Twitter Sues Homeland Security Over Effort to Unmask Anti-Trump Account

[CrAKeN]

 

Twitter seeks to protect user against baseless data demand from US govt

 

Twitter is fighting back against the Trump administration after the Department of Homeland Security tried to get the company to reveal who was behind a particular anti-Trump account. 

 

Filed in California, the suit Twitter filed reveals that US Customs and Border Protection attempted to use a "limited-purpose investigatory tool" to figure out who the owner of the @ALT_USCIS account is. According to the complaint, the account was used to express public criticism of the Department and the current administration, much like many other "alt" or "rogue" government accounts that appeared after Trump became president.

 

It seems that @ALT_USCIS may be a dissenting member of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, which, of course, bothered some. Mid last month, Twitter was hit with a summon from Customs asking for records that could reveal the identity of the person behind the account, including IP logs, phone number, mailing address and any other details.

 

Twitter is having none of that, however, and has filed a suit against the Department of Homeland Security, its subagency, naming the DHS Secretary John Kelly, acting CBP Commissioner Kevin McAleenan, and the two special agents who issued and served the order.

 

Bigger issue than one account

The microblogging platform wants a judge to rule whether or not Customs has the legal authority to issue such a request regarding someone's account. The order Twitter got served with invoked a statute that's related to taxes on the importation of merchandise in the US, which Twitter doesn't believe is sufficient to unmask a user.

 

In fact, the company says that doing so "would have a grave chilling effect on the speech of that account in particular and on the many other 'alternative agency' accounts that have been created to voice dissent to government policies." It would also infringe on the right to political speech, which is protected by the Supreme Court rulings. The account @ALT_USCIS also tweeted a fragment of the American Constitution regarding freedom of speech to make a point.

 

The ACLU has decided to support Twitter in the case.

 

Source

[dMog]

hell...they are still trying to find andy borowitz 

[steven36]

2 hours ago, dMog said:

hell...they are still trying to find andy borowitz 

They will need that money once Germany gets done suing platforms like  Twitter , Facebook etc and fine them up too £43million (R735 million) under new plans agreed by the German government. for not removing  hate speech and fake News then softpedia want even have nothing too write about HAHAHA .

[Togijak]

German government does not usually care about the cause, the preferred solution of the german government is

 

 

and if that don't help the next solution is

 

[steven36]

11 hours ago, Togijak said:

German government does not usually care about the cause,

If they dont care what did they just pass laws to do it then ?  In the USA the Government tries to catch the person who slanders the president so Twitter is suing because it's  freedom of speech . But the German Government is suing any social network who dont remove hate speech and fake news witch is freedom of speech  whats wrong with this picture? It means you have no freedom of speech over there ! Already YouTube removed 90% of it  but sites like Facebook have not .

 

Germany Unveils Bill to Fine Social Networks Over Fake News

http://www.newsweek.com/germany-unveils-bill-fine-social-networks-fake-news-579958

It's not a crime in the USA it never has been any one can say they hate certain people and they can walk down the street and  rally about it as long as they have a permit and the police will protect them.  Most people in the USA was raised up around hate from all sides and most all these haters spread fake propaganda  that dont mean  everyone wants too get involved . Way more people who is not involved than is.  Censoring the internet dont make hate go away it will just drive haters to sites were Germany have no control over . People will  just open sites and block German IPs  and there some smaller social networks that will not comply they are founded on the fact they dont allow censorship .

 

I mean China censors there people  but they block the websites at lest they dont try too make there Government rich off of it even though it is wrong . The German Government blocked certain YouTube Videos  and censor the internet because they could not get 1 penny for each video every time someone from Germany looked at them. There all about getting money. If sites and companies from the USA dont comply with the EUs demands they fine sites and companies also they have been known to block stuff from being used over there . it's got out of hand next thing you know they will be like China. Germany is just one example  but its the EU in general that is headed down a very dark path.

 

Silencing Citizens through Censorship

http://graph.historiana.eu/modules/module/silencing-citizens-through-censorship/

It's bad enough most sites make there own rules to censor there own user base  but now they are governments that is trying too impose it world wide even in places were freedom of speech is a right ..

[Ballistic Gelatin]

Twitter has since withdrawn its U.S. lawsuit.

 

http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2017/04/07/twitter-yanks-lawsuit-against-us-government-over-anti-trump-account.html

 

 

[steven36]

1 hour ago, Ballistic Gelatin said:

Twitter has since withdrawn its U.S. lawsuit.

that's not how it went

Quote

 

Twitter forces US to drop demand for Trump critic's details

 

The US government has dropped its request for the identity of an anti-Trump Twitter account, just a day after Twitter went to court over the issue.

@ALT_USCIS anonymously criticised President Trump’s immigration policy, and claimed to be run by employees at the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.

US government officials issued a summons for identifying information.

But Twitter said that demand had been withdrawn after it filed a lawsuit.

The @ALT_USCIS account's followers also ballooned from 38,000 to 158,000 during the lawsuit's single-day lifespan.

The original summons from the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency demanded "all records regarding the twitter account @ALT_USCIS to include, user names, account login, phone numbers, mailing addresses, and IP (computer) addresses".

But the law cited by the agency - which is part of the Department of Homeland Security - is typically used to obtain records about imported goods.

The summons also demanded the information by 13 March 2017 - a day before the request was even sent to Twitter.

 

Twitter went to court in San Francisco to block the move, saying the CBP was "abusing a limited-purpose investigatory tool" and stifling freedom of speech.

The micro-blogging service was backed by the American Civil Liberties union (ACLU), which said it would join the court battle.

But the request was withdrawn by the government a day later, after Twitter's court filing became public.

A justice department official told AFP news agency that the investigation had ended - but no details were given.

"We want to thank @twitter and @aclu for standing up for the right of free anonymous speech," the @ALT_USCIS account tweeted. "Thank you resistance for standing up for us."

Alternative 'resistance'

In January, when Donald Trump became President Trump, several so-called "alternative" accounts for US government services began appearing online.

Many claimed to be controlled by current of former staff members.

Twitter said this is "a new and innovative class of American speakers" who need anonymity because they could face retaliation or lose their jobs.

 

"Permitting the CBP to pierce the pseudonym of the @ALT _UCCIS account would have a grave chilling effect on the speech of that account in particular and on the many other 'alternative agency' accounts that have been created to voice dissent to government policies", it said.

 

The "alternative" departments sprung up on Twitter following the gagging of the official National Parks Service Twitter account.

On Mr Trump's inauguration day, it tweeted a photo of the crowd, comparing it with the 2009 inauguration of then President Barack Obama.

The account was briefly shut down in response - reportedly because President Trump complained directly to the head of the National Parks Service

 

 

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-39535929

Twitter Withdraws Lawsuit After DHS Drops Demands For Alt-Account's Identity

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/04/07/523022497/twitter-withdraws-lawsuit-after-dhs-drops-demands-for-alt-accounts-identity

 Freedom of speech is a 1st Amendment right . Twitter said the DHS is abusing that tool they have to track down online terrorist  to try track down people who dont like Trump.  So DHS backed off and left Twitter alone just like they did when was challenged by Apple  and too show the court there Tor exploit  also another judge today ruled against FBI using there Nit malware. Every time they get challenged in court they run with there head between  there legs before they lose.  When you sign in over there you're being watched by the government.

 

I just go over there and read  sometimes i dont even have a need to join the site or talk too the celebrates. They been selling everyone's data that do this for years  the places that work for the  celebrates buy it too make  the celebrates. more money . They will sell data to anyone who well buy it .