DHS Ends Data-Mining Program

ExE122 writes "The Department of Homeland Security has "scrapped an ambitious anti-terrorism data-mining tool." The tool, called ADVISE, was being tested with live data rather than test data without having proper security in place. This program had already been under criticism by privacy advocates and members of Congress. However, according to the article, a DHS spokesman assures that the program will be restarted once the security and cost are re-evaluated."

Restarted?

[YrWrstNtmr]

From the summary above:
"However, according to the article, a DHS spokesman assures that the program will be restarted once the security and cost are re-evaluated."

From the article:
"DHS spokesman Russ Knocke told The Associated Press on Wednesday the project was being dropped.
"ADVISE is not expected to be restarted," Knocke said."

The next sentance in the article is the problematic one.
"DHS' Science and Technology directorate "determined that new commercial products now offer similar functionality while costing significantly less to maintain than ADVISE."

So they're not restarting it, they are dropping it. They are not, however, dropping the functionality. Just moving to another platform.

Re:Security and cost- yeah right

[Burz]

Why would they bother when the NSA can do it for them?

Guess who has been spying as a subcontractor? Verisign! [dailykos.com]

Welcome to MITM country.

The CALEA law covers data now, so virtually all of the USA Internet traffic can be effectively bugged, and there are no trustable third parties for SSL links. Where secure encryption is concerned, you are on your own.

Heh. The head of the IETF [networkworld.com] receives compensation from both Verisign and the NSA.

Re:Does this mean I'm off the list?

[TheRaven64]

Antarctica? Let's face it, it's the only country on Earth that doesn't have a fucked up government.

Nope, it has 12 fucked up governments. How, exactly, is this better?

Subsidy to high tech industry

[sam_handelman]

Okay, firstly, this thing is never going to catch any terrorists. As a technology, it doesn't pass the laugh test. It was a joke when it was called Total Information Awareness, and it's a joke now.

  This is not new, however - the military/intelligence apparatus in the US exists, in large part, to subsidize the development of high tech industry. Every marketing company in the country would *love* to have a tool developed that will aggragate and mine in the kind of data that this system treats. Furthermore, these firms can just trade data with eachother or get it from their clients, they don't need any kind of intrusive surveillance laws to get it.