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No Upper Bound On Phone Record Collection, Says NSA

Posted by timothy on from the don't-write-a-blank-check-to-the-government dept.

PCWorld reports that "[A] U.S. surveillance court has given the National Security Agency no limit on the number of U.S. telephone records it collects in the name of fighting terrorism, the NSA director said Thursday. The NSA intends to collect all U.S. telephone records and put them in a searchable 'lock box' in the interest of national security, General Keith Alexander, the NSA's director, told U.S. senators." But don't worry; it's just metadata, until it isn't. (Your row in the NSA database may already be getting cozy in its nice new home in Utah.)

19 of 238 comments (clear)

  1. Foil hats? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Shinny side out or in?

    1. Re:Foil hats? by cold+fjord · · Score: 5, Funny

      The shiny side should face what you're trying to protect.

      If you don't want them reading your brain waves, the shiny side goes on the inside to prevent the brain waves from leaking out.

      If you don't want them using mind control beams on you, the shiny side goes on the outside to keep the mind control beams out.

      If you're worried about both, then you need to go double layer with a shiny side facing both in and out.

      If you think the molemen might be involved, then you should put a layer in the bottoms of your shoes, and maybe in your underwear.

      --
      much of left-wing thought is a kind of playing with fire by people who don't even know that fire is hot - George Orwell
    2. Re:Foil hats? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      You can't have the shiny sides facing each other, jeez. The mind control waves will become trapped between the two shiny faces and cause massive heat build up. This is basic tin foil hat theory guys, come on.

    3. Re:Foil hats? by brxndxn · · Score: 5, Insightful

      How the fuck is this funny? We have a direct quote from the director of the NSA and you make a joke alluding to conspiracy theorists like they're the crazy ones. The thing that is crazy here is that the dumb useless clueless fucktarded people like you would rather make light of something and continue to act like something is nothing than actually effect some positive change..

      The US Constitution is the supreme law of the land.. You would probably make fun of that too.

      --
      --- We need more Ron Paul!
  2. Intends to? by mosb1000 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The NSA intends to collect all U.S. telephone records and put them in a searchable 'lock box' in the interest of national security

    No, they don't intend to do this at all, they already do collect all of it.

  3. Metadata Equals Surveillance by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    But don't worry; it's just metadata

    Metadata Equals Surveillance

  4. Tinfoil hats for all by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Turns out the tinfoil hat wearing conspiracy theorists were pretty much spot on.

    1. Re:Tinfoil hats for all by coastwalker · · Score: 5, Informative

      Not only that but all that cold war stuff was a complete waste of time - we are the Soviet Union.

      --
      Facts are history now plebs have politics for religion on social media.
  5. Stalin-type Purges by silentbozo · · Score: 5, Informative

    How long before the next incoming majority party decides to use the NSA data to clean house? Just to make sure that their government is free of ties to terrorism, foreign governments, and corruption, of course... and to ensure that everyone is loyal and pure of ideology.

    1. Re:Stalin-type Purges by memnock · · Score: 5, Informative

      "... Just to make sure that their government is free of ties to terrorism... "

      Do you mean terrorism like the kind that involves killing unknowing bystanders? The U.S. doesn't do that. Oh wait...

      --
      "To stop the terrorists."
  6. An example of the metadata... by QilessQi · · Score: 5, Funny

    The frequency and amplitude of the phone conversation, sampled at 1-millisecond intervals.

    Just metadata.

    --
    Koans and fables for the software engineer
  7. Re:New word for Webster's by dyingtolive · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I don't think they need a new word. Just use a perfectly good old word. How about "tyrant"?

    --
    Support the EFF and Creative Commons. The war is coming, and they're supporting you...
  8. NSA Directory Keith Alexander in a nutshell by dkleinsc · · Score: 5, Interesting

    He wants all information about everybody he can get his hands on. That's basically his job.

    That's why it's the President's job is to say "That's illegal. Don't do it. If you do it, I will have you fired, arrested for wiretapping, and charged for your crimes. I will do that to the next NSA Director who breaks the law. And the next. For as many as it takes, until I get an NSA Director who understands that the law supercedes what they want.", and follow through on what he said.

    President Obama has failed to do this. So did President Bush. That's because they don't want to do their job, they'd rather (for whatever reason) have an NSA breaking the law.

    --
    I am officially gone from /. Long live http://www.soylentnews.com/
  9. Bill to rein in NSA by SirGarlon · · Score: 5, Informative

    For those who don't know, Senators Wyden (D-OR), Udall (D-CO), Paul (R-KY) and Blumenthal (D-CT) say they will introduce a bill today to rein in the NSA.

    --
    [Sir Garlon] is the marvellest knight that is now living, for he destroyeth many good knights, for he goeth invisible.
    1. Re:Bill to rein in NSA by Desler · · Score: 5, Informative

      Hahaha what? You seem to be willfully ignoring that the Republicans controlled the House during passage 229 to 205. You also seem to be ignoring that the Patriot Act was authored and introduced by a Republican Representative. You also seem to be ignoring the fact that of the 66 nays in the House that 62 were Democrats. And that Republicans voted Yea at a 3:2 margin in the House. You also seem to ignore that not a single Republican voted Nay in the Senate. The Nay was that of Democrat Russ Feingold who also warned about the Section 215 powers. The only abstention in the Senate was also a Democrat.

      So to act like the passage of the Patriot Act would have been any different with a Republican controlled Senate is ludicrous when nary a single Republican senator voted against it.

  10. Re:This is gonna be awesome! by intermodal · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's not a pretty idea. But even more frightening is what history tells us about the end-result of governments that believe in their own unlimited powers.

    --
    In SOVIET RUSSIA... erm...NSA AMERICA, the Internet logs onto YOU!
  11. Re:get over it by AlphaWoIf_HK · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Get used to it.

    No, and that sounds like a terrible idea.

    --
    Da derp dee derp da teedly derpee derpee dum. Rated PG-13.
  12. Re:This is gonna be awesome! by istartedi · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I've never seen a civil war up close before

    . Never going to happen in the US.

    Yeah. There's no precedent for that.

    --
    For all intensive purposes, "whom" is no longer a word. That begs the question, "who cares"?
  13. Not merely illegal, but unconstitutional. by jcr · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Andrew Napolitano explains very clearly why the FISA "court" is an unconstitutional institution, and not a court of law at all.

    Even if the FISA court was a legal forum, no court in this country has the authority to override the 4th amendment.

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."