Following is the text of a reply from EarthLink stating their now "official" policy re: Carnivore. It's interesting to note that, instead of citing tech problems as the reason for not permitting Carnivore's installation, they now claim that "We do not allow the installation of Carnivore on our network because it has the potential to compromise the privacy of our legitimate users and the performance of our network.", thereby seeming to have considered privacy the paramount issue. I don't know if this is simply spin control, or what. They further refer to an "internal solution" that will satisfy, somehow, the FBI without compromising privacy, but do not go into detail as to exatctly what this "solution" might be. THEY (Earthlink) may, as stated, "sleep well knowing that our customers are safe from unauthorized surveillance.", but I'm not sure how well their subscribers will. After all, the first FBI efforts to install Carnivore happened a while back and, to my knowledge, no Earthlink/Mindspring subscribers were ever informed then. If this hadn't hit the press, it's my bet they never would have been.
"Thank you for your inquiries into the FBI's "Carnivore". We have received many inquiries, many Kudos and many sneers for what has been in the news in the last couple weeks. Much of the information that the press has published has been inaccurate or misleading. Earthlink takes the following stance (in quotes below).
"We do not allow the installation of Carnivore on our network because it has the potential to compromise the privacy of our legitimate users and the performance of our network. We have an internal solution which allows us to comply with court orders without the presence of government personnel or equipment in our buildings. The government accepts this solution since they still receive the requested information about the criminal suspect, and we sleep well knowing that our customers are safe from unauthorized surveillance."
Sincerely, Mary Youngblood Privacy Policy Earthlink/Mindspring Abuse Team Manager
How in the world can ANYONE be surprised/shocked/chagrined/enraged about this latest slouch toward Big Brotherism? In a society that accepts no personal responsibility for its actions ("It's not MY fault! I have low self-esteem! I have self-image issues! It's all because of (choose any/all the following): My parents; My teachers; My friends; My neighborhood; My genetic predisposition; My poverty-stricken background; Allen Ginsberg; Rock n Roll lyrics; Television; The Evil Internet!!!" How could we hope to escape someone/something stepping in to decide what's good for us and what isn't? We've been begging for it! This isn't a "Constitutional Issue". We've abdicated all rights to making our own decisions by demonstrating that we are incapable of determining our own destinies and owning up to our own transgressions.
Re:Had to love the chick in the leather outfit...
on
X-Files FPS Episode
·
· Score: 1
>...was co-written by William Gibson and Tom Maddox
Slashdot Mirror
Following is the text of a reply from EarthLink stating their now "official" policy re: Carnivore.
It's interesting to note that, instead of citing tech problems as the reason for not permitting Carnivore's installation, they now claim that "We do not allow the installation of Carnivore on our network because it has the potential to compromise the privacy of our legitimate users and the performance of our network.", thereby seeming to have considered privacy the paramount issue. I don't know if this is simply spin control, or what. They further refer to an "internal solution" that will satisfy, somehow, the FBI without compromising privacy, but do not go into detail as to exatctly what this "solution" might be.
THEY (Earthlink) may, as stated, "sleep well knowing that our customers are safe from unauthorized surveillance.", but I'm not sure how well their subscribers will. After all, the first FBI efforts to install Carnivore happened a while back and, to my knowledge, no Earthlink/Mindspring subscribers were ever informed then. If this hadn't hit the press, it's my bet they never would have been.
"Thank you for your inquiries into the FBI's "Carnivore". We have received many inquiries, many Kudos and many sneers for what has been in the news in the last couple weeks. Much of the information that the press has published has been inaccurate or misleading. Earthlink takes the following stance
(in
quotes below).
"We do not allow the installation of Carnivore on our network because it has the potential to compromise the privacy of our legitimate users and the performance of our network. We have an internal solution which allows us to comply with court orders without the presence of government personnel or equipment in our buildings. The government accepts this solution since they
still receive the requested information about the criminal suspect, and we sleep well knowing that our customers are safe from unauthorized
surveillance."
Sincerely,
Mary Youngblood
Privacy Policy
Earthlink/Mindspring Abuse Team Manager
How in the world can ANYONE be surprised/shocked/chagrined/enraged about this latest slouch toward Big Brotherism? In a society that accepts no personal responsibility for its actions ("It's not MY fault! I have low self-esteem! I have self-image issues! It's all because of (choose any/all the following): My parents; My teachers; My friends; My neighborhood; My genetic predisposition; My poverty-stricken background; Allen Ginsberg; Rock n Roll lyrics; Television; The Evil Internet!!!" How could we hope to escape someone/something stepping in to decide what's good for us and what isn't? We've been begging for it! This isn't a "Constitutional Issue". We've abdicated all rights to making our own decisions by demonstrating that we are incapable of determining our own destinies and owning up to our own transgressions.
>...was co-written by William Gibson and Tom Maddox