Loss of Privacy

Since the FBI holds over 1.5 billion records on US citizens and foreigners, you probably have an FBI file.  Here’s how you can obtain a copy of your FBI file.

Privacy Act Request Instruction

• Provide your complete name and mailing address.

  (Telephone, fax, and e-mail addresses are optional.)

• Provide any identifying data that will help us locate information about you—for example, your date and place of birth, social security number, former addresses or localities.

• If you are interested in records pertaining to a particular incident you were involved in, please describe it.

• You must sign your request and have it notarized or state, “Under penalty of perjury, I hereby declare that I am the person named above and I understand that any falsification of this statement is punishable under the provisions of Title 18, United States Code (U.S.C.), Section 1001 by a fine of not more than $10,000 or by imprisonment of not more than five years, or both; and that requesting or obtaining any record(s) under false pretenses is punishable under the provisions of Title 5, U.S.C., Section 552a(i)(3) as a misdemeanor and by a fine of not more than $5,000.” You may use the:

  • Privacy Act Request Form

• State how much you are willing to pay for duplication fees if any are assessed.

Follow these instructions precisely and you will have your file soon.

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If you live in the United Kingdom, you can request your file here. Then, go here and learn how to write a proper letter to get your file.

An expansion is currently underway that will develop the FBI’s current fingerprint collection database into a new biometrics system that includes DNA, facial recognition, palm prints and voice scans.

The plan is to share this data with authorized U.S. and international investigative partners, as the agency does today.

The FBI’s current IAFIS database remains a workhorse; it processes about 200,000 daily transactions from its 370 million 10-fingerprint records, and it just crossed the 250 million transaction mark

The next-generation FBI database system is under design by Lockheed Martin, with MorphoTrak and others, and is expected to include DNA, iris scans, advanced 3-D facial imaging and voice scans among its multi-modal biometrics. Lower turnaround times for delivering information over wide-area networks are planned. The goal is to drop from a roughly two-hour response time for IAFIS urgent requests to less than 10 minutes.

The FBI is already moving into new areas, including setting up a palm-print repository and searchable databases for scars, marks and tattoos that it will be collecting.

The FBI, under the DNA Fingerprint Act of 2005, is now allowed to collect reference-sample DNA material for biometrics analysis purposes at the time of booking, Grever said. “DNA has become a powerful and timely tool,” said Grever, adding there are no “privacy or civil liberties issues beyond those associated with fingerprints.”

Given that DNA can be fabricated, how accurate is this new biometric database going to be?  Given that they’re tracking everything else about you, it won’t be long before whatever makes you “you” is in a database somewhere.

While the things I posted yesterday were on a wide variety of topics, today’s post covers stories that typically remain in the spying and surveillance area. So, here is my list of things that I wished I had more time to read, discuss, and write about in 2007.

Keep an eye on the losses to your privacy by having a look at the Surveillance Society Clock.

The Washington Post let us know in August that the terror suspect list yields very little results. The government, however, still wants you to believe otherwise by increasing the size of the list.

Chinese bloggers are being “encouraged” to register themselves with their real identities. China is also building the largest, high-tech people tracking system in the world.

Germany wants to email trojans so they can break into suspects’ computers more easily. They just want to have a look at your computer. They also added fingerprints on their passport.

Look! An invisible tank! Oh, check this out! A flashlight that makes you puke.

The Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007 pretty much created thought crime. This isn’t how the world was supposed to work.

The FBI is still following Abraham Lesnik.

The NSA claims that warrantless surveillance datamining is okay, especially if it’s related to ADVISE in any way. But, don’t worry. This information would never be used wrongfully, say, oh, I don’t know…..to stalk your ex-girlfriend. Don’t worry, though. AT&T will always protect you.

Rumors of the FBI installing spyware remotely continue. While over in Mumbai, India, mandatory keyloggers were installed at cyber cafes. Interpol would like to track you too.

Wiretapping was only the beginning. Next up, body searches without warrants.

If you’re overconfident in London, you might just get stopped and questioned by law enforcement.

There are so many stories out there about how electronic voting doesn’t work and is in shambles that one hardly knows where to start on such a topic. Just remember, no paper trail means whomever the government wants in power will be in power.

Many US Senators want to censor the web. Some judges are on their side.

Most people have no clue that their personal data is being shared with companies they don’t even associate with. The vast majority of people are ignorant to this information. Snoopware could eventually play a part in this. While we’re at it, you can be spied upon at the beach too. Bluetooth scanners can help in all this. The FBI has probably already datamined your grocery store with a little help from the credit card companies.

Questions remain as to whether you need ID to fly within the United States. Your right to travel is disappearing, but is the risk of an anal probe worth not carrying the ID though? There’s at least one man who has been arrested for refusing to show his driver’s license when exiting a retail store.

The airlines are still incompetent. Many suspect baggage still clears scans, so the airlines are now eliminating their “baggage neutrality.”

Spotting terrorists and criminals based on their movements seemed like never-ending stories in 2007.

Big Brother officially started watching you on October 1st under the guise of the new DHS office called the National Applications Office. Of course, he has some neat gadgets to do so with, both here and in the United Kingdom. Starting in February, 2008 you’ll need your papers and permission from the TSA when traveling anywhere. Once on the plane, you won’t have to worry about being subjected to harmful movies. Big brother is also watching how many cigarettes your carrying over state lines.

Homeland Security special agent in charge of recent immigration raids says it is “not uncommon” for lawful citizens to be arrested when agents roust them from their beds and demand papers. Adds “We don’t need warrants to make the arrests.”

I believe the Pirate Act, version II [pdf] is still working its way through Congress.

Washington, DC are now scanning with infrared cameras to detect humans in cars.

We can’t forget to think of the children, so we’ve put GPS onto school buses and are trying to pass legislation about what you can and can’t see on TV. We’re also training children to spy on their parents. If the children don’t conform, we’ll just let the police watch the schools on CCTV cameras.

You have to be afraid of Little Brother too these days.

You can still try to remain anonymous, though it’s getting more and more difficult each day.