Monitoring program: Google sees damaged his reputation - Times Online

The misleading reporting prism have confused users, says Google. The company asked the U.S. authorities to be allowed to be more transparent.

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Google data center in Pryor, Oklahoma

Google feared reporting on the NSA surveillance program Prism has harmed his reputation and his business. Mind you, Google does not complain about the spying program itself, only the reports were misleading about the company complained. It will therefore be transparent and has asked the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (Fisc), henceforth to be allowed to publish at least approximate figures for the court-ordered surveillance.

secret meets on court decides on the applications of the NSA and other agencies to be able to spy on the electronic communications of certain individuals or groups. Fisabilillah inquiries welcome these proposals, according to the underlying law, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (Fisa). The court rejected those applications as good as ever. With the court orders, the authorities then go to Google and other U.S. companies and demand the return of user data. The Company may Fisa about such warrants have not even speak because all subject to confidentiality.

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Google wants to change. The reason is mainly the media coverage of Prism. Literally, in the application to the court: “. Google’s reputation and business has been Harmed by the false or misleading reports in the media, and Google’s users are Concerned by the allegations ” Translation: “Google reputation and his business has been damaged by false and misleading reports in the media, and Google users are concerned about the allegations against Google. “

particular, the first reports in Guardian and the Washington Post is that Google are so angry. In both articles, it says that the NSA had for surveillance as part of Prism direct access to the servers of Google and other U.S. companies. Google CEO and general counsel David Drummond had immediately agreed to have never heard of Prism and not to grant direct access to its servers to the U.S. government.

Patrick Beuth

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Patrick Beuth is digital editor at the resort at ZEIT ONLINE. His profile page click here.

Drummond put on a little later and explained several times how Google works with the NSA. Accordingly, the Authority must submit a court order for any request for user data, which would be reviewed by Google’s lawyers. If the application is in order, Google, copy the requested data to a server of the authority. Accurate Drummond could not yet say.

Snwoden Edward, who had reported in Guardian and in the Washington Post of the spy program that is somewhat different dar. After his description of the data requests from NSA or CIA come a live very close monitoring. Analysts of services could search for keywords in the raw data and would get similar results in near real time on their computer. How exactly do you access data, not Snowden said. But Snowden says, in many cases, analysts would need Fisa no-decision in order to retrieve information. It is sufficient for their assessment that the information for an investigation are important.

transparency of thousand

Google had asked a few days ago the Attorney General and the FBI for permission to be allowed to publish figures on the approximate Fisa-applications. Now the court responsible for these requests is to declare that this publication is covered by the First Amendment, which forbids Congress to restrict freedom of expression and press freedom by laws.

Google points out in its transparency report already called National Security Letters. With these federal agencies such as the FBI may without court order of business data query – not about the content of communication, but all of the circumstances, so who sent what and when. How Fisa decisions are also the secret National Security Letters and may not be mentioned in public. Google reached, that they may be given at least approximately. Google receives in a year, for example, 800 such requests is at the transparency report “0-1000″ applications

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The same system may now Google wants to use for Fisa requests. Extra identify the company wants to ensure that the number of affected by the query user accounts. Google’s goal was to dispel fears of a permanent mass surveillance and to show that very few users fall into the pattern of the NSA or other public authorities, David Drummond wrote in his letter to the FBI and the Attorney General.