AP: Police Got Phone Data From Brokers

[Judi Lynn]

AP: Police Got Phone Data From Brokers
By TED BRIDIS

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

(06-20) 00:26 PDT WASHINGTON (AP) --

Numerous federal and local law enforcement agencies have bypassed subpoenas and warrants designed to protect civil liberties and gathered Americans' personal telephone records from private-sector data brokers.

These brokers, many of whom advertise aggressively on the Internet, have gotten into customer accounts online, tricked phone companies into revealing information and even acknowledged that their practices violate laws, according to documents gathered by congressional investigators and provided to The Associated Press.

The law enforcement agencies include offices in the Homeland Security Department and Justice Department — including the FBI and U.S. Marshal's Service — and municipal police departments in California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia and Utah. Experts believe hundreds of other departments frequently use such services.

"We are requesting any and all information you have regarding the above cell phone account and the account holder ... including account activity and the account holder's address," Ana Bueno, a police investigator in Redwood City, Calif., wrote in October to PDJ Investigations of Granbury, Texas.
(snip/...)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/06/20/financial/f002608D27.DTL&type=politics

[acmejack]

1. So law enforcement doesn't bother with the law anymore.

I guess that is only for us victims, er subjects...

[dbt]

2. Now, the outbreak of data theft over the past couple of years

begins to make sense. Just another Parcel Of Rogues getting rich in bu$h-o-Murka, and Lawnorda be damned! So many people who need to burn in hell for so many things, yet so little time...

:freak:
dbt
Remember New Orleans

[Demeter]

3. Hell's Gonna Be Awfully Crowded In A Few Years

and there goes the neighborhood!

[Vidar]

4. The police always do well under dictators.

[UpInArms]

5. kick

:grr:

:nuke:

[Heywood J]

6. K&R

This deserves the front page as much as the NSA thing did.

[Eugene]

7. AP: Data Brokers Brace for Congress Scrutiny

Data Brokers Brace for Congress Scrutiny


Wednesday June 21, 2006 12:46 PM

AP Photo WX106

By TED BRIDIS

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Private data brokers who covertly gather Americans' telephone records
without subpoenas or warrants on behalf of banks, bail bondsmen and even federal and
local police are bracing for intensive scrutiny by Congress.

These brokers, many of whom market aggressively on the Internet, have tricked telephone
carriers into revealing private customer information and broken into online accounts,
sometimes by guessing passwords that were the names of pets, according to documents
obtained by The Associated Press.

<snip>

Sensitive to public unease over disclosures of private phone records in the murky
industry, U.S. lawmakers pledged oversight hearings starting Wednesday to investigate
which laws, if any, might have been violated:

<snip>

"There's a good chance there are some laws being broken, but it's not really clear
precisely which laws," said Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Ky., head of the House Energy and
Commerce investigations subcommittee.

<snip>

Full article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-5901567,00.html