John Young
The Guardian Weekly, Volume 156, Issue 9 Week ending March 2, 1997, Page 4:
UK to join FBI phone taps
Richard Norton-Taylor and Alison Daniels
BRITAIN has secretly agreed with its European Union partners to set up an international telecommunications tapping system in co-operation with the FBI, it was revealed on Monday.
The agreement covers telephones and written communications -- telexes, faxes and e-mail. To make tapping easier, telecommunications companies will be obliged to give security and intelligence agencies the key to codes installed in equipment sold to private customers.
Sounds like this will cover any communications software or hardware commercially available. Looks like mandatory GAK. It is interesting that they should target commercial suppliers, rather than users. Also interesting that they should feel unsure enough about public opinion to plan it all in secret. To those who said the US 1st ammendment would prevent this happening in the US: looks like you were wrong. Has there been any corresponding US press on the FBI side of the sikrit GAK plans?
Detailed plans are being drawn up by officials in a secret network of EU committees established under the "third pillar" of the Maastricht Treaty, covering co-operation on law and order issues.
Blech. These people have _no_ respect for democracy, it's all secret cloak and dagger stuff. Is that anyway for laws to be decided in supposedly democratic countries? Does the public have no right to affect the introduction of new laws? I suppose the spooks know better what's good for us than we do?
Civil liberties groups, while agreeing that there was a need for such an agreement to fight against serious crime,
Erm which `civil liberties group' agreed that there was a need for mandatory GAK?
said the plans raised a number of privacy and data protection issues and must be the subject of a full public debate.
To damn right privacy issues are raised, and that the subject should be open for public debate.
Britain is an enthusiastic supporter of joint action in this area, which is conducted on an inter-governmental basis with no role for the European Commission, the European Parliament or the European Court of Justice. It is an area where the EU's "democratic deficit" is most evident.
Key points of the plan are outlined in a memorandum of understanding signed by EU states in 1995, which is still classified.
Un-fucking-believeable! Classified documents determining the _publics_ future right to freedom of speech. You don't even get to see the document let alone discuss it. Signed way back in 1995.
It reflects increasing concern among European intelligence agencies that modern technology will prevent them from tapping private communications. EU governments agreed to co-operate closely with the FBI in Washington as they work out detailed plans.
How about someone in the US puts in a FOIA for the FBI half of this?
(At least you guys have a FOIA).
Adam
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