[Infowarrior] - FBI surveillance: It's come a long way

[Richard Forno]

FBI surveillance: It's come a long way
By JOHN DUNBAR
Associated Press Writer

The FBI disclosed new details about its secretive technology for tracing
telephone calls and recording conversations during criminal, terrorism and
espionage investigations, custom-made tools it has developed quietly for a
decade.

Documents released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal the
government has come a long way since the days of alligator clips and
reel-to-reel tape recorders when it comes to its surveillance techniques.

In hundreds of heavily censored pages, the FBI described in unprecedented
detail a sophisticated surveillance system known as the Digital Collection
System Network. It includes programs to record information about telephone
calls - such as the number called and the duration of the call - made by
surveillance targets and another program called Digital Storm to record
conversations.

Many of the documents were marked "for official use only."

Some of the FBI files describe the security risks that outsiders might gain
access to the bureau's eavesdropping tools. The FBI said part of its
surveillance system is tightly guarded, physically against intruders and
electronically against hackers.

< - >

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/politics/story/129946.html