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FCC Won't Release DDoS Logs, And Will Probably Honor Fake Comments (zdnet.com)

Posted by EditorDavid on from the staying-neutral dept.

An anonymous reader quotes ZDNet on the alleged denial of service attack which blocked comments supporting net neutrality. In a ZDNet interview, FCC chief information officer David Bray said that the agency would not release the logs, in part because the logs contain private information, such as IP addresses. In unprinted remarks, he said that the logs amounted to about 1 gigabyte per hour during the alleged attack... The log files showed that non-human [and cloud-based] bots submitted a flood of comments using the FCC's API. The bot that submitted these comments sparked the massive uptick in internet traffic on the FCC by using the public API as a vehicle...

Bray's comments further corroborate a ZDNet report (and others) that showed unknown anti-net neutrality spammers were behind the posting of hundreds of thousands of the same messages to the FCC's website using people's names and addresses without their consent -- a so-called "astroturfing" technique -- in an apparent attempt to influence the results of a public solicitation for feedback on net neutrality. Speaking to reporters last week, FCC chairman Ajit Pai hinted that the agency would likely honor those astroturfed comments, nonetheless.

6 of 83 comments (clear)

  1. The FCC was always like this by ArchieBunker · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Back when Howard Stern was their main focus they counted every form letter as a unique complaint. So those fringe religious groups would send in a million identical letters and the FCC would count one million complaints.

    --
    Only the State obtains its revenue by coercion. - Murray Rothbard
  2. Prepare for a world of hurt by mnemotronic · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Mr. Pai is essentially saying that DDOSing and astroturfing is OK. This may be the wrong message to send.

    --
    The Russians have won. They have made the world a cesspool of distrust, greed, fear and hate.
    1. Re:Prepare for a world of hurt by arth1 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I believe his idea is that ISPs should be able to charge extra for DDOSing and astroturfing, and then it's okay. Whether you're the perp or the victim.

  3. How the regulatory process works... by volkris · · Score: 4, Interesting

    In regulatory processes of the United States, regulatory bodies are charged with implementing the laws passed by Congress and the president. THAT's where the democratic part of the process is, where vote counts matter.

    The regulatory process goes on to seek comments not as a way of redoing the legislative process, but just to make sure all the Ts have been crossed. For every issue brought up in comments (NOT for every comment) the agency has to justify its position.

    In short, in the regulatory processes of the US, a million comments with the same concern represent one concern. Pushes by special interests and news organizations to have people submit the same perspective over and over again merely waste governmental resources as workers have to remove the duplicate comments.

    Slashdot should do a better job of informing readers about how the regulatory process works. It's misleading to present this story as if the numbers of comments matter directly or to talk about "honoring" fake comments.

    1. Re:How the regulatory process works... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Actually, some of us have actually existed prior to this particular instant in time. During our time in existence we have experienced FCC officials citing the number of comments received concerning some issues as justification for particular actions. Also, we have experienced situations where the sheer numbers led people to the realization of what is mainstream thus silencing any serious accusations of "radical" or "fringe" by opponents of a view. So you did use "directly" as a weasel word but your core point is false.; The numbers actually do matter. Of course the denial of service keeps some comments from reaching the FCC so there is that problem as well. I believe people can communicate freely within the general bounds of civil conversation. Just because they don't present things with specific distortions and veiled dishonesty that you desire is no sin or cause for criticism.

    2. Re:How the regulatory process works... by volkris · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Commissioners are free to cite numbers in their press releases, but in terms of the actual substance and legality of regulations, the notice and comment procedure doesn't have much to do with numbers. The regulator has to address issues whether they be brought be one person or a thousand.

      You can see this in action by pulling up final rules as published in the Federal Register, which is what individuals and companies have to adhere to. In such a publication the regulator goes through addressing concerns regardless of the number of people who submitted each concern.

      For example, here's the recent final rule on Alaska subsistence hunting. Notice that the regulator broke out eighteen individual issues brought up in comments, regardless of how many people may have provided each.
      https://www.federalregister.go...

      (Yes, I'm belaboring the point to stress it)

      It's no weasel word to say that blasting redundant comments at the FCC's webpage doesn't do anything directly. Instead, that captures how US regulatory processes actually work. And heck, it serves as a reminder that Congress, not the regulator, is the place to go to push for change. If regulators were free to make their own laws based on things like website submission counts, that would be a bad thing.