No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data • Hacker News Board

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#51

Post by MSFT_Edging » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 2:45 PM UTC

goblinux wrote: post #46

georgeg23 wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Update, actually NSA is a confirmed customer. https://techcrunch.com/2015/01/11/leaked-palantir-doc-reveal... The company's name is derived from The Lord of the Rings where the magical palantíri were "seeing-stones," described as indestructible balls of crystal used for communication and to see events in other parts of the world

The INSANE thing to me about naming your company Palantir after the artifact from Middle Earth is the story behind the seeing stones. By the Third Age - when the events of the Lord of the Rings take place - several of the Palantiri (plural) are lost. The danger of using the stones was twofold: 1) not all the stones were accounted for, you couldn’t know who was listening in and 2) Sauron had one of the stones. A dark…

> Sci-Fi Author: In my book I invented the Torment Nexus as a cautionary tale

> Tech Company: At long last, we have created the Torment Nexus from classic sci-fi novel Don't Create The Torment Nexus

https://twitter.com/AlexBlechman/status/1457842724128833538?...

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#52

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 2:47 PM UTC

user3939382 wrote: post #23

I’d be surprised if they’re “buying browsing data” instead of just having a tap on all major ISPs and siphoning everything off directly, or compelling ISPs to do this with NSLs.

[deleted]

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#53

Post by NemoNobody » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 2:48 PM UTC

user3939382 wrote: post #23

I’d be surprised if they’re “buying browsing data” instead of just having a tap on all major ISPs and siphoning everything off directly, or compelling ISPs to do this with NSLs.

They buy it so someone else has theoretically done all the nasty stuff to get it - they just take advantage of the opportunity.

Truthfully, the NSA should know at least as much about me as Google, or I don't know why it exists.

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#54

Post by uncletammy » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 2:50 PM UTC

Apocryphon wrote: post #28

Wyden for President.

I would quit my job tomorrow and move to Oregon to work on his campaign. No joke.

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#55

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 2:50 PM UTC

georgeg23 wrote: post #26

The main source that sells a continuous cross-platform civilian tracking dragnet (probably to the NSA) is Peter Thiel's company Palantir. Thiel is at the center of so much other sci-fi military industrial complex stuff, it's scary.

[deleted]

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#56

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 2:52 PM UTC

user3939382 wrote: post #23

I’d be surprised if they’re “buying browsing data” instead of just having a tap on all major ISPs and siphoning everything off directly, or compelling ISPs to do this with NSLs.

[deleted]

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#57

Post by GuB-42 » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 2:52 PM UTC

tomohawk wrote: post #4

How about passing a law explicitly covering the kind of information being collected and sold as actually being private, and against the law to share with anyone without a warrant?

These data are probably legally collected and sold, as mentioned in page 573 of the terms and conditions users have agreed with.

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#58

Post by forward1 » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 2:58 PM UTC

user3939382 wrote: post #23

I’d be surprised if they’re “buying browsing data” instead of just having a tap on all major ISPs and siphoning everything off directly, or compelling ISPs to do this with NSLs.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#59

Post by jjtheblunt » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 2:59 PM UTC

master-lincoln wrote: post #39

api wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> But that would mean going against companies and we can't have that now, can we? Exactly. Surveillance capitalism is orders of magnitude more invasive than the NSA and does not answer to anyone. Regulations don’t even really work because they can just offshore anything shady or do it through fly by night data brokers.

But private companies do not have the legal option to invade your home or use physical force on you.

You just made me wonder if those smart TVs have the ability to packet sniff what’s going on on the Wi-Fi networks in the homes in which they’re installed.

Re: No new boss at NSA until it answers questions on buying location, browsing data

#60

Post by injeolmi_love » Sat, Dec 02, 2023, 3:05 PM UTC

master-lincoln wrote: post #39

api wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> But that would mean going against companies and we can't have that now, can we? Exactly. Surveillance capitalism is orders of magnitude more invasive than the NSA and does not answer to anyone. Regulations don’t even really work because they can just offshore anything shady or do it through fly by night data brokers.

But private companies do not have the legal option to invade your home or use physical force on you.

The big tech companies are not private; they are public companies that rely on state force to maintain their monopolies. Just as an example, intellectual property laws rely on the state for enforcement.