Slashdot Mirror
FBI Caught On Camera Returning Seized Server
sunbird writes "As previously covered on Slashdot, on April 18th the FBI seized a server located in a New York colocation facility shared by May First / People Link and Riseup.net. The server, which was operated by the European Counter Network ('ECN'), the oldest independent internet service provider in Europe, was seized in relation to bomb threats sent to the University of Pittsburgh using a Mixmaster anonymous remailer hosted on the server (search warrant). The FBI's action has been criticized by the EFF. Predictably, the threats continued even after the server seizure. On April 24th, the FBI quietly returned the server, without notifying either Mayfirst / People Link or riseup, and were caught on video doing it."
Sure it was heavy handed -- in about the same way as shutting down traffic for a major accident is heavy handed. You know we have the ability to just plow that wreckage off our highways and get on with our lives but noooo the police want to find out who was at fault and make sure everyone is okay. Even though it inconveniences thousands of people every day and, predictably, the accidents keep happening despite the police officers' efforts.
Predictably, the threats continued even after the server seizure
That's gotta be the stupidest part of this summary. The idea wasn't to stop the threats but to trace them! If logging wasn't turned off on that server, the FBI would have been able to trace it. That being the only thing they could do, they did it. I mean, if I was a student or parent, I would be really upset if the FBI said "Well, we could confiscate that server and mildly interrupt e-mail service for 300 people but it will only tell us who is doing it if logging is turned on and it's probably not so we're just going to go ahead and let this all continue to happen."
... with the safety and lives of hundreds of other people at the university in mind when it happened.
Yeah, hundreds of people were inconvenienced when their e-mail was disrupted
Big bad FBI, trying to follow the only lead they have on some sick pervert who gets off to bomb threats. Shame on them! Sometimes I think law enforcement is damned if they do, damned if they don't.
My work here is dung.
I assume you are joking? They are investigating criminal activities (rather ineffectively, apparently, but still investigating), so of course they are not going to state every action they take publicly.
"Why should they have to apologize to them"
One of the ways society identifies shit people, and their fanbois, is by the way they never apologise or show any signs of remorse.
"Oops, I always forget the purpose of competition is to divide people into winners and losers." - Hobbes
I was wondering the same thing. I know people here like to cast "The Man" in the worst possible light, but are they really just bitching that the FBI didn't jump up and down and wave their arms so that people would know that the server was back?
The FBI re-installed the server without telling May First / People Link. They just put it back in the rack and reconnected it (and presumably turned it on). Who knows what they added to the server? I certainly wouldn't trust the FBI in this situation. If they had nothing to hide they would have returned the server to the facility operators so it could be re-install but the facility's personnel. This looks like the FBI were trying to sneak it back in.
Not sure the details in this case but I would not want to have a server returned without notice and plugged in.
so imagine you are an admin, Server "yoyo" is gone so you set up a replacement server using a backup. We call the new server "yoyo" as well. you tweek it as needed and life is good.
A few days later both servers are now online. Both called "yoyo" One is out of date perhaps but they both have the same name. try to serve the same requests perhaps. Do backups to the same network location
The possiblities for excitement and fun are limitless.