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“So you’re saying that the agency will buy Americans’ location data,” Wyden said. “...doing that without a warrant is an outrageous end run around the fourth amendment. It’s particularly dangerous given the use of artificial intelligence to comb through massive amounts of private information.

“This is exhibit A for why Congress needs to pass our bipartisan, bicameral bill, the Government Surveillance Reform act,” Wyden said, referring to legislation he is working to pass to rein in surveillance.

While law enforcement must get a judge-authorized search warrant to obtain location data directly from telecom companies, government agencies have instead been able to buy such information from private data brokers.

I think Wyden is right, it does sound like an end run around the fourth amendment.

If the FBI (and probably other TLAs, domestic and foreign) are willing to do this now, why would a statute addressing the practice stop them?

If you're surprised by this, you've either not been paying attention, are incredibly naive, or just are an idiot.

This is Palantir's business model.

This is what an information economy looks like.

The infobrokers, datahoarders... they sell to anyone with the money.

They're the platform.

Governments and other corps are the clients.

But laws, you say!

They prevent this, this can't be legal!

Again, you haven't been paying attention, or somehow can't compute that fascist don't care about laws ... they just do things, and dare you to stop them, and that applies to anything.

We never fixed the PATRIOT ACT.

We never got rid of the secret, classified courts that authorize the warrants for this.

It all only got worse, the wound went gangrenous, people just got used to it or something.

This is the logical, predictable result of 'but I have nothing to hide.'

They'll collect all this raw data, release the AI bots to crawl all over it, and soon they'll have a profile on every American, and we won't be able to get away with anything.

With all the traffic cameras being released, they will soon be tracking everybody in real time. Everybody breaks a traffic law, every day. Soon all that data will be added, and categorized as legal violations.

They will cross-reference everything, and they'll combine library late fees, bank overdrafts, traffic infractions, mistakes on your tax return, etc., and use it all to declare you a scofflaw, and send you off to the work camps, to be leased out to corporations as Federal 13th Amendment Work Slaves, which they will shorten to 13s.

Now think about how much more personal data, beyond mere location, they will be able to purchase once all the states have these age verification laws implemented.

Flock is doing this too. They buy data from everyone and put it in a big searchable database, then sell it back to law enforcement.

https://www.flocksafety.com/products/flock-nova

The first half of this YouTube video explains how Flock partners with places like Walmart to collect biometric data, including voice prints. It’s gross.

https://youtu.be/Pp9MwZkHiMQ

Turns out there's a reason Pokemon Go is free to play.

No one is allowed to feign surprise after the 1980s. CIA/NSA/Government Surveillance has been out in the open and on top of it people are just giving their own info away on social media.

I mean, sure. Hell, forget the FBI. I expect that intelligence agencies from unfriendly countries probably do. I mean, I imagine that they don't roll up and say "hey, it's the SVR and we'd like to buy data X, Y, and Z," that they use some sort of front company. But if the data's out there and someone's selling it, people and institutions to which it has any value are going to buy it. That includes a lot of people and organizations out there.

Why is this news? If data is easily available why wouldn't they simply pay for it? This wasn't an "admission' more than it was a "statement of the obvious".

If you think this wasn't obvious you seriously need to look into exactly how much of your information is being accumulated and openly traded about you.

I drive through DC on business regularly, and my route usually takes me past the NSA headquarters. Phone service always drops out as I pass. Every time. Their signal jamming game is on point.

No shit Sherlock

This is why whenever I am going to do crime, I just attach my cell phone to my neighbor's car in the morning.