Internet to be modernised at long last

[Roland Perry]

In article 
<2298D4476FA2F44591690E423F07C37B2E72234FF4@EA-EXMSG-C333.europe.corp.mic
rosoft.com>, Caspar Bowden <casparb@microsoft.com> writes
>>From: Roland Perry
>>He was from the police. His remark was that they didn't expect to
>>intercept all emails. Which isn't the same as having the ability to
>>easily intercept any carefully selected emails.
>
>That's over-generous to John Abbott (NCIS)

>"...Conspiracy theorists must not be allowed to get away with the 
>ridiculous notion that law enforcement would or even could monitor all 
>emails. The intelligence agencies have neither the inclination nor the 
>resources, nor the legal ability to monitor the massive amounts of 
>electronic communications that flow through the UK every day. It does 
>not happen with letters or telephones and it will not with emails..."
>
>To have the capability to "easily intercept any carefully selected 
>emails" implies both would and could "monitor" - to construe monitor as 
>meaning "comprehended by a human mind comprehending" limits Abbot's 
>supposed rebuttal to an absurdity.

I thought you'd along with an Echelon-type rebuttal :)

Of course, if we believe Echelon, the scanning has been happening for 
the last 15 years anyway.

That's "scanning" as in "intercepting and making a quick mechanised 
decision about" all our emails. When Abbott says "monitor all emails" I 
take that to mean technically and legally capable of "scanning" all of 
them. I remain to be convinced that scanning the contents of all emails 
is on the agenda at the moment (rather than being able to easily "on 
demand" get the ones they are legally and technically capable of 
processing).

>>At worst, people are allowed to change their mind nine years later :)
>
>The point is that the tribe of signatories to the Gaspar report has 
>been steadily trying to get there for 10-15 years (at least). They 
>haven't changed their mind - they are redoubling efforts.

Gaspar's report was about warehousing comms data - and I think we are 
right to suppose they are getting closer to that.
-- 
Roland Perry