US court rules it’s OK to mine Twitter data
Judge Liam O’Grady of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria division, has ruled US federal investigators can access the private records of three Twitter users as part of a warrantless Wikileaks probe.
He “also blocked the users’ attempt to discover whether other Internet companies have been ordered to turn their data over to the government,” says the EFF, continuing the foundation and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) represent Icelandic parliamentarian Birgitta Jonsdottir who appealed an earlier ruling with Twitter users Jacob Appelbaum and Rop Gonggrijp. “With this decision, the court is telling all users of online tools hosted in the U.S. that the US government will have secret access to their data,” said Jonsdottir, going on: “People around the world will take note, and since they can easily move their data to companies who host it in locations that better protect their privacy than the US does, I expect that many will do so.
“I am very disappointed in today’s ruling because it is a huge backward step for the United States’ legacy of freedom of expression and the right to privacy.”
Jonsdottir and others found out about the government demands for information only 
because Twitter took steps to notify them of the court order.
Now the EFF says other companies should follow Twitter’s lead, stand with their customers, and promise to inform users when their data is sought by the government.
“The three are Icelandic MP Birgitta Jonsdottir (right), Dutch hacker Rop Gonggrijp and US computer programmer Jacob Appelbaum, all of whom know, or have worked with, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, said p2pnet recently, adding.
“But neither the three victims, nor the public, will learn exactly how the government gained access their records.
November 11th, 2011 at 11:16 pm
there are many things missing from the above article, such as:
was the judge asked for his oath before start of proceedings?
did judge present his oath?
under which jurisdiction was the court operating?
was there a jury involved?
this is only one judge, what affiliations does the judge have?
was the judge paid off?
was he influenced in other ways outside of jurisdiction?
as judges are elected here in US who and what special interests elected him?
i ask since this is a blatant violation of our constitution!
this is not canada or australia where whole system is a corporation and an extension of imperial power
the judge should be tried and thrown in jail!
November 12th, 2011 at 4:35 pm
When the criminals are in the government and the innocents in prison it is the sign of a coming revolution.
It is There!
November 12th, 2011 at 10:03 pm
Forum Shopping:
When patent trolls anywhere in the world need a friendly judge, they take their case to Marshall, Texas.
When the US government needs a friendly judge, that place is Alexandria, Virginia, where judges have consistently ruled against internet freedom. (was anyone expecting the feds to go to San Francisco with this?) Northeast Virginia (coincidentally a short drive from the RIAA and MPAA headquarters) is also the region where people accused of copyright infringement are taken to stand trial –including foreign nationals who have never set foot in the USA.
… and then when the US government has decided that a person should be tortured, he was sent to Syria or Libya.
November 12th, 2011 at 10:31 pm
Ya, they can? and i got a msg for them http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sk55VKbo2ZU
November 13th, 2011 at 3:15 pm
“US court rules it’s OK to mine Twitter data”
Oh! Good!
So I guest it is Ok to mine CIA, FBI and the white house data too.
Let’s go to work. Let’s put it all on the net.
November 14th, 2011 at 5:07 pm
Here is an interesting one you can post Jon,
Proposed title
:
Mega Media company CBS’ Satellite company ZDnet shows everyone how the U.S. news uses lies and propaganda to fuel the U.S. invasion of all internet users rights to privacy.
This CBS company, ZDnet, put out a propaganda puff piece filled with lies. It can be found here:
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/government/us-wins-twitter-battle-against-foreign-wikileaks-collaborator/11003
In it they name Birgitta Jónsdóttir (Icelandic MP) a “foreign agent” causing “harm to the U.S.”
In this propaganda puff-piece, this CBS company, ZDnet, makes a new startling revelation that no one in the world is yet aware of! They assert that Birgitta Jónsdóttir “stole confidential government documents”
As CBS (ZDnet) themselves put it, “Let’s deconstruct this one more step. A member of a foreign government stole information from our government and then used a social network, built, owned, and operated in our country to communicate with her collaborators.”
WOW!
CBS company, ZDnet, now asserts that she is foreign agent, a foreign spy, and collaborated with other agents hell bent on causing harm to the U.S.
I missed the military trial on this. I missed the treason trial on this. I also missed the relevant links or citations to back up the claims made by ZDnet (a CBS company) on what they assert in this propaganda puff-piece.
This CBS company (ZDnet) then finishes with this statement, “Let this be a warning to other foreign agents who want to cause harm to the U.S.”
In other words CBS is stating via ZDnet, if you harm the U.S. via your dastardly spying and treasonous activities you lose your rights to privacy, even if what we stated in the article is a complete fabrication.
What this CBS news affiliate failed to mention is that (as the Toronto Star put it, http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1085250#.TsEo4iA0vvY.twitter) “With this decision, the court is telling all users of online tools hosted in the U.S. that the U.S. government will have secret access to their data,” said Birgitta Jonsdottir, one of the individuals involved, in a statement issued through the Electronic Frontier Foundation and American Civil Liberties Union.
And, as the Wall Street Journal reported, http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2011/11/10/feds-can-get-twitter-users-data-without-warrant-judge-says/, “Should the government be able to collect information related to your Internet use without a warrant?” We now know that the federal court’s answer is, “Yes.”
Mega mogul news outlet CBS’ company, ZDnet, failed to mention this in their propaganda lied filled puff-piece.
We have all seen Jon sued to near oblivion, and to failing health, for much, much less. A link. Will Birgitta Jónsdóttir sue them for libel and defamation? Damn I hope so. They made some wild assertions there, as fact, that is news to everyone.