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Judges OK warrantless monitoring of Web use Federal agents do not need a search warrant to monitor a suspect's computer use and determine the e-mail addresses and Web pages the suspect is contacting, a federal appeals court ruled Friday. In a drug case from San Diego County, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco likened computer surveillance to the "pen register" devices that officers use to pinpoint the phone numbers a suspect dials, without listening to the phone calls themselves. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the use of pen registers in 1979, saying callers have no right to conceal from the government the numbers they communicate electronically to the phone companies that carry their calls. Federal law requires court approval for a pen register. But because it is not considered a search, authorities do not need a search warrant, which would require them to show that the surveillance is likely to produce evidence of a crime. They also do not need a wiretap order, which would require them to show that less intrusive methods of surveillance have failed or would be futile. In Friday's ruling, the court said computer users should know that they lose privacy protections with e-mail and Web site addresses when they are communicated to the company whose equipment carries the messages....
Feds use key logger to thwart PGP, Hushmail A recent court case provides a rare glimpse into how some federal agents deal with encryption: by breaking into a suspect's home or office, implanting keystroke-logging software, and spying on what happens from afar. An agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration persuaded a federal judge to authorize him to sneak into an Escondido, Calif., office believed to be a front for manufacturing the drug MDMA, or Ecstasy. The DEA received permission to copy the hard drives' contents and inject a keystroke logger into the computers. That was necessary, according to DEA Agent Greg Coffey, because the suspects were using PGP and the encrypted Web e-mail service Hushmail.com. Coffey asserted that the DEA needed "real-time and meaningful access" to "monitor the keystrokes" for PGP and Hushmail passphrases. The aggressive surveillance techniques employed by the DEA were part of a case that resulted in a ruling on Friday by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which primarily dealt with Internet surveillance through a wiretap conducted on a PacBell (now AT&T) business DSL line used by the defendants. Note there's no evidence the DEA used the FBI's keystroke logger known as Magic Lantern, which reportedly can be installed remotely by taking advantage of operating system vulnerabilities without having agents physically break into an office....
Fort Dix Prosecutors Seek Anonymous Jury Federal prosecutors have asked that an anonymous jury be impaneled for the trial of six men accused of plotting to attack soldiers on Fort Dix. In a motion filed Monday, the U.S. attorney's office said potential jurors might fear for their safety because of the nature of the charges and the international publicity around the case. The request could be discussed at a meeting Friday before U.S. District Judge Robert Kugler. Attorney Rocco Cipparone, who represents Mohamad Shnewer, told the Courier-Post of Cherry Hill for Tuesday's editions that he opposes an anonymous jury, fearing it would only fuel the perception that the defendants are dangerous....
New York City Plans 'Ring of Steel' The city that never sleeps is about to get many more unblinking eyes. According to a report in Monday's New York Times, New York City is setting up a web of surveillance cameras, remote-controlled roadblocks, and license-reading technology throughout lower Manhattan, which includes Wall Street. New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly told the Times that the project is "very critical to the economic lifeblood of this nation." The new security Relevant Products/Services measures, he said, will make the city "less vulnerable." When completed, the Lower Manhattan Security Initiative will have 3,000 public and private security cameras below Canal Street, as well as a center for police and private security officials. About 2,000 of the cameras will be owned by downtown businesses. The entire initiative is projected to be completed by 2010, with 100 cameras being operational before the end of this year. There will be cameras in fixed locations, in addition to mobile ones in cars and helicopters. The information will be transmitted live. According to the Times, the police have not yet decided if they will use face-recognition technology, but they will be able to read license plates. Some observers questioned the efficiency of the cameras, as well as the privacy issues they raise. The New York Civil Liberties Union has said that the program is being implemented without any public input, and that there are no safeguards for how the images are used or made accessible. Others, such as the conservative Heritage Foundation, noted that there is little evidence security cameras actually deter terrorism....