FBI Gets Caught Digging Too Deep
Recent documents obtained by a watchdog group through the Freedom of Information Act reveal that the FBI has been digging through the phone records of citizens in much more detail than was previously thought. The more than 2,500 pages of released FBI documents show a disturbing pattern in which the agency sent letters to telecommunications operators under the guise of national security. The letters not only requested the phone records of people under suspicion, but also requested information about other citizens these people under suspicion spoke with -- citizens the FBI referred to in the request letters as a 'community of interest.' The intent of these 'community of interest' requests was to pour through records in the hopes of uncovering previously undiscovered connections between people, and possibly tip the FBI off to a suspect's co-conspirators. This practice of searching for a needle in a haystack is commonly known as data mining.
Privacy advocates say that these information requests are unreasonable and risk ensnaring innocent people. On the other hand, one could also make the argument that anyone speaking to a terror suspect should be considered a suspect too. We're not going to argue either side, but what we do find disturbing about this practice is the fact that the letters to the tel-cos eluded to grand jury subpoenas for the sought after information when, in fact, no requests for grand jury subpoenas had ever been filed in these cases.
Though the FBI has stopped the use of these 'community of interest' requests, it's clear the agency isn't at all shy about bending American laws in order to get what it wants. We can only speculate at the kinds of dubious investigatory methods that future Freedom of Information Act releases will shed light on.
From USA Today
Related Links:
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mike Sanders @ Sep 10th 2007 7:27PM
Write algorythms which identify hot groups... Assign weightings for idividuals, which affect the weightings of the groups, in which they participate. Even certain routes, could be scored and figured into the equation.
Result: Hot groups and individuals show up, as well as, new contacts, which of course become elevated, themselves, and so on...
Fascinating stuff, but the potential for abuse is as big as the imagination of the analyst...
If it *really is* just employed on 'terror suspects' (and the definition of terrorist, remains un-ambiguous), then it could be a very potent weapon, in war on terror. Used on the general populace, for intelligence gathering, social mapping and even marketing, well, it could be bad.
This sounds more like the NSA, than the FBI's area of expertise. Perhaps, this reflects increased cooperation, between agencies... I don't know.
I would find it interesting to know, just how the tons of 'call detail' are being utilized... For billing puposes? Or, for human studies?
Done right, it (data-mining) is OK, but I am mistrustful, until convinced otherwise, when dealing with cutomer/citizen data.
Christopher @ Sep 10th 2007 9:45PM
"Done right, it (data-mining) is OK."
I would have to take issue with that statement. In terrorism prevention, the best things to use are the old investigatory techniques (talking to friends of suspects, talking to employers, talking to neighbors, etc.).
Data mining appears to be a good way to ferret out terrorism suspects..... until you realize that there is so much data, that data mining is absolutely USELESS in all reality.
James Michael Gibbs @ Sep 11th 2007 9:20AM
The FBI and all other American Federal Intelligence and Law Enforcement Agencies should have full authority to use whatever means are necessary to protect the USA and Americans from terrorist attacks and other criminal acts. Anyone whom is against totally protecting the USA and Americans from any possible terrorist threat or other crime is either a terrorist/enemy of the USA and the American people or a common criminal. I believe in using whatever means are necessary to protect the USA and our People from harm! Hugo Chavez is now another terrorist threat to the USA and the American People--and he is also allied with Islamic Terrorists--they are both our enemies and need to observed and prevented from attacking us the American People and our Republic! There must be self-serving political and economic reasons why some members of Congress would try and hinder and restrict our American Intelligence and Law Enforcement Agencies in their duties to protect the USA and the American People! Anyone whom sympathizes with Islamic terrorists and/or Hugo Chavez is an Enemy of mine, the USA, and all of the rest of the American People!
Kevin @ Sep 11th 2007 9:53AM
Anyone talking to a terrorist suspect should be considered a suspect too? Are you that completely clueless on the fundamentals of logic? And once that new person talks to someone, what the? The definition of suspect has to be more than "talked to someone suspicious". Unless, of course, you're living under a fascist regime.
Culp @ Sep 13th 2007 9:12PM
James you are a fool. The founding fathers would have shit themselves from all the corruption and blatant disregard of american's civil liberties. Take it from Benjamin Franklin- "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
MEL @ Sep 16th 2007 12:04PM
"COLLEGE TRAINED COMMUNIST TRAITORS!!NOW ABOUND.
THE COMMUNISTS STARTED TAKEING OVER THE SCHOOLS
AND COLLEGE "TEACHING" IN THE 60s.AND TO DATE
"THIS" IS WHAT THEY SAID THEY WOULD DO!!!
"DESTROY AMERICA FROM WITHIN"!!!
"THEY" ARE THE ONES THAT "DO NOT" WANT AMERICA
TO BE ABLE TO KEEP TRACK OF "THEM' AND THEIR
"TERRORIST ALLIES"
Leslie @ Sep 17th 2007 12:54PM
How about "alluded" and not eluded? Doesn't USA Today have editors anymore?
Hope @ Feb 14th 2008 7:23PM
This shit ass govt. can't find or round up 20 - 30 million illegals; this crap shit govt. can't find Osama bin Laden but now is going to spy on American citizens. What the hell is wrong with this picture ?????
James @ Feb 14th 2008 8:46PM
It's funny how we have numerous videos of these mexicans jumping the border, how were the strongest nation in the history of the world and yet were still in the middle east, how we have MILLIONS of gang members walking our streets freely, but we have people spying on us. Illegals and gang members are seen every single day in the act of commiting crimes why are they not the focus of the FBI. At the beggining of this "War" in the middle east everyone was making a big deal about 10 or so soldiers dieing, not trying to be careless but it is a war, people will die, now I'm getting mad at how many of our soldiers are dieing needlessly, we aren't progressing towards anything were just stagnating. (in my opinion we are being way too easy on these people). Now why can't the government produce results that would benefit the entire country and allow the funds we are wasting in Iraq to be used on something better?...
James @ Feb 14th 2008 8:56PM
Another thing that bothers me greatly is how if ANYONE, American or not, walks in the vicinity of Area 51 the government has the right to just shoot you for tresspassing and whatnot...now....why don't we put signs up like this on the border?...they are tresspassing, drug trafficing, raising our taxes, and just shouldn't come illegally. If their country is so bad then why can they not take the time to fix it, after the civil war the southern part of our nation was in shambles, we fixed it and now look at us...sorry if I'm being mean but these things just get to me.
Smith @ Feb 14th 2008 9:10PM
Well I couldn't be more comforted, at least they're going to follow the law. Oh yeah, This time. Seriously! These same pinheads(Both parties!) are dragging Clemens before them, like he's the biggest criminal in town. GWB breaks laws at a non-stop pace, now we let telecoms off the hook for their criminal acts too? It's all rotten from the inside and must be ...changed. And we must follow the letter of the law just like our leadership does.
mike @ Feb 15th 2008 12:07AM
"one could also make the argument that anyone speaking to a terror suspect should be considered a suspect too"
This is "guilt by association", something that this country was founded to prevent! How many of our fathers, brothers, sons, daughters, sisters and mothers have died over the last 232 years so that we would be convicted for criminal acts, not for who we know or associate with!
As soon as we allow the terrorists to scare us into abandoning the very principles that define our nation...they have won!
I don't want to see a single american die at the hands of terrorists, BUT, as Americans we should all be willing to die to protect the principles and rights on which this country and democracy were founded! Allowing the government carte blanche freedom to spy on us, abandons those rights, in which case, we might as well just burn the constitution and the Bill of Rights, because we will have allowed our fears to render them useless. This whole thing reeks of McCarthyism!
pretzelchocker @ Feb 15th 2008 4:41AM
Next on the list. stoping the requests for FOI petitions. Vote republican.......and loose your freedoms. Maybe all of them.
Bill Triebel @ Feb 25th 2008 4:52AM
If people are so damned concerned about protecting America,then why have the worst law-breaking,freedom hating terrorists of the bunch been left running the show for the last eight years?Open your eyes and look at all the evidence,do a little research.The Bush admin was right in th middle of9/11,they made billions from it,it was planned before Bush was put into office(no,he wasn't elected,the present election sham is only an attempt to keep the American people from seeing how little voice or freedom they actually have).9/11 was an excuse to start destroying even more of our constitutional freedoms.It is not the Islamics we should worry about,but our own so-called leadership!