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Microsoft's Cooperation With NSA Either Voluntary, Or Reveals New Legal Tactic

Posted by timothy on from the man-in-the-middle-attack dept.

holy_calamity writes "When Microsoft re-engineered its online services to assist NSA surveillance programs, the company was either acting voluntarily, or under a new kind of court order, reports MIT Technology Review. Existing laws were believed to shelter companies from being forced to modify their systems to aid surveillance, but experts say the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court may now have a new interpretation. Microsoft's statement about its cooperation with NSA surveillance doesn't make it clear whether it acted under legal duress, or simply decided that to helping out voluntarily was in its best interest."

2 of 193 comments (clear)

  1. The demise of an empire by Taco+Cowboy · · Score: 5, Insightful

    As an American, as an American who loves my country, I need to have the courage to face the reality --- that my country has ceased to be the land of the free, the home of the braves, but has turned into an empire which is moving towards oblivion

    --
    Muchas Gracias, Señor Edward Snowden !
    1. Re:The demise of an empire by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Actually, as a German who knows the USA well: No it hasn't.

      A very small group of people are like that. Most Americans aren't. They have just become apathetic in the face of an imaginary "insurmountable reality".

      That is the art of intelligence agencies and social engineering (and churches btw.). It's all in your head... but to *you* it's hard reality. And that's all that counts.

      Our Nazis also were just a small group of very loud and very confident assholes, and a huge apathetic mass around them.

      So the war is fought in your heads. Starting with your own and those of your friends. All it actually really takes to change everything and take everything evil down, is changing your beliefs (and making sure they're not delusional) and having enough public confidence to make others change theirs too.
      The rest is a result of the self-fulfilling prophecy.

      The evil ones got in power that way... and they get out of power that way.

      I think you and most Americans still actually are "land of the free, home of the brave" Americans. And from now on, you will trust yourselves again.
      Deal?