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Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigation

By Jeralyn, Section Civil Liberties
Posted on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 01:15:15 PM EST
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Does anyone believe this is only about random porn searches? I think it's about the Government's ability to track and spy on what Google users are searching generally.

The Bush administration, in a bid to resurrect a controversial online pornography law, has asked a federal judge to force online search giant Google (GOOG) to surrender details on what its users are viewing.

Google has refused to comply with a subpoena, issued last year, to turn over a sweeping amount of material from its databases, including 1 million random Web addresses and records of all Google searches from any one-week period.

< Justice Dept. to Declare Warrantless NSA Surveillance was Legal | R.I.P. Criminal Defender Bill Bryson >

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    Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigation | 21 comments (21 topical)
    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#1)
    by Dadler on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 01:26:57 PM EST
    The Random Info Police, how wonderful. Idiots. Good for Google. No way there's a straight face on this request. And even if there WERE, no f*cking way. You wanna try to pass a computer security law regarding porn, then try. But spy before try? Not a chance.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#3)
    by kdog on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 01:50:48 PM EST
    I'm surprised Google didn't cower to the govt's bidding...like Microsoft and Yahoo have done in China.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#4)
    by ras on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 02:02:55 PM EST
    Google is correct to refuse. There is no compelling reason here as the govt is merely looking to do basic research aot prosecute a particular case, or trace down an imminent threat. This case, btw, kinda shoots holes in the "they're monitoring everything we do already" theories, tho, else why go to court?

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#5)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 02:07:37 PM EST
    Was it not said that J E Hoover was the most powerful man in America, why? because he had the dirt on anybody who was anybody. This administration knows no bounds.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#6)
    by ras on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 02:29:11 PM EST
    oscar wilde, I doubt that simple google records amount to much dirt these days, not with so many hackers and zombie pgms surreptitiously taking over machines. It's just way too easy for the accused to cite such possibilities and, esp for prominent political figures who are known to have enemies, it's a more than reasonable explanation. Related thought: use Mozilla, folks. Use Firefox or use Netscape 8.1 or whatever, but get away from IE. IE is where most viruses and drive-bys sneak in. Since I switched, my antivirus s/w has yet to spot even a single real-time attempt, whereas it used to block one or two periodically (and, presumably, missed a few others). IE is the backdoor that lets the probs enter, and reconfig'ing it to disable active-x is a pain and easy to get wrong. Hint: Netscape 8.1 has both major rendering engines, Mozilla's and Microsoft's, so for those occasional pages that truly require active-x (e.g. when you update Windows with the latest security patch), an IE-compatible window in your browser is but a right-click away. The rest of the time you can stay in Mozilla. Mondo convenient.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#7)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 02:44:42 PM EST
    Off topic, but the California Moratorium did not pass out of committee today, and was placed on hold until at least next year. What a shameful political decision.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#8)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 02:50:33 PM EST
    Ras. I'll study what you say, but comp.tech is greek to me. Prior to getting this machine a year ago, I lived the previous twelve years floating round the ocean with 12V and oil lamps, but do appreciate your info. My point was does it stop there, and the old addage, knowledge (any) is power. If I didn't have a genious of a niece my progress in joining the 21st century would be somewhat hindered. Having said that, aren't they all bleeding genius's clever little sods.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#9)
    by Sailor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 02:58:36 PM EST
    ras is correct in his reasons/choices of alternative browsers ( ... sound of ras falling out of his chair;-) "I lived the previous twelve years floating round the ocean with 12V and oil lamps" Hmmm, sounds like a fellow sailor!

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#10)
    by roy on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 02:58:50 PM EST
    Does it really take much effort to convince a judge that there's lots of porn on the web? Or that kids can access it easily? I hope the lawyers opposing COPA win, but they should concede that the Internet is a sex fiend paradise. Streamline the process, save taxpayers' dollars, etc...

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#11)
    by ras on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 03:03:44 PM EST
    Oscar, The kids are alright, alright. As for picking a safer browser, the one rub against Netscape 8.1 that I can think of is that it's a bit bloated and uses too much memory; this comes from it carrying two rendering engines instead of just one. I close NS and restart it about once/day as a result, and that seems to do the job. BTW, does everyone understand just how Netscape took advantage of Bill Gates' own legal args? Bill insisted that IE was part of Windows, remember? Fine, said AOL (NS 8.1 is their project). That means anyone can build another browser just as good as yours by using all that nice code that you already created. Thanks, Bill! Let us know when you've spent jillions more updating IE for us and we'll continue to use your work to compete against you. Sailor, Ouch, that hurt! And now my chair is broke!

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#12)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 03:05:50 PM EST
    Sailor. If you want to drop me a line, northernpoet@btinternet.com Better if you left it for a reply tomorrow, I'm half a day ahead of you. Oscar.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#13)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 03:09:37 PM EST
    Ras, the kids are fine, still clever little sods though.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#14)
    by kdog on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 03:35:28 PM EST
    Why does the govt. care again? Porn has been with us since cavemen were scrawling dirty pictures on the wall...it's not going anywhere.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#15)
    by Sailor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 05:20:43 PM EST
    kdog - 'but what about the children!?' is their arg. And an odd argument it is. Repubs, who hate the gov't shoving facts like evolution down their kidds throats are perfectly willing to have the gov't limit EVERYONE's rights so no one will ever see boobies again. Yeah, the internets is a rough place, wear a cup ... and monitor your kids' TV watching, internet use, bedtime, choice of friends ... it's called being a parent (I guess to me that is just apparent;-) There are software tools, V chips, and, you know, actual parental involvement to solve these things. Good for Google, imagine what microsoft provided to the gov't, while violating their disclosure agreements.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#17)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 06:53:54 PM EST
    moron bush has over 2,000,000 links

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#18)
    by ras on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 07:23:26 PM EST
    moron bush has over 2,000,000 links Yes, the Left does tend to be repetitive. Yes, the Left does tend to be repetitive. Yes, the Left does tend to be repetitive. [Damn, it's contagious!]

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#19)
    by Sailor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 07:54:04 PM EST
    It's called a 'meme' ras;-)

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#20)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 08:47:14 PM EST
    I admit it, I clicked the hairy bush link. What a perv., I am.

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#16)
    by Ambiorix on Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 08:56:50 PM EST
    [link deleted, sorry, but I don't need to have TalkLeft get monitored to make your point.] What on earth is the use of information like this to whatever the US Gov't is trying to achieve?

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#21)
    by squeaky on Sat Jan 21, 2006 at 09:40:55 AM EST
    Here is a good Q&A about the google case. The problems are not directly privacy related but can easily turn into privacy issues if a particular search gets flagged, and other gov departments such as the FBI get involved. Also the case "to protect children" can ultimately lead to banning many great masterpieces by artists such as DaVinci, Titian, Renoir as they would be deemed pornography and unsuitable for viewing by minors.
    Q: I used those search engines in June and July. Should I be worried about my privacy? A: It depends. If you typed in search terms that you consider to be private or confidential, you should be concerned. Such terms might include personal information about you, such as your name or street address. But what's important to note is that the Justice Department has not been asking for any information that would link those search terms to your identity. It hasn't requested Internet Protocol addresses. So if you typed in search terms indicating that you, say, have a healthy interest in marijuana cultivation, the data turned over won't implicate you.
    link via robot wisdom

    Re: Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigat (none / 0) (#22)
    by squeaky on Fri Feb 03, 2006 at 04:42:56 PM EST
    Here is more to be concerned about.
    Given the Department of Justice's recent subpoena to Google, it's likely the police or even lawyers in civil cases--divorce attorneys, employers in severance disputes--eventually will demand that Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, AOL, and other search engines cough up users' search histories.
    Google retains all of your internet search history as do the other engines indefinitely.
    Q: Has anyone ever sent search engines a subpoena or other kind of legal request for someone's search terms?
    A: We don't know. Google and Yahoo refused to answer the question, though there is no law prohibiting them from doing so.
    link via robot wisdom

    Gov't. Seeks Google Records in Porn Investigation | 21 comments (21 topical)