NNSquad - Network Neutrality Squad
[ NNSquad ] The Government's FISA Requests Shell Game Scam
The Government's FISA Requests Shell Game Scam
http://lauren.vortex.com/archive/001048.html
In the latest chapter of the federal government's "we don't trust the
American people to tie their own shoelaces" saga, we saw two major
Internet firms ostensibly release new information yesterday about key
national security (e.g. FISA) user data requests that they receive,
but in reality the government has forced them to play the old "three
card monte" scam on us all.
You know the con? It's a classic version of the notorious "shell
game" (only performed in this case with three slightly bent playing
cards) where we're tricked into losing bets -- through diversion --
into believing a card is in one place, when it's actually somewhere
else. This ripoff has its roots in antiquity.
Here's how the federal government version works. Prior to yesterday,
Google, Microsoft, and Twitter had released transparency reports about
takedowns and government requests for user data. Google has been
doing this on a rather detailed, routine basis for quite sometime, and
has recently begun including some data regarding National Security
Letter (NSL) requests received, in terms of broad ranges of numbers
and users/accounts affected -- more specific data release was
forbidden by the government.
In the wake of false accusations and conspiracy theories surrounding
the Snowden NSA saga, Google very recently wrote a letter to the
Department of Justice asking permission to reveal aggregate range and
scope for FISA requests, which are more directly related to NSA
activities. Microsoft and Facebook followed up with similar letters
within hours.
Yesterday, with some fanfare, Facebook announced that it had reached
an independent agreement with the government to release some FISA
data, but -- and this is crucial -- it would be combined with all
other law enforcement requests, everything from a local sheriff trying
to find a missing child to -- we assume -- Dr. Evil demanding billions
of dollars not to blow up the planet.
Facebook released this combined clump of data yesterday -- their first
"transparency report" of any kind, by the way. Shortly thereafter,
Microsoft made a similar release, but noted that it was disappointed
that they could not break out the FISA requests separately.
Google -- which as we've seen has led the way in transparency
reports -- late yesterday refused to play along. They noted that
under the policy that Facebook and Microsoft had accepted, Google would be
required to combine all law enforcement related data requests,
including conventional, NSL, and FISA.
Google asserts -- and I agree -- that this would actually be a step
backwards in terms of transparency. Remember, Google was already
splitting out NSL requests separately from other law enforcement
requests, but accepting the government's terms for release of FISA
range data would mean all of this information would now have to be
aggregated. There would be no way to discern what parts of the law
enforcement total related to NSL (or FISA) at all.
Twitter immediately and wisely endorsed Google's rejection of the new
reporting policy.
It's critical to keep in mind that with all this data, we're only
talking about approximate ranges, and no details about specific
requests at all.
Why is the government trying so hard to muddy and dissemble even this
modest data? Our adversaries have long known that national security
data requests (both NSL and FISA) occur. How can mere broad ranges
for numbers of requests and users/accounts totals be a national
security risk to reveal?
There appears to be only one logical answer. They aren't a national
security risk at all.
But the government perpetually views us all as untrustworthy children.
Of late, it appears that they consider most of us to be potential
suspects as well.
And in keeping with that pervasive secrecy mindset, they'll willingly
allow conspiracy theories to flourish and to allow the reputation of
important U.S. firms to be falsely dragged through the mud -- not
actually in the name of national security, but in the name of
protecting the power and funding of their individual intelligence
empires.
This attempt to play a fast and loose shell game with this data
doesn't only reveal deep hypocrisy on the part of the government, but
by any normal ethical standards should be deeply embarrassing to them
as well.
But just as that three card monte scammer is immune to embarrassment,
it appears that our leaders are so sure of themselves, so positive of
their superiority, that they have become similarly inured to
criticism.
In the long run, that attitude may be more dangerous to what makes
America great than all of our actual and would-be adversaries rolled
into one.
And that's a very sad, but pretty sure bet, indeed.
--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein (lauren@vortex.com): http://www.vortex.com/lauren
Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility: http://www.pfir.org/pfir-info
Founder:
- Network Neutrality Squad: http://www.nnsquad.org
- PRIVACY Forum: http://www.vortex.com/privacy-info
- Data Wisdom Explorers League: http://www.dwel.org
- Global Coalition for Transparent Internet Performance: http://www.gctip.org
Member: ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Lauren's Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
Google+: http://vortex.com/g+lauren / Twitter: http://vortex.com/t-lauren
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800 / Skype: vortex.com
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