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Facebook Faces PRISM Data Investigation In Ireland

Posted by samzenpus on from the like-this dept.

judgecorp writes "Facebook's links to the NSA's PRISM program could be investigated in Ireland, thanks to the persistence of some Austrian law students. The group has challenged Facebook in Europe as it has its regional headquarters there for tax reasons. 'The [Data Protection Commissioner] simply wanted to get this hot potato off his table instead of doing his job. But when it comes to the fundamental rights of millions of users and the biggest surveillance scandal in years, he will have to take responsibility and do something about it,' said the leader of the student group, Max Schrems."

54 of 86 comments (clear)

  1. what is dpc by noh8rz10 · · Score: 1

    what is dpc

    1. Re: what is dpc by des_irl · · Score: 5, Informative

      the Data Protection Commissioner

    2. Re:what is dpc by duke_cheetah2003 · · Score: 4, Informative

      Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC)

    3. Re: what is dpc by EJB · · Score: 2

      RTFA

    4. Re: what is dpc by jeromef · · Score: 2

      Sure, the OP should probably have read the article before asking. But am I the only one thinking that the summary should be understandable without RTFA first? For non-obvious abbreviations, I think an editor's note is appropriate.

    5. Re:what is dpc by jalopezp · · Score: 1

      http://www.acronymfinder.com/DPC.html

    6. Re: what is dpc by fizzer06 · · Score: 1

      Third sentence in the summary.

    7. Re: what is dpc by noh8rz10 · · Score: 1

      to be fair, the editors went back and updated the summary, so my question wasn't totally out in left field.

    8. Re: what is dpc by davester666 · · Score: 1

      Um, there is a very long tradition of making sure the summary of any article never contains all the facts of the article, but rather just a selected few, to completely mislead the reader as to what the article might be about. Thus you can determine how much each person posting has read:

      -only read the title
      -only read the summary [significantly fewer]
      -read the article [occasionally someone does this]

      --
      Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
  2. About fuckin' time! by frootcakeuk · · Score: 3, Funny

    I hope someone's balls get cut off! Maybe they can sort this 'beheading vids' bullshit out while they're at it

    --
    Remember kids: What's right isn't as important as what's profitable.
    1. Re:About fuckin' time! by Seumas · · Score: 1

      Both of those things will be okay -- as long as there's no *gasp* side-boob!

    2. Re:About fuckin' time! by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Knowing the current proceedings, I wouldn't be so happy about seeing someone's balls being cut off. It's far from impossible that in some twisted way OUR balls will be on the line.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  3. Potatoes by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 4, Funny

    The DPC simply wanted to get this hot potato off his table

    I thought the Irish liked potatoes.

    --
    systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    1. Re:Potatoes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Just like the Americans like invading other countries and bombing them into oblivion!

    2. Re:Potatoes by themushroom · · Score: 1

      Someone mistook a steaming turd for a baked spud. Do not offer me your mashed potatoes, thanks.

      --
      Laughter is the Spackle of the Soul.
  4. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by Opportunist · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What gave it away? Sloppy work 'cause nobody gives a fuck anymore. Why bother hiding that you're spying on the people after you noticed that, hey, the people don't care?

    Wouldn't you feel a bit let down? I mean, think about it, you spend resources, time and energy on hiding that you're essentially putting your citizens under total surveillance, you enjoy how you manage to deceive and fool your population, only to notice that the main reason it worked was that nobody gives a shit?

    That must hurt some egos, really. And of course they go "ffft, why bother with stealth, they don't appreciate it at all!"

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  5. HA-ha! by SeaFox · · Score: 3, Insightful

    See where your tax dodging schemes got you, Facebook?

    1. Re:HA-ha! by Sique · · Score: 4, Informative
      In this case, setting up their EU headquarters in any other EU state wouldn't have made a difference, because Data Protection laws are similar through the whole EU. Setting up country headquarters in each country they are operating in would have made it more easy for Max Schrems to go after them, as he would have filed the complaint in his home country.

      We should rather say: "See, even your tax and judical review dodging schemes didn't help you."

      --
      .sig: Sique *sigh*
    2. Re:HA-ha! by intermodal · · Score: 1

      Setting up a European headquarters was the mistake, not which country it was set up in. Create an actual legal presence somewhere and you have that many more legal systems to contend with.

      --
      In SOVIET RUSSIA... erm...NSA AMERICA, the Internet logs onto YOU!
    3. Re:HA-ha! by Sique · · Score: 1

      It's not easy to do business in the EU without having a headquarter there. And if Facebook wants to offer ad space for EU based companies, it has to have an EU presence.

      --
      .sig: Sique *sigh*
    4. Re:HA-ha! by intermodal · · Score: 1

      There's a much better solution. Subcontractors, my friend. Subcontractors.

      --
      In SOVIET RUSSIA... erm...NSA AMERICA, the Internet logs onto YOU!
  6. Email and Social Network for Europe by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    What we need is a European Email and Social Network company. One that we know won't offer back doors to the US Security Organisations. One that is free from interference

    1. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by Lennie · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Federated or disitributed is the only solution.

      Everything else is useless. As Eben Moglen would say: everything can keep their own logs.

      --
      New things are always on the horizon
    2. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by JaredOfEuropa · · Score: 4, Interesting

      How about one without back doors toany security organisations?

      Same problem with that proposed new EU law: if adopted, it will forbid companies to share data to non-EU law enforcement agencies without an EU judge approving the matter. I am much in favour of this idea: if the law does not compel you to share data, you are forbidden to share it; none of this voluntary cooperation crap. But I was disappointed to note that no-one spoke up to make the law universal, i.e. to also forbid voluntary sharing with EU-based agencies.

      --
      If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
    3. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by FriendlyLurker · · Score: 1

      Must be a hard problem to solve right as unfortunately no such Federated/distributed system has stepped up to the plate. (Diaspora springs to mind but the average user could hardly install and start using it...).

    4. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by JaredOfEuropa · · Score: 1

      And, for a number of the smaller European countries, they don't really have security agencies of this scale and capability at all.

      You'd think so. And you'd be wrong. These agencies may not have the capability to do covert surveillance abroad on the scale of the NSA operation, but domestically some of them are quite active and capable.

      In Germany, various police and security agencies have infiltrated the extreme right Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands, but refuse to disclose the names of their inside men to each other. The joke goes that the party leadership now consists entirely of government agents.
      As for "legal" surveillance, there are days on which the Netherlands performs more (court-mandated) wiretaps than the entire USA conducts in a year.

      --
      If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
    5. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Yeah, that way we'll make sure it will only bend over to any and all EU governments, but it will be fortified against US requests. Well, unless the US wants to get into a data exchange agreement with the EU, that is.

      Frankly, I'd rather use some Chinese or Iranian social service. About your only chance to not have the NSA dig through your privates at leisure.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    6. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by jalopezp · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yeah, but it's not up to the average user to get the network going. It is the technically proficient that should install diaspora, if enough of us have a server signing up won't be difficult. And as time passes and the network grows, diaspora will become easier to install. Walk throughs get written, makeuseof and lifehacker write articles, then some of the steps get automated as more people post the subtleties of their particular configuration, and finally you get something that's as easy as installing mint.

      I dislike it when technical people complain about average users finding things difficult that average users shouldn't be doing anyway. It's not their job, dummy, if we want a better network it's up to us to build it. What do we run servers for anyway?

    7. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by Godwin+O'Hitler · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I suspect most of the European national security services (well, all except GCHQ) are delighted the NSA has taken the heat off them.
      A few insincere sound bytes from Merkel and Hollande and it's Vive la liberté—when all the time the deceitful bastards know fine well "there but for the grace of Snowden go I."

      My point being that I have totally no reason to prefer snooping from by government over snooping by another.

      --
      No, your children are not the special ones. Nor are your pets.
    8. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by Godwin+O'Hitler · · Score: 2

      errr ... that was meant to be "snooping by one government over snooping by another"

      --
      No, your children are not the special ones. Nor are your pets.
    9. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      As for "legal" surveillance, there are days on which the Netherlands performs more (court-mandated) wiretaps than the entire USA conducts in a year.

      Wait, is that legal wiretaps vs legal wiretaps? Or legal, avowed wiretaps vs. illegal, unavowed wiretaps?

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    10. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Americans always assume everyone else is at least as bad as they are, usually worse. They are most often wrong.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    11. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by Godwin+O'Hitler · · Score: 1

      Not sure why you addressed that reply to a Brit (sig gives it away, right?), but kudos all the same for an admirably constructed generalization.

      --
      No, your children are not the special ones. Nor are your pets.
    12. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by cusco · · Score: 1

      And right here the dogma of "the free market will provide" breaks down.

      --
      "Think about how stupid the average person is. Now, realise that half of them are dumber than that." - George Carlin
    13. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by cusco · · Score: 1

      People forget about the whole reason for Echelon's existence. It was illegal for the US and several other foreign intel agencies to spy on their own people. The way they got around this was to have the US spy on their people, spy on US citizens, and then the two sides would exchange data. Of course that was before the US promoted a former head of the CIA to the White House, so the intel agencies had to at least pretend to follow the laws.

      --
      "Think about how stupid the average person is. Now, realise that half of them are dumber than that." - George Carlin
    14. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by DoofusOfDeath · · Score: 1

      As for "legal" surveillance, there are days on which the Netherlands performs more (court-mandated) wiretaps than the entire USA conducts in a year.

      Perhaps if you count the NSA's continual, ubiquitous surveillance to be just one wiretap.

    15. Re:Email and Social Network for Europe by mjwalshe · · Score: 1

      You know the EU passed a very widespread requirement for all data to be available to the powers to be not that long ago. And i am sure Angela will be wanting to keep an eye on the greeks to make sure they dont up set the Euro apple cart

  7. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What gave it away? Sloppy work 'cause nobody gives a fuck anymore. Why bother hiding that you're spying on the people after you noticed that, hey, the people don't care?

    Wouldn't you feel a bit let down? I mean, think about it, you spend resources, time and energy on hiding that you're essentially putting your citizens under total surveillance, you enjoy how you manage to deceive and fool your population, only to notice that the main reason it worked was that nobody gives a shit?

    That must hurt some egos, really. And of course they go "ffft, why bother with stealth, they don't appreciate it at all!"

    The more central and pertinent issue might be that people feel powerless and don't know how to respond to such a broad and overarching system of checks that were unknown to them until recently. The mouse does not complain about the maze because the mouse knows no better. Cheese, wheels and conditioning.

    God bless America.

  8. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by znrt · · Score: 2

    The more central and pertinent issue might be that people feel powerless

    that's definitely an issue, but GP's irony is spot on, the central issue is that most of us simply don't know / don't care. if we did we'd eventually find out that we're not so powerless after all.

    God bless America.

    abuse of power comes with power, it's not an "US mentality" thing. it's just US (elite) has (still) way too much power (right now), but don't believe for a second that EU powers, despite all of the public righteousness in these topics, don't incur in the very same abuse aswell. and even though current US policing is strongly questionable there's absolutely no sign that the world will be better off after the foreseeable coming power shift. quite the contrary.

  9. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by Opportunist · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The main reason the EU powers that are are so outraged about the spying is simply that it happens TO them, not BY them.

    Merkel (German chancellor) just yesterday found out that her cell was bugged by the NSA. The outrage was all over the place. Just a year ago the total surveillance of Germans on the internet was "without alternative".

    Don't ever think anyone of the polidroids that now get irate over the wholesale spying wouldn't do it to you in the blink of an eye. They only hate if if it's done ON them, but they love to have it done BY them.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  10. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by gbjbaanb · · Score: 5, Insightful

    someone needs to reveal that Obama's phone was tapped by, say, the Korean government. Then, surely we'd see the American government continue to say how perfectly reasonable and normal phone interception of world leaders is.

  11. Link to source by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    http://europe-v-facebook.org/

    Lazy submitter, bad editor, silly techweek for omitting it...

  12. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by cold+fjord · · Score: 1

    What gave it away? Sloppy work 'cause nobody gives a fuck anymore. Why bother hiding that you're spying on the people after you noticed that, hey, the people don't care?

    Wouldn't you feel a bit let down? I mean, think about it, you spend resources, time and energy on hiding that you're essentially putting your citizens under total surveillance, you enjoy how you manage to deceive and fool your population, only to notice that the main reason it worked was that nobody gives a shit?

    You're quite mistaken. Somebody cares.

    --
    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
  13. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by cold+fjord · · Score: 1

    The Russians and Chinese are keeping very quiet about their intelligence on world leaders, as well as everything else. Since Snowden apparently didn't bother to bring copies of documents on what is know about them we probably won't hear much about it.

    --
    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
  14. This feels like Christmas for me by DoofusOfDeath · · Score: 1

    Activist citizens using Europe's consumer data protection laws attacking the NSA and Facebook in one fell swoop?

    I just feel so giddy.

  15. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by cusco · · Score: 1

    That's the address for T-Mobile, if anyone wonders.

    --
    "Think about how stupid the average person is. Now, realise that half of them are dumber than that." - George Carlin
  16. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by DoofusOfDeath · · Score: 1

    Well, that, and the uneasy thought that some level of covert surveillance might actually be necessary, in some cases, to prevent things like 9/11.

    I for one don't know exactly how much surveillance is enough to give the best tradeoff of (a) risk of mass murder by terrorist, vs. (b) risk of American becoming a full-blown dictatorship,

    I suspect the NSA is over-reaching, and I definitely consider them to be violating the intent of the Constitution. But I don't know by how much, and most of my fellow citizens seem generally okay with the current balance, so what I believe doesn't apparently matter much anyway.

  17. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by wisnoskij · · Score: 1

    No, people absolutely do not feel powerless, they just do not care, if they are even aware.

    1% might feel powerless, but that is probably an exaggeration.

    --
    Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
  18. NSA into music now? by honestmonkey · · Score: 1

    Why is the NSA putting out Katy Perry's new album?

    --
    Everything you know is wrong, Just forget the words and sing along.
  19. Stop Using Facebook by koan · · Score: 1

    Just stop.
    http://inc.anphicle.com/2010/07/they-trust-me-dumb-zuckerberg.jpg

    --
    "If any question why we died, Tell them because our fathers lied."
  20. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by sjames · · Score: 1

    The rabbit's default response is to freeze, then to run. Take away those options by cornering it and it will make sure you never forget that it has teeth and claws again.

  21. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by sjames · · Score: 1

    Quick, you are outraged that the NSA has captured the metadata about every phone call you have ever made, what is your action plan?

  22. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    Our government didn't care JACK about it as long as spying was only done on US but not THEM. Didn't notice it? SWIFT? And all the other "data peering agreements"? Never heard of it, how they were bending over backwards to agree on data exchange with the US so they get all the juicy data about all of their subjects, I mean, citizens?

    The only reason for the outrage is that now their own privacy is being violated. As long as it only happened to us plebes, nobody gave half a shit. Quite the contrary, they wanted in on it.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  23. Re:Quick, somebody do something! by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    US intelligence saying that Snowden informing the public about illegal wiretapping is bad because now the badbadbad terrrrrrists change their tactics. Umm. Sure. And I'll believe that... why exactly?

    Assertion without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.

    Sorry, but the intel boys have about as much credibility left as the average used car salesman.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.