Germany Scores First: Ends Verizon Contract Over NSA Concerns

schwit1 (797399) writes with word that, after revelations that Verizon assisted the NSA in its massive surveillance program, Germany is cutting ties with Verizon as their infrastructure provider. From the article: The Interior Ministry says it will let its current contract for Internet services with the New York-based company expire in 2015. The announcement comes after reports this week that Verizon and British company Colt provide Internet services to the German parliament and other official entities. ... Ministry spokesman Tobias Plate said Thursday that Germany wants to ensure it has full control over highly sensitive government communications networks.

Comments

Now it's time for New York to nut up!

[killfixx]

New York and New Jersey.

Verizon has been fucking them for years...hard!

Never thought I'd feel bad for people from Jersey...

Are you getting it yet?

[Anonymous Coward]

Nobody wants anything communications-related from the U.S.A. anymore.

Re:Are you getting it yet?

[gatkinso]

What kind of fools would trust their internal government communications to a foreign company in the first place?

Re:Are you getting it yet?

[PolygamousRanchKid]

Germany probably thought that the US were their allies . . .

. . . fools, indeed! The US doesn't have any allies any more; just enemies. Or, at least they treat everyone as enemies.

Hell, even the citizens of the US are treated as enemies by their own government . . .

Re:Are you getting it yet?

[HiThere]

FWIW I'm *still* a paranoid freak. I don't believe that ANY centralization of power under the control of humans can be trusted. People are corruptible, and worse, some among them are psychotically driven to seek positions of power. At some point any position of power will fall under the control of one of them, and his (these characters are extremely predominately male) first act will be to extend his current power, and his second will be to increase his immunity to repercussions for his illegal, or at least immoral, actions.

Please note that this doesn't mean I think there is any reasonable way to eliminate such concentrations of power. What it means is that I think it should be made as difficult as possible to reach such a position by political maneuvering and scheming. To this end sometimes I suggest that the holder of such a position should be selected by lottery among those technically qualified. This will produce an inefficient government, as those selected would be less adept at diplomatic negotiations and compromise. OTOH, look at the current congress, and contemplate whether it could do worse. I am bothered by isolated positions of power such as the POTUS, but my real feeling is that they should be devolved into purely symbolic offices, and the real power should vest in some small committee, selected, as suggested above, by lottery....and not from any small pool of candidates.

OTOH, I can see the value of voting, if not of plurality wins voting. So I am also moderately supportive of Instant Runoff Voting or Condorcet Voting. They would clearly be an improvement over the current system, though they would increase the problem of information overload at election time.

As for Germany...I suspect that their motives are basically economic, but this time it's causing them to make the correct decision. They should not trust a foreign country with their governmental communications.

Yes.

[mojo-raisin]

Snowden is truly a hero.

This rocks.

How many of these will it take?

[kolbe]

For their corporate lobbyists to actually get some movement on Capital Hill and attempt to undo this.

Is it any different with anybody else?

[mbkennel]

There's an illusion that the USA is unique in this. It isn't, it's just that there aren't any other whistleblowers.

If you contract with Deutsche Telecom, you'll be subjected to German intelligence interception certainly.

Realistically---you'll be subjected to German, British, Chinese, French, Russian, American and Israeli intelligence interception to some degree or another.

Re:Is it any different with anybody else?

[timeOday]

The USA is unique in the resources it can devote, and therefore the scale at which it can operate. Which is to say, it is unique.

Re: Is it any different with anybody else?

[Anonymous Coward]

Are you 13? I think you are 13.

Re:wtf forced on beta again?

[Anonymous Coward]

You don't understand. It could be impossible for him to disable it. The footer link and the nobeta=1 QS parameter sometimes just don't work at all for me, I guess because Slashdot Beta is just that fucking broken. But other times they do work just fine. It's a crapshoot, really. Even legends like Bjarne Stroustrup or Sir Tim Berners-Lee could get stymied by the same bug, and they'd have no choice but to make similar complaints, too. The real fix is just to totally get rid of the dung heap that's called the Slashdot Beta. That'll fix the problem completely, and properly.

Re:How is Verizon involved?

[sjames]

If they shared nothing but the name, that would be one thing, but they actually share the same management as far as I know.

A $2 whore is still a $2 whore even if she moves to another country.

De-americanization has officially began

[boorack]

Will be somewhat off-topic but still (somewhat) related.

De-americanization has officially began when Russia signed gas deal with China bypassing dollar. This process started long ago but with this deal it's now official. Things seem to speed up since then. Germany Verizon thing is just another domino piece falling. Regardless of what Americans think of it, I see it as a good thing. Aside from taking (most of the) world of american hegemony, ending of US imperial project can benefit Americans themselves - granted that their (incompetent and incredibly corrupt) government manages to transition from imperial power to ordinary (but better managed) country in orderly way (that is, without inciting WW3).

Message to fellow Americans: you're still one of the most progressive folks in the world (yet NOT the most ones), it's just your fucked up government that sucks, causes mayhem (Ukraine being the last manifestation of this) and blocks your potential. It's time to abandon your imperial/global hegemony policies - you can prosper pretty damn well in a multipolar world (much better than most of the rest). It all depends on you. BUT there are few things to do. You need to bring your fucked-up out-of-control government back in control, forget about american exceptionalism and learn to live in (competitive) multipolar world (ie. do not solve all problem using military or inciting civil wars).

Re:De-americanization has officially began

[AHuxley]

The world has already had near constant regional conflicts via Covert United States foreign regime change actions
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
Most nations may not want to be at some "plate" allowed crumbs by a 'superpower' if they elect a good party or live under a tame dictator.

Re:De-americanization has officially began

[the eric conspiracy]

> De-americanization has officially began when Russia signed gas deal with China bypassing dollar.

Relatively local trade of that sort has often avoided conversion into a third currency. Nothing new.

The idea that Russia or Chinese currency would make significant inroads against the dollar is preposterous. The ruble is so untrusted that commerce within Russia often is done in dollars as Russia is the largest holder of US banknotes in the world.. China - well let me know when their currency flows are not restricted, and they adopt some sort of internationally accepted accounting standard.

As far as American involvement in other countries, you guys in Europe seemed mighty happy back on this date in 1963 when Kennedy came to Berlin to express his solidarity.

As far as the Ukraine goes that's strictly a EU thing. Russia is getting bent out of shape because the Ukraine wants to start the process of joining the EU. However since the Russia basically keeps Europe from starving with natural gas that is converted into fertilizer, the EU is in no position to say boo to Russia so it's up to the US to try to exert pressure on them. Nothing new, the US has been propping up Europe for the last 60 years.

Personally I'd like to see the US withdraw from Europe (and NATO). It would help us immeasurably from a financial point of view to not pay for the EU's defense any more and in addition I'd get a laugh watching you starve in the dark when Russia shut off your gas and oil.