Avoiding the dragnet
By now, everyone knows that the secret sauce of the warrantless search program is a computer bank that examines messages for keywords. Because computers lack a sense of humor, however, it turns out that the use of certain substitutes for otherwise suspicious terms will keep one from being swept into the net of actual human eavesdropping. By way of example, instead of "quagmire" say "Texas" -- for "oil" say "democracy -- for "Democrat" say "Lieberman."
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Daniel A. Greenbaum
Does anyone really know how this NSA program really works? I understand the idea of the computer sweeps and the targeting of suspicious patterns. However, do we know all the sweeps start with an overseas call? Do we know that the patterns targeted are only those that start from the Al Qaeda seeming start?
One of the odd features of coverage of this story is the seeming acceptance that what Bush etal. say about this program is accurate and truthful.
February 5, 2006 1:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
In what way is this different from the Carnivore program that was supposed to have been cancelled a while back? Everyone knows about it already; it's hardly a secret.
February 5, 2006 2:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
I always knew metonymy was a tool of terror.
February 5, 2006 4:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Nobody knows for sure since it's a highly classified Special Access Program. But the consensus seems to be that it uses access to long distance billing records to create a watchlist of numbers multiple degrees away from an originating target number, then uses voice recognition on calls to/from those numbers to scan for words on the keyword list. So if Terrorist X uses his al Qaeda cellphone to call Joe, everybody Joe called in the last 6 months gets added to the list, as does everybody who they called. Presumably there's some kind of FIFO pipe so you fall off the list if you don't say any of the keywords in a certain amount of time. Basically it's like Carnivore for phones.
February 5, 2006 4:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Back in my Berkeley days, everyone assumed the CIA or NSA was listening in to phone calls. Since the software was keyword triggered, we'd say (what we thought were) key words such as 'communist', 'revolution', etc.
That was supposed to overwhelm the system.
DOR
Register to Vote, who ever you are.
February 5, 2006 4:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Basically it's like Carnivore for phones.
So the secret is that Carnivore was part of some larger program that is truly secret. I wonder what it's called. Herbivore? Omnivore?
February 5, 2006 6:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
If this illegal wire tapping is supposed to be working as our glorious leader says, how come NSA, CIA, Homeland Security, et al missed the rather overwhelming victory of Hamas?
And, while I'm thinking about that, how many "ordinary" Americans have phone calls to areas where Al Quaida operates freely, such as Pakistan or the Phillippines - where do you actually call when you've dialed a helpdesk or a billing department or such.
February 5, 2006 8:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
It sounds like the President took your advice in the Stat of the Union address!
Ich bin ein Berliner--fress' mich!
February 6, 2006 3:05 AM | Reply | Permalink
Jan Knaus
Over on Huffinton Post Bob Burnett has the first of a three - part article that explains the nuts & bolts of the system: Bush Eavesdropping - How's it Done. I found it very useful.
He also shows how stunningly easy it would be to get embroiled in the tentacles of this dragnet. Moreover, he discusses how massive the intel is, and how difficult it would be to make use of it all.
I'm looking forward to the next part, "Is it Legal?"
February 6, 2006 10:44 AM | Reply | Permalink
I'm starting to fill out the credit card apps that show up in the box with my new alias:
Alphonse ( Al ) Kada
Same with Skype and any other chat programs.
Since I'm already in the terrorist database, it won't matter. Once you fall in that hole, there ain't no climbin' out, so let's see how much it takes to flood the system.
Al
February 6, 2006 1:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Here's a useful link to detail in lay terms how the "Carnivore" (now re-labeled DCS1000) works in theory...an attaboy to anyone that spots the joke in the article....
Al Kada
February 6, 2006 1:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
I am reminded of the old 'spook' functionality in the text editor emacs:
Heh, © 1987. mp
February 7, 2006 3:53 AM | Reply | Permalink