Slashdot Mirror
DHS Monitors Social Media For 'Political Dissent'
OverTheGeicoE writes "Recently, TSA's 'Blogger Bob' Burns posted a rant against a cupcake on the TSA blog. Perhaps it made you wonder if TSA and its parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security, really understand what we're saying about them, especially online. Well, thanks to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit from the Electronic Privacy Information Center, we now know a lot more about how they monitor online comments aside from 'Blogger Bob.' EPIC has received hundreds of pages of documents regarding DHS's online surveillance program. These documents reveal that DHS has contracts with General Dynamics for '24/7 media and social network monitoring.' Perhaps it will warm your heart to know that DHS is particularly interested in tracking media stories that 'reflect adversely' on the U.S. government generally and DHS specifically. The documents include a report summary that might be representative of General Dynamics' work. The example includes summaries of comments on blogs and social networking sites, including quotes. Then again, you might remember J. Edgar Hoover's monitoring of antiwar activists during the Vietnam War, which certainly wasn't for the protesters' benefit."
Damn, Slashdot isn't cool any more.
Don't be a douche. I have mod points all the time - until I actually want to use some. Someone makes a really great post, I see it's been modded to 3, and I look for the mod button - AND IT'S NOT THERE!!!!
Besides which, no one can rely on the vagaries of slashdot moderation. My karma has been high for a couple years running. Tomorrow, my karma could be in the septic tank. Shit happens, you know?
"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