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“The U.S. Department of Justice has opposed requests by Facebook, Google, Microsoft and other companies to publish the number of surveillance requests they receive from the National Security Agency and other agencies. Requests from five Internet companies, also including Yahoo and LinkedIn, would hurt the NSA’s ability to conduct surveillance on “particular” Internet communications, the …
The Guardian: “Top-secret NSA drone document – selected excerpts. Documents list various dangers to American drones, including ‘air defense threats’, ‘jamming of UAV sensor systems’, ‘terrestrial weather’, and ‘electronic warfare’” Read Glenn Greenwald’s blogpost on the NSA’s drone document
DOJ OIG – Interim Report on the Department of Justice’s Use and Support of Unmanned Aircraft Systems – Report 13-37, September 2013. “While both the FBI and ATF have developed procedures guiding how to receive approval to operate UAS, officials with both components told us they did not believe that there was a need to …
What does the data show? “Microsoft (including Skype) received 37,196 requests from law enforcement agencies potentially impacting 66,539 accounts in the first six months of this year. This compares to 75,378 requests and 137,424 potential accounts in the whole of 2012. Approximately 77 percent of requests resulted in the disclosure of “non-content data”. No data …
Via cnet – “Facebook, Google, and other tech firms apparently aren’t the only ones who’ve been fascinated by the potential of “social graphs” — maps of people’s social connections. The NSA has reportedly been tapping its giant repositories of phone and e-mail data to create complex diagrams of some Americans’ interactions, including lists of associates …
CRS – Security Clearance Process: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions, Michelle D. Christensen, Analyst in Government Organization and Management; Frederick M. Kaiser, Visiting Scholar. September 9, 2013 “This report provides a primer on some of the fundamental aspects of the security clearance process, using a “Frequently Asked Questions” format. A security clearance is a determination …
“A bipartisan group of Senators, including the Chairman and Ranking Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, have called for a full-scale review of the use of surveillance authorities by the intelligence community. The Senators emphasized that the findings and conclusions of this review be made public to “help promote greater oversight, transparency, and public accountability.” …
Protecting Vulnerable Data Subjects: Findings from a Survey of EU Data Protection Officials on the Use of Cloud Services in Organisations – September 23, 2013 “The use of commercial cloud services by public organisations in Europe is growing. While the benefits of cloud computing are indisputable, the public sector contains certain particularly sensitive or vulnerable …
Cybersecurity: Authoritative Reports and Resources. Rita Tehan, Information Research Specialist, September 20, 2013 “Cybersecurity vulnerabilities challenge governments, businesses, and individuals worldwide. Attacks have been initiated by individuals, as well as countries. Targets have included government networks, military defenses, companies, or political organizations, depending upon whether the attacker was seeking military intelligence, conducting diplomatic or industrial …
Avoiding BYOD Legal Issues – Route1 Inc. September 2013 “Today’s business landscape is facing emerging legal issues stemming from bring your own device (BYOD) initiatives. The shift towards the use of personal computing devices (laptops, tablets, smartphones and now watches) to conduct business in theory is a win-win strategy for both the Enterprise and its employees. …
“The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) has released an Opinion, justifying the NSA’s telephone record collection program. In the Opinion, Judge Claire Eagan states that “there is no Fourth Amendment impediment to the collection” of all domestic call detail records. Judge Eagan also concluded that all domestic call detail records are “relevant” under Section 215 because “individuals associated …
Privacy Advocates Call Upon UN Member States to End Mass Internet Spying Worldwide: “Geneva – At the 24th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council on Friday, six major privacy NGOs, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), warned nations of the urgent need comply with international human rights law to protect their citizens from …
