EPIC v. Department of Homeland Security: Media Monitoring - Printable Version +- Deep Politics Forum (https://deeppoliticsforum.com/fora) +-- Forum: Deep Politics Forum (https://deeppoliticsforum.com/fora/forum-1.html) +--- Forum: Propaganda (https://deeppoliticsforum.com/fora/forum-12.html) +--- Thread: EPIC v. Department of Homeland Security: Media Monitoring (/thread-8758.html) |
EPIC v. Department of Homeland Security: Media Monitoring - Ed Jewett - 21-01-2012 EPIC v. Department of Homeland Security: Media Monitoringhttp://epic.org/foia/epic-v-dhs-media-monitoring/ Seeking Disclosure of Records Detailing the Department of Homeland Security's Media Monitoring Activities
BackgroundEPIC is pursuing a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security for information about the agency's surveillance of social networks and news organizations.In February 2011, the Department of Homeland Security announced that the agency planned to implement a program that would monitor media content, including social media data. The proposed initiatives would gather information from "online forums, blogs, public websites, and messages boards" and disseminate information to "federal, state, local, and foreign government and private sector partners." The program would be executed, in part, by individuals who established fictitious usernames and passwords to create covert social media profiles to spy on other users. The agency stated it would store personal information for up to five years. Top News
EPIC's FOIA RequestIn April 12, 2011, EPIC submitted a FOIA request to the DHS seeking agency records detailing the media monitoring program.The request sought the following documents:
EPIC's FOIA LawsuitOn December 20, 2011, EPIC filed a lawsuit against the DHS to compel the disclosure of documents relating to the agency's media monitoring program.In January 2012, the DHS disclosed 285 pages of agency records in response to EPIC's FOIA lawsuit. FOIA DocumentsEPIC's FOIA request and lawsuit forced disclosure of the following records concerning the DHS's media monitoring program:
January 2012 DisclosureEPIC's FOIA lawsuit forced the DHS to disclose 285 pages of records. The documents include contracts, price estimates, Privacy Impact Assessment, and communications concerning DHS Media Monitoring program. These records make public, for the first time, details of the DHS's efforts to spy on social network users and journalists.The records reveal that the DHS is paying General Dynamics to monitor the news. The agency instructed the company to monitor for "[media] reports that reflect adversely on the U.S. Government, DHS, or prevent, protect, respond government activities." The DHS is attempting to "capture public reaction to major government proposals." The DHS instructed the social media monitoring company to generate "reports on DHS, Components, and other Federal Agencies: positive and negative reports on FEMA, CIA, CBP, ICE, etc. as well as organizations outside the DHS." One of the example social network monitoring summaries is titled "Residents Voice Opposition Over Possible Plan to Bring Guantanamo Detainees to Local Prison-Standish MI." The report summarizes dissent on blogs and social networking cites, quoting commenters. The DHS instructed the company to "Monitor public social communications on the Internet." The records list the websites that will be monitored, including the comments sections of [The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, the Huffington Post, the Drudge Report, Wired, and ABC News.]" Pre-Litigation Documents
Litigation DocumentsEPIC v. DHS, Civ. Action No. 11-02261 (D.D.C.)
News Items
EPIC v. Department of Homeland Security: Media Monitoring - Peter Lemkin - 21-01-2012 I wish them [and all of us] good luck! Somehow cynical me thinks no matter what the lower courts say, the wholly-owned Supremes Inc. [best Court Big Money can buy!] will say "NO, you can't see....you don't have the clearances"...if [BIG if] it doesn't get dismissed on grounds of privileged information or National Insecurity, etc. blah, blah, blah. Dawn, think it has an icicles chance in Hell? |