will have the functionality to leverage the research and development efforts of federal, state, and local law enforcement with respect to electronic surveillance capabilities and facilitate the sharing of technology among law enforcement agencies.”
Now we know that the FBI has pushed for (and gotten) several key wiretapping laws. In 1994 the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act was passed and it has received several updates to expand some of its coverage. They have asked for laws that would prevent individuals from encrypting their own data over an Internet Service Providers network unless they gave the ISP the keys first. The first target is VoIP communications which often have private keys that the provider does not maintain. They want services like Skype to change the way they operate so that they can decrypt any and all conversations for law enforcement use.
Fortunately so far the courts have ruled that encryption code is part of protected speech so you will still be able to get your hands on other encryption software to protect your communications. Now the interesting part of this situation was a statement made by the FBI’ General Counsel Valerie Caproni, “We're talking about lawfully authorized intercepts”. Which would seem to indicate that a warrant would still be required… at least it would until they manage to push CISPA through. At that point there is no requirement for a warrant, law enforcement (or any agency) could simply ask and get the information (yes the wording of that law is that loose).
Saturday, 26 May 2012 09:19
Just what is the FBI's National Domestic Communications Assistance Center For?
Written by Sean Kalinich
see link for full story
http://www.decryptedtech.com/index.php? ... Itemid=139
So the FBI has started a new club and one that involves the US Marshals, the DEA and apparently even the NSA. This clubs whole purpose is to find ways to monitor and decrypt data that transferred through electronic communications. Sounds fairly innocuous right? After all these law enforcement agencies should have the tools they need to investigate crimes and to prevent threats to national security. The problem comes from the fact that the club (called either the National Domestic Communications Assistance Center or Domestic Communications Assistance Center) might have been around since 2008 without anyone telling anybody.
According to a very detailed CNET article the FBI had internal communication about the DCAC’s budget as early as January 2008. Now this could be an indication that they were preparing a proposal for the new group, but as there have been additional budget requests it is more likely that the agency was established and has been working for three years to get up to speed.
One of the things to look for when something like this happens is for new legislation to be established during the timeline of the agency. According to an FBI post on Google + ( Interesting choice of social network) “The NDCAC will have the functionality to leverage the research and development efforts of federal, state, and local law enforcement with respect to electronic surveillance capabilities and facilitate the sharing of technology among law enforcement agencies.”
Now we know that the FBI has pushed for (and gotten) several key wiretapping laws. In 1994 the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act was passed and it has received several updates to expand some of its coverage. They have asked for laws that would prevent individuals from encrypting their own data over an Internet Service Providers network unless they gave the ISP the keys first. The first target is VoIP communications which often have private keys that the provider does not maintain. They want services like Skype to change the way they operate so that they can decrypt any and all conversations for law enforcement use.
Fortunately so far the courts have ruled that encryption code is part of protected speech so you will still be able to get your hands on other encryption software to protect your communications. Now the interesting part of this situation was a statement made by the FBI’ General Counsel Valerie Caproni, “We're talking about lawfully authorized intercepts”. Which would seem to indicate that a warrant would still be required… at least it would until they manage to push CISPA through. At that point there is no requirement for a warrant, law enforcement (or any agency) could simply ask and get the information (yes the wording of that law is that loose).