back to article Final countdown – NSA says it really will end blanket phone spying on US citizens this Sunday

Come Sunday, the NSA will end its ferocious dragnet surveillance of American citizens' phones, the White House insists. From 2359 Eastern Time (0459 GMT) on November 29, the super-spy agency must jump through some extra hoops to access US folks' telephone records. Although this information does not include the content of …

  1. Mark 85

    This all nice but given that all agencies in all countries monitor/slurp phone data, Internet data, and email data, we're all still being watched by someone. Multiple some ones I gather from what's been reported. And yes, I realize that for the most part it's that ubiquitous metadata.

    Maybe someday... the world will be a less dangerous place... and unicorns will roam free.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      I for one look forward to that world but I will have to pass on playing leapfrog with them.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Mark 85

      I'm not sure what your point is?

      1. Mark 85

        Re: Mark 85

        The point is nothing has changed. The data is still being gathered and shared.

  2. oldtaku Silver badge
    Facepalm

    Same old program, different name.

    Lies. Sort of. If they're shutting down one illegal spying program then it's only because the Obama admin has authorized an even worse one with a different code name and that one's up and running now. So we'll shut this one down wink wink.

    They didn't build that gigantic new data center for nothing.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Same old program, different name.

      While I agree, the "they didn't build that gigantic new data center for nothing" argument doesn't apply to the government. They would write off the data center if they didn't need it, and if they needed a new supermassive data center for something else in a year, they'd build a new one from scratch because the existing one would somehow be unsuitable for their current needs (where current needs = to line the pockets of government contractors who will build the new one)

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Same old program, different name.

      Obama and Putin are just different sides of the same coin.

      Obama's first job was an in intern in CIA.

      He is more of a 3-letter president than Bush senior who actually was a CIA director for quite a while.

      Probably that is the difference between being an intern and seeing it all nice and rosy as your first work experience and actually doing this for a living and seeing people be waterboarded, hanged and shot based on your work.

      1. Teiwaz

        Re: Same old program, different name.

        Really, anonymous coward?

        An intern at the CIA is somehow more 'CIA' than an ex-director?

        That must be some sort of zen...either that or you're a tea-party idiot.

      2. Paul Johnson 1

        Re: Same old program, different name.

        Do you have any evidence about the CIA internship? The Wikipedia page lists his first jobs, and neither were with the CIA.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Same old program, different name.

          He's not right in the head, Paul. The CIA, FBI or NSA would have never taken Obama as an intern.

          He lights up like Polonium relative to his associations with certain people (Bill Ayers for one)

    3. kain preacher

      Re: Same old program, different name.

      Of course the NSA could be telling lies to the President and Congress. Them(NSA) telling you they are going to stop at a certain date is like a heroin addict saying they will get clean after just one more hit.

      1. tom dial Silver badge

        Re: Same old program, different name.

        One thing the documentation Edward Snowden released illegally does not show is that the NSA deceived the President, the Departments of Defense and Justice, or the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. Indeed, it is fairly clear that they also provided timely and relatively complete information to the intelligence committees of the Senate and House of Representatives, despite the fact that few members of either body took the trouble to read the documents provided. A presumption that NSA managers and employees operated programs in secret that were intended to generally subvert the rights or liberties of US citizens or those of other countries is unwarranted. Replacement of the program being ended, of course, was authorized by the Congress and directed by the President.

        Reasonable people may differ about the appropriateness of various intelligence agency programs and whether they are consistent with the US Constitution and laws. In addition to citizens, federal judges and legislators, including members of the intelligence committees, did so often, and there is no clear reason to think any of them dishonest.

      2. Zoopy

        Re: Same old program, different name.

        A better analogy might be like Hitler promising that he'd stop invading countries once he annexed Sudenten.

        Because taking heroin (mostly) hurts only the person doing it.

    4. Chika
      Devil

      Re: Same old program, different name.

      Yep. They will stop monitoring blanket phones.

      All other phones, however...

    5. Known Hero

      Re: Same old program, different name.

      of course "they" have stopped spying on the American public, they just outsourced it ;)

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Childcatcher

    Some perspective needed in commentardia

    We regularly read about the latest abuse of data but have you ever wondered how much of the stuff we generate and how realistic it really is that the NSA/GCHQ/<the other three> really watch your every move?

    Phone records alone represent a fairly large amount of data but is tiny compared to intertubes traffic and of course the call contents themselves.

    My home FTTC connection alone receives well over 1TB per month of IPSEC traffic (PFS enabled in P2) and that's before we actually use it for the usual stuff - wifey does need her cat pics. My office generates about 0.5GB per day of marked up flow data (that's like call records for the interwebs). The data itself is more like 5-20TB per month (conservative guess - we have 4 x 80/20 links plus various others).

    That's a lot of storage requirement for just 20 odd people. There are 60M+ people in the UK alone. The US is rather bigger and of course other countries are implicated. I suspect some form of sampling and targeting of the grand slurp is in force but frankly any form of pervasive data surveillance is doomed. You are probably better off doing things the old fashioned way and they probably are - I doubt very much if a 5i is bothering to store my intertube data. However, the implied threat of the possibility is left hanging ...

    <crackle_crackle_and_other_tin_foil_noises/>

    1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

      Re: Some perspective needed in commentardia

      They aren't storing all the traffic, just what sites you visited (AL Jazera, CND, Greenpeace, the Labour party) plus the dodgy sites that any ad links happen to connect to.

      They need this in case you ever have a little accident on the tube and they need to show your links to terrorism. Or you complain about slipping on the pavement and the local council needs to find some porn / alcohol / gambling links to suggest you might not want published if you decide to sue.

      Of course the real use of all this is for reasons of national security - like claiming to live in a better school catchment area

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Childcatcher

        Re: Some perspective needed in commentardia

        "They aren't storing all the traffic, just what sites you visited (AL Jazera, CND, Greenpeace, the Labour party) plus the dodgy sites that any ad links happen to connect to."

        In the UK the headline figure for investment in this is £175M over the next 10 years (New Scientist 3047, p20 is my source here). That is roughly £3 per head of population for 10 years for ISPs to gather the data. Good luck with that one.

        If you have the means, have a look a the sheer amount and variety of data that flows in and out of your WAN connection. Phones, TVs, PCs, your switch phoning home ...

        1. Paul Crawford Silver badge

          Re: Some perspective needed in commentardia

          "In the UK the headline figure for investment in this is £175M over the next 10 years"

          And the ISPs, etc, who have a clue are saying £2B or so is needed. Now why would the gov not publish its costing approach when the bill is in the debate stage?

        2. allthecoolshortnamesweretaken

          Re: Some perspective needed in commentardia

          Does that mean all the extra telemetry in Windows 10 and the whole IoT stuff is a good thing after all as it will be clogging up the pipes, so to speak?

        3. Matt Bryant Silver badge
          Happy

          Re: gerdesj Re: Some perspective needed in commentardia

          Good try at explaining the realities of the matter but you're wasting your time. The tinfoil-attired enjoy their ignorance, anyone that exposes it will simply be labelled a "Fascist", etc., etc., as the tinfoil-attired take comfort in the baaaaaahlief there is some Great Conspiracy which is responsible for their failed lives. It's more fun just to point and laugh at them as they froth and run in circles.

  4. RobHib
    Big Brother

    Verification?

    Verification?

    1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

      Re: Verification?

      He stands up in court as commander in chief and swears under oath that no branch of the US government is mass spying on American's communications, or getting other countries to do it for them.

      Then when down the road it is proved he was lying - an opposition US government get to court martial him and send him to Leavenworth for 20years.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Verification?

        Like they did when the director of the NSA said there was no spying on US citizens post Snowdon?

        1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

          Re: Verification?

          But that was under the same president that had approved it.

          Imagine a future President Trump going after a past president Obama or Hillary

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Verification?

        Then when down the road it is proved he was lying - an opposition US government get to court martial him and send him to Leavenworth for 20years.

        Keep on dreaming. What do you think the presidential pardon system is for?

    2. Charles Manning

      Verification is easy

      These data centres chew through a lot of power.

      If/when they turn them off, you'll see a massive reduction in power usage in Utah etc.

  5. elDog

    Yes, of course, absolutely.

    They won't slurp your naughty bits, but only if you are an "American". First of all there is no nation called America.

    If they are are using the tag "American" to mean a lapel-flag-wearing person then 99.99% of the residents of the USofA won't be included. If you include "idiot" in the description than 100% are able to be surveilled.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Yes, of course, absolutely.

      Please learn the difference between 'then' and 'than'. It is easy, 3 year olds have been known to master it.

    2. kain preacher

      Re: Yes, of course, absolutely.

      By that logic there is no country called Mexico as the full name is The United States of Mexico. Just like the full name of America in the United States of America. But you never see US of M do you. So yes there a country Called America. Deal with it.

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Yes, of course, absolutely.

      "If they are are using the tag "American" to mean a lapel-flag-wearing person then 99.99% of the residents of the USofA won't be included. If you include "idiot" in the description than 100% are able to be surveilled."

      You used the internet to post that, so presumably you're happy using TCP/IP despite it being invented by "idiots".

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    They Have The Content

    "Although this information does not include the content of phone calls"

    We're talking cellular transmissions - They already have the content of the phone calls and the times they were made and ended.

    The other data lets them match the content to the callers.

    Why do the news articles NEVER point that out?

    In any case - given the track record of this administration, does anyone really believe that they will begin complying with the law?

    1. Ole Juul

      Re: They Have The Content

      Why do the news articles NEVER point that out?

      Because they're complicit.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: They Have The Content

        Reptile people?

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: They Have The Content

          Well, certainly reptilian.

          They speak with forked tongues, after all.

  7. raving angry loony

    what's in a name?

    Any bets that they'll end "blanket" spying, and start calling it "duvet" spying internally. Does anyone really believe that anything will change? Government agencies and private corporations will continue to slurp private data, no matter WHAT the laws might say.

  8. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
    Big Brother

    "The White House insists"

    Lies by liars, a coterie of psycho enablers and a Higgs field of supine churnalists.

    Disregard. Expunge. Cauterize.

  9. Harry Anslinger

    Do NOT believe the NSA

    As an American I urge all my international friends and colleagues to NOT believe that the NSA is ending mass data collection on US citizens. My experience is that Americans never relinquish a capability once achieved (see nuclear weapons). In any case, mass surveillance of non-Americans continues. Generally, Americans do not harbor ill intent, however if American politics ever devolve and we transform into a theocracy - all bets are off.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Do NOT believe the NSA

      Then all the more reason to resist the Islamification of the US. They are the only "religion" that REQUIRES a Theocracy! There is no separation of church and state under Islam.

      Now it becomes easier to see what Barack Obama's real motivations are!

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Fingerprint Files

    The Rolling Stones song "Fingerprint Files" got this right.

    "Its all secrecy, and no privacy"

    "Good Night, Sleep Tight!"

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    And I'm the queen of England. What just saying it does not make it true ? It has to be true the NSA told me so. Just like the told me the stopped spying. What's that you ask? Why of course I'm off my meds

  12. Crazy Operations Guy

    "remain in NSA archives until February 29"

    Had to check to make sure there actually will be a February 29th next year. I wouldn't have been surprised to find that they were trying to pull a fast one on us and never delete the information: "We said we will delete it all on 29 Feb 2016, but since that day never came..."

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: "remain in NSA archives until February 29"

      You have more faith than me.

      I saw February 29 and assumed that was February 2029.

  13. Howard Hanek
    Headmaster

    So Their Project Succeeded?

    .......they created a pig that really CAN fly?

    1. Fruit and Nutcase Silver badge

      Re: So Their Project Succeeded?

      @Howard Hanek

      An airborne swine was also the first thing that came to my mind.

    2. Chika

      Re: So Their Project Succeeded?

      .......they created a pig that really CAN fly?

      Nearly. Four sprung pork technik...

  14. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    So, they are now going to spy on ALL Americans 'individually',I guess that's OK then, duh!

  15. Will Godfrey Silver badge

    You are a cynical lot on here.

    Mind if I join the end of the queue? :)

  16. Ole Juul

    Still waiting

    For a large lot of refurbished hard drives to appear on eBay.

    1. tom dial Silver badge

      Re: Still waiting

      Department of Defense rules (and NSA is a DoD agency) require that disk drives containing restricted data (i. e., PII, FOUO, or more controlled), be degaussed and physically destroyed. I think the others still may be overwritten multiply using different patterns and then excessed.

  17. Charles Manning

    Well it's easy to confirm if they do turn it off.

    This blanket surveillance consumes enormous amounts of electricity (which is why these data centres need so much cooling).

    If they really turn off the monitoring we should immediately see a step change in power consumption in places like Utah.

    My prediction is we won't. They have the toys and we all know these power obsessed people will use all the toys they have. They won't give the toys away.

  18. Fruit and Nutcase Silver badge
    Black Helicopters

    You Spy, We Spy

    You Spy on Our Citizens, We Spy on Your Citizens

    As the NSA said to GCHQ, presumably.

    Nothing has changed here, move along now

  19. Tom 7

    Quilt or Duvet monitoring now?

    We need to know.

  20. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    they lied and broke the law before

    and now they say it's gonna stop. Right.

  21. Stevie

    Bah!

    In other words: All our old disc space is used up and we need to open the new "data center" that operates under new procedures.

  22. Harry Anslinger

    Outsource the information gathering

    The NSA can simply outsource the information gathering to British allies in order to maintain the ability to monitor American communications. Simple compartmentalization to circumvent the nasty lack of legality in what they do. They've had ample time to develop their workaround solutions.

  23. msknight

    In other news...

    Hell freezes over.

  24. Paul Johnson 1

    This won't change anything real

    So the law says that the NSA now has to "ask" for the data, and it must be related to an investigation. But the easiest and cheapest way to implement this would be to create a database interface at the telephone company which can receive queries from the NSA. The NSA in turn promises only to send queries about things it is interested in, which is no problem because it already promises only to look at its mass data when it is interested in it.

    So the only change is that the data is stored with the phone company instead of at the NSA.

  25. Bernard M. Orwell

    Why is it....

    ...that with the US (allegedly) reducing its mass surveillance, and various other countries, some even in the EU, not taking action at all, that we here in the UK are being subjected to more and more such programs?

    What is it about the UK that's special?

    1. BenR

      Re: Why is it....

      This is basically what I was about to say.

      I don't believe a single word about the whole "We'll stop spying on you! Promise! Kisses, The NSA" thing. Not a word. But y'know what? As much as I might occasionally mock the Americans as Gun-nutter Religious-bigot Tea-Wasters, at least *THEIR* legal system decided that mass surveillance of their own citizenry by an arm of the security and intelligence apparatus was illegal!

      Which is far far far better than the Law Lords and High Court and whatever else managed in the UK. And even their 'new' program for spying on their own citizens at least has the illusion of going in front of a 'judge' for something like a 'warrant' before they get to read all the lovely metadata. Over here, it just goes before the Home Secretary. In secret. Who will somehow manage to be totally unaccountable when it's discovered she's got it wrong.

  26. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Die and learn

    If you can't live and learn from the recent world tragedies then perhaps your survivors will learn after your death or not? You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him think.

  27. Anonymous Coward
    FAIL

    TAKE A STAND PUSSIES!!!

    Yer all whining like little bitches, ya bitches!!!!! Take a stand! Fuck off until you DO something. And FUCK OFF UK. You think you're this grandiose voice .... grow a set and do something, unless Cameron has got ya worried. Down thumb me all ya want, you're still PUSSIES!!!!

  28. Anonymous Coward
    Unhappy

    Unfortunately...

    Thanks to the jihadi shoot-em-up in Paris, every second person on the news panel shows is calling for a return to bulk surveillance, and arguing that nobody they know was hurt by the metadata mining in the first place.

    1. Matt Bryant Silver badge
      Facepalm

      Re: Marketing Hack Re: Unfortunately...

      Fortunately...

      TFTFY

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