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Apple Store Artist Raided By Secret Service
An anonymous reader writes "Artist Kyle McDonald wanted to create something that captured people's expressions as they stared at computers. So the 25-year-old artist installed a program on computers in two New York Apple Store locations that would automatically take a photo every minute of whoever was standing in front of the computer. McDonald then uploaded the photos to his Tumblr blog, 'People Staring at Computers,' made a video with the photographs, and set up 'an exhibition' at the Apple stores to show what he had found. Within days, the Secret Service, which investigates computer crimes, had raided McDonald's house, seizing his two laptops, two flash drives and iPod."
art cannot be the new terrorism for justfying anything.
Where were they when that school in Merion installed spycam software on all the pupil's laptops to record them in their dormrooms?
No sig today...
Installed a program on someone's else computer and now he's saying there's nothing wrong with this?
Installing kitchens is a crime now??? I"d better call my cousin and warn him!
No sig today...
So he had no idea when he came up with this project that he might get in trouble with the law even though he _thinks_ he is on the right side of the law? Either this guy is trying to make a point by getting in the grey area (FTFA, he is a consultant for EFF), or a moron. In either way, he is going to need a lot of luck.
Geez, you can't really ask for any better PR than having your project mentioned on national news. As long as he stays out of jail (go EFF!) then he'll come out on top in the end.
http://greenobyl.com/ please.... think of the children!!
* Public place
* Got permission
* Glorified art project
Seriously, what a waste of tax money.
~~ Behold the flying cow with a rail gun! ~~
When the Apple store is so upset about someone installing a reasonably innocent piece of software on one of their publicly available computers that they need the Secret Service to handle it I get serious doubts about both the Secret Service's and Apple's sound judgement.
"The likes of Facebook and WhatsApp are free to those whose privacy is of zero value."
So he's consulting the EFF (not working as a consultant for them like someone else though). I'd be very disappointed at the EFF if they side with this guy. He installed software that most of the passerbys didn't know about. The software was used to take pictures of them, most of whom did not give their explicit permission. And he published the pictures on an Internet site for the whole world to see. Given how the EFF takes the bigs to task for their written license agreements and violations of privacy, taking this guy's side would make no sense.
Freedom is drinking a beer in the park when you're supposed to be at work.
How dare he? That's Steve's job. Blessed be the name of the Steve.
Lol, just watched the video montage he did of the stunt. Some minutes into the video, after showing a couple of hundred faces, he ponders "Would people look different if I showed them how the computer sees them?" - or in other words "Would people react differently if I showed them I was taking pictures of them?"
As predicted - most did. Next he says "Most just hit escape".
Couldn't help but laugh at his naivety. Of course people would hit escape - they don't want their picture taken you twat!
The potential penalty is absurd, but if you: Install software without permission on 100 machines at two stores that each take and upload a picture to your personal server every minute. Return every day, for several days, doing so since apple wipes the machines every day. Remotely trigger the software to show a slide show of your making (calling doing so "arranging an exhibition"), what the hell would you expect? No charges have been made yet, I hope he does not do jail time, but he deserves a smack upside the head.
Ideally Apple should lock down the DVD drives and USB ports at the stores, requiring an admin to mount a drive, though I have no clue how to do that.
Some privacy policy Slashdot.
What if he installed audio bugs ...
What if he murdered the first three customers in line?
But he didn't.
Taking pictures of people in public isn't illegal, but recording them with audio is. Murdering people is also illegal. Because this guy did something a lot of people on here don't like doesn't make it equivalent to placing audio bugs or killing people.
A better question is, where was the secret service when Sony was caught installing rootkits en masse?
Palm trees and 8
I think the better question is how did this guy install software which accesses peripheral hardware (the webcam) without admin rights? I thought OSX was supposed to be so secure...
-- Let us endeavor so to live that when we pass even the undertaker shall be sorry. -- M. Twain
It sounds like he asked some rent-a-cop if he could take people's pictures, and then gained access to computers in the Apple Stores to take these pictures without the permission of someone who actually had authority to grant that permission. The article is pretty scant on details, though, and only really tells things from his side, so it's hard to tell what really happened at this point.
That's probably what he did, and I think he's trying to just cover his tracks. I think he was hoping for a "ask for forgiveness rather than for permission" situation.
He should have gone to the Apple Store manager, told them explicitly what he wants to do: "I'm going to install software on all the Macs in this store, which will randomly take photos of your customers and upload the photos to my website, which I'll then display publicly for my art project." Then when they said, "no," go find something else to do with his time.
Insert simplistic political, ideological, or personal proselytization here.
1.He installed unauthorized software on a computer not belonging to him, a security guard would not have the authority to give this person permission to do this, the Security guard i bet technically doesn't work for Apple, but will work for a security firm that has a contract with the store.
2.Yes in apple stores you can use the camera, but would you think it's ok for Apple to store those pictures and upload them to a public website, no i doubt you would
3.Technically he is not in a public space, he is in a apple store who can prohibit people from taking pictures, a lot of shops will not allow you to take pictures in there store.
4. It cannot be assumed people are aware there pictures are being taken, not everyone is computer literate and would notice things such as the camera light.
5.There is nothing against the law of taking pictures of people on a beach for instance and posting them on the web, one it's a public area, and also would tend to be more obvious carrying around a camera taking snaps.
6.there is very little difference legally had he set up a laptop in changing room and done the same thing
The devices on display are set up explicitly so that the public will have access to (and in fact are encouraged to explore) their features, which includes the webcam on them.
This to me sounds like implicit permission to use the cameras, as well as implicit permission to install software. Any legal line this man may have crossed is beyond the act of simply using the camera, or installing software. He had implicit permission to do those two things.
I doubt that. You can use the webcam on them to take photos (using Photo booth, etc.), but to suggest that a customer is implicitly allowed to install software that surreptitiously photographs other customers and then displays them in public is ridiculous. If what you suggest were the case, then that would mean Apple is implicitly allowing people to install keyloggers or similar malware. Just because Apple didn't post a sign saying, "don't install surveillance software, malware, worms, viruses, trojan horses, etc." doesn't mean that people should assume they are allowed to do that; common sense says otherwise.
Apple is providing its store guests with computers to use for reasonable purposes. I can't think of any way that what he was doing could be considered to be reasonable. In fact, it was closer to harassment (for Apple's customers) and spying (and repeatedly, since he admits he had to repeatedly return to reinstall the software after it was erased). Thus, his newfound trouble with law enforcement.
Insert simplistic political, ideological, or personal proselytization here.
No you are missing the point. This has huge bearing on the actual problem. The real issue is that corporations & their paid puppets can do whatever they want. The rest of us have to pay taxes, follow the rules, and abide by the law - even if we think we have the I's dotted and T's crossed as this guy did, you still end up standing before the man. That, my cowardly friend, is the "actual problem".
I went and installed a little FFT python TKinter script I wrote at the local store to see if it would run and what it would look like. I just plugged in my thumb drive and dragged over the script then ran it, so perhaps "install" is a strong word. I was so impressed with how the TKinter looked native on OSX I bought a macbook pro. I think my actions were completely legitimate. They have them there to try things so I did.
I don't think computer crimes is the right thing to go after him for. The machines are there for you to use and they don't have any conditions of use that you agree to. Taking pictures of people for a (seemingly) commercial endeavor without their permission should be the charge.
refactor the law, its bloated, confusing and unmaintainable.
In a Pc World, they had a tablet for demonstration setup that anybody could use and you could go in and look at all the photos people had intentionally or sometimes accidentally taken of themselves. I don't see how this is much different or why anybody would care if somebody took a picture of them looking at a computer screen. Seems kind of odd to consider this a crime. If someone doesn't want their picture in his collection, surely they could email him and ask him to remove it?
In 1948, George Orwell arrived on the cultural scene with his novel 1984. In it, citizens are watched at every minute and suspicious activity results in search and seizure by secret police.
In 1984, Apple computer arrived on the cultural scene with their 1984 television ad. In it, the Macintosh computer is introduced as a means to individual expression and freedom from oppression.
In 2011, Kyle McDonald arrived on the cultural scene with his People Staring at Computers art project. In it, he demonstrates the use of Apple computers to observe citizens every minute. Apple's complaint results in search and seizure by Secret Service.
The parallels go on and on ... the US is a country in a continuous state of war, school was caught using Apple computer technology to accuse a student observed eating pill-shaped candy in his home of drug use, there are certainly parallels between Bradley Manning's and Winston Smith's incarcerations, state secrets are sacrosanct and facts are routinely rewritten. Happy 1984.
Obi-Wan: "I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were sudden
We know a) He had permission.
No, we don't. He only said he had permission, received from a security guard, who isn't authorized to give that permission. And I like how you managed to get your panties in a knot and turn this issue into an anti-Obama rant.
I really don't see any art here.
Well, people say that about a lot of things. It's definitely a creative work, and aside from personal preferences, there really isn't much reason to say it's not art.
On the other hand, I certainly don't see any computer fraud, or criminal elevation of privileges, or anything that the Secret Service should be concerned about.
Computer crime. This was using computers unauthorized.
And the reason Apple would take this to the authorities is pretty clear. They don't want people to be worried that if they look at some of their computers, they are going to end up on some artist's web site.
Uh... he installed hidden software that took pictures every minute and sent them to him, without the permission of the owner. Things like that tend to get you into trouble. Just ask this guy.
Some of us have RTFA. The guy asked permission from the security people before installing. So - if the owner gives permission, he's in the clear, right?
And, why is it the Secret Service that is investigating this?
"Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
I asked this guy walking by your car if I could take it and he said yes, I am in the clear, right?
The guy asked a "security guard" (never seen one of them at an Apple store... but whatever) if he could take photographs in the store. That is not the same thing as installing spyware, which is essentially what he did.
Secret Service will handle things like credit card fraud, it may be possible they believed he was doing more than just taking photos.
The way I see it he did two things and both of them are perfectly legal:
Taking pictures of people in public places is legal many times over, it's not even worth discussing.
Using the computers that were put there for public use, is completely legal as well. He did not sign any contract saying what he would or would not do on them, there was no agreement signed that he would not install software on them. They're just offered up for public usage and installing software is such usage.
I don't see anything legally, ethically or morally wrong with what he did. In fact, I hope he sues the bejeezus out of the thugs who broke into his house and stole his equipment.
Liberty.
installed hidden software
But I thought Macs were immune to malware...