U.S. Law Enforcement Used Warrant to Spy on MegaUpload
U.S. Law Enforcement Used Warrant to Spy on MegaUpload
Posted 01/31/2012 at 4:08pm
| by Ryan Whitwam
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Ever since MegaUpload was hit with arrests and seizures last week, everyone has been wondering how the US government managed to get access to internal communications between the company’s founders. Most of the incriminating conversations cited in the indictment are Skype IMs that would have long been purged from Skype’s servers. According to Cnet, it has been confirmed that the FBI obtained a warrant to obtain the data, and that might have included using government-issued spyware.
The FBI gained court approval in 2007 to use spyware that could be planted on a suspect’s computer, allowing the feds to monitor a user’s activities. While Skype deletes data from its servers after 30 days, a local log on a user’s machine could contain much older data. Some of the IMs in question are from 2007. It is unclear if 5 years of logs were on a compromised PC, but a possibility of a 5 year surveillance operation seems more unlikely.
The 70 page indictment contains a multitude of IM conversations in which the founders admit to being a ‘risky situation’ with regard to the site. They also regularly downloaded infringing videos from the MegaUpload servers. How do you think the feds got all this evidence?
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abmhpd
February 01, 2012 at 9:16am
I guess the powers that be do not have enough terrorism to deal with so now its time to take on the American citizen. Maybe they will divide Gitmo 1/2 terrorist the other 1/2 the dangerous downloder.
noobstix
January 31, 2012 at 11:51pm
So the next time I get a virus on my computer, I'll blame the government. I won't blame myself nor any sort of random hacker with a leet name, but I will blame the government.
GenMasterB
January 31, 2012 at 8:42pm
How does a US judge actually go about the approving of a spyware tap on a PC that's out of the country AND poses no threat to us militarily? Don't you think we're overstepping our bounds? Our country has no right to do that.. Unless of course we rule the world.. hmmmm...
slibinz
January 31, 2012 at 10:39pm
How does the NSA exist? How is the DEA constitutional? Who deems the CIA to be legal?
These all can be answered with The Golden Rule: He who has the gold, makes the rules. Those in power always rig the system to hold onto or accumulate as much of that power as possible.
And when you speak up? They just laugh, cuz what the %#!& are you gonna do about it? Write a strongly worded letter? Go "occupy" some park?
Government should protect it's citizens and their liberties. It should do *nothing* else. The term "government spyware" makes me want to vomit with rage, and it surely makes people like Thomas Jefferson spin in his grave.
Nimrod
January 31, 2012 at 10:28pm
good question. I wonder if that judge works as a high paid consultant for the MPAA now.
Biceps
January 31, 2012 at 8:32pm
According to what I've read, most of the operations the US gov't runs to collect data before a bust go on for an inordinate amount of time. The gov't has all the time in the world, and know that every extra day they can get more info on incriminating activities = stronger case. It's not like the surveillance targets are going to stop their lucrative illegal activities, and even if they did, well, there are still a couple years of old evidence to prosecute against.
If you look at the biggest drug busts by the DEA, typically there are also 3,4, 5+ years of every phone call, email, etc. being recorded. The FBI probably has to move a bit faster, but when they nailed Rajaratnam for insider trading, they had been recording his calls for weeks/months.
Welcome to the new world. Either live in it or disconnect. I'm livin' it.
slibinz
January 31, 2012 at 10:50pm
Welcome to the new world?
Well here's a little old world quote for ya. "He who would trade liberty for some temporary security, deserves neither liberty nor security." - Benjamin Franklin
Just go with the flow, just bend over and take it? That sounds about as alpha-male-establishment-prison-industrial-complex as you can get. Shouldn't surprise me though, from someone who'd name themselves Biceps....
Biceps
February 01, 2012 at 11:00am
Listen here, you dumbfuck. Go read my 500 other posts on maxpc.com and you will see that I am often the first to step up in defense of the freedoms that have been systematically stripped away from us over the years. I care deeply about our freedom of speech, and our rights as citizens, and I fight for them in real ways that go beyond your ill-informed flames when you mis-read a comment. Get off the interwebz and go do something real, Nancy.
My point is and was the the surveillance state isn't fucking going anywhere. Ever. So fucking be aware of it and don't get caught with your pants down like so many fools (like Megaupload) do. I can understand how the obviously overwhelming subtlety I used in my previous comment evaded your massive intellect.
Biceps is an old nickname and I happened to use it here, bfd. Blow me.
slibinz
February 02, 2012 at 8:43am
You care about our freedoms, yet you're message is basically that the battle is already lost, so just be paranoid?
"My point is and was the the surveillance state isn't fucking going anywhere. Ever"
Not with defeatist thinking like that. Keep your pessimism to yourself, I'll keep fighting to get our freedoms back.
Biceps
February 02, 2012 at 9:35am
Ok, buddy. Let me know when people stop using Facebook and when they disband the department of homeland security. I don't think there is much chance of turning it all around, but I keep working at it anyway. Too many sheeple glazed out over iPhones and reality tv. You do realize that the average American doesn't even know what the NDAA is?
I applaud your energy and optimism, and hope I am wrong and you are right. The fact that I keep fighting when I believe the battle lost may tell you something about my character, if you stop to think about it for a second.
If you truly want to effect change, you will need to win hearts and minds (not that there are many minds left). Running around insulting everyone who you disagree with probably won't get you very far with that goal, and it derails productive conversation. Of course, that is exactly what I would expext from someone who names themself slibinz.
nforce
January 31, 2012 at 6:02pm
They should have been using BES for communication. Then this would have not been a problem.
Biceps
February 02, 2012 at 11:22am
Would BES defeat a key-logger? I don't think the gov't was using a key-logger in this, case, I'm just curious.
tekknyne
January 31, 2012 at 4:57pm
The crime for downloading Michael Jackson music under SOPA: 5 years. The crime for killing Michael Jackson: 4 years ... and you thought our government valued your life.
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