"It's interesting and disappointing that other search engines would provide this material. It's what we've been worried about all along. The fact that Google is refusing the subpoena...my initial reaction is three cheers for Google. But there is a sidebar to this. Part of the reason these problems come up is because this data is being retained in the first place.''
http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2006/01/what_if_we_prom.html January 18, 2006 What if we promise not to show the records to Karl Rove? If you don't regularly anonymize your Google cookie (http://www.imilly.com/google-cookie.htm) and purge your personalized search history, now might be a good time to start (then again, in this day and age, why bother?). (http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/13647591.htm) The Department of Justice on Wednesday asked a federal judge to order Google to comply with a subpoena issued last year for search records stored in its databases. (http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/13657386.htm) The DOJ argues that the information it has requested, which includes one million random Web addresses and records of all Google searches from a one-week period, is essential to its upcoming defense of the constitutionality of the Child Online Protection Act (think of the children!). (http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/analysis.aspx?id=12789) Google has so far refused to comply with the subpoena, saying the release of such information would violate the privacy of its users. "Google is not a party to this lawsuit, and the demand for the information is overreaching,'' Nicole Wong, an associate general counsel for Google, told The Mercury News. "[We plan to fight the government's effort] "vigorously.'' Here's hoping the company prevails. The release of such records sets a truly unsettling precedent. And if the goverment's claim that other, unspecified search engines have already agreed to release similar information proves true, we have already lost our footing on a very slippery, very dangerous slope. Said privacy advocate Lauren Weinstein, (http://www.siliconbeat.com/entries/2006/01/18/googles_privacy_fight_with_the_government.html#more) "It's interesting and disappointing that other search engines would provide this material. It's what we've been worried about all along. The fact that Google is refusing the subpoena...my initial reaction is three cheers for Google. But there is a sidebar to this. Part of the reason these problems come up is because this data is being retained in the first place.'' UPDATE: Here's the federal government's motion to compel Google to turn over user search data to the Justice Department: Motion to Compel (Gonzales v. Google, Inc.) (http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/google/gonzgoog11806m.html) -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/