On Sat, 30 Apr 2005 15:41:34 +0000,
and most important is, if I turn it in for reparation will I be
protected by a privacy law, or will I be able to be held responsible
for the data that they recover? Or if they use it against me will
they be breaking the law?
Plz answer fast=)...Ty!
Depends on what kind of data, the laws in the region you live in and
the repair shop and police in your area.
Any kind of kiddie porn will get police action fast probably anywhere
in the world. I see lots of cases mentioned at the usual news sites
CNN and MSN etc especially in the UK and Canada where they seem to
monitor PC/net usage more stringently than the US. I could be wrong
though. Other stuff? I think it depends. This article below is
interesting . It was in the local paper last year. They mention the
FBI contacting repair shops and asking them to report any criminal
activity they find on PCs that were brought in for repair. The
interesting thing is they mentioned copyright infringement - copying
movies and music. I havent read any cases where they actually arrested
someone for piracy due to stuff being on their hard disk.
By Peter Boylan
Advertiser Staff Writer
February 5, 2004
Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Cyber Crime Squad
have been approaching O'ahu computer-repair specialists, network
consultants and software developers and asking them to report any
overtly criminal activity they find in customers' computers.
Owners of computer repair shops reported that FBI agents have come
calling for at least a year.
Some business owners and network security consultants favor the
approach, which enlists old-school police beat work to combat
high-tech crime.
Others — like the executive director of the American Civil Liberties
Union in Hawai'i and some local computer users — are wary of the
tactic, saying it comes dangerously close to violating a person's
privacy rights.
Special Agent Arnold Laanui said the FBI is taking a proactive
approach to fighting computer crimes, which are ranked third on the
agency's list of priorities, behind protecting the country against a
terrorist attack and deflecting espionage.
"The computer arena is so broad and such a part of everyday life,"
Laanui said. "A good chunk of crimes out there have some sort of
computer-based nexus to them."
The FBI primarily is looking for purveyors of child pornography,
software used in the piracy of movies and music, and threats to
national security.
Laanui said that computers are the "preferred way of trying to cover
up sophisticated crime" and the FBI is reacting to that.
Each member of the computer crime squad is given a list of local
businesses, Laanui said, with the idea of establishing a working
relationship with all of them.
"We're going from gumshoes to gigabytes," he said. "We're not about
sitting behind a desk and fighting computer crimes from behind
computers."
Agents "are getting out in the public and seeing what's going on, and
that is the only way it (computer crimes) can be fought."
'Fishing expeditions' feared
Vanessa Chong, executive director of the ACLU in Hawai'i, said she has
no problem with the tactic of asking computer technicians for help if
it is employed within the realm of a specific investigation that is
intended to capture a specific criminal or criminals.
"I have no problem with a narrowly tailored, specific search, but this
has the markings of a fishing expedition," Chong said.
Chong said the action "needlessly violates the privacy rights of
honest consumers to find the guilty few."
Computer repair shop owners agree that instances of child pornography
always warrant a call to the authorities. But they point out that most
of the repair work they do, including crashed hard drives and miswired
motherboards, takes place on the system level.
"The work that we do doesn't really require us to rummage through
files or documents," said James Kerr, president and CEO of Super Geeks
repair shop on King Street. "Because we're so busy and focused on
getting the work done, there is no free time to scour through files."
Kerr said all of his "geeks" sign nondisclosure agreements stating
that they cannot talk, even amongst themselves, about material that
they come across while repairing a client's computer. He said they are
encouraged to approach a supervisor if they do come across something
that concerns them.
"Our job is to fix computers, not enforce the law. We're here to fix
things, not police things," Kerr said. "People's private lives are
their private business. If they have child pornography, we're
contacting the police. But if they're sharing music files on Kazaa,
that's not our business."
Kerr said the FBI approached him a year ago with concerns about one of
his clients.
Ryan Joffs, a network security consultant with Fujitsu, one of the
nation's largest computer corporations, also said he was approached by
an FBI agent. Joffs' encounter took place in a restaurant, and he said
they talked for 2 hours about computer crimes.
"If I ran into something suspicious on a customer's computer I would
report it, or I would tell them to report it," Joffs said. "It
(contacting computer professionals) makes sense. If you pay attention,
you may see something you wouldn't think of reporting. It is one of
the best means to find illegal things or things they (the FBI) need to
look out for."
Laanui said the FBI is not out to violate privacy laws or rummage
through people's files.
"Because we are a police agency, people view us as diametrically
opposed to the ACLU and civil rights," he said. "We are not looking to
conduct searches. We want the public to be wary and informed in the
area of emerging tech crimes. If they see something, or they suspect
something is afoot, they are free to contact the FBI."
He said agents also attend community events, like PTA meetings, to
educate the public about network security.
Highly skilled unit
Without revealing specifics, Laanui said the computer crime squad is a
sizeable group of highly trained agents who are up to date on the
latest viruses, of which there are more than 70,000.
The agents are highly skilled in a multitude of high-tech disciplines,
like how to hack into a system covertly. They often go undercover
online, attempting to lure child predators. Laanui said some agents
are skilled in the precise practice of extracting information from
Palm Pilots.
In addition to their daily duties, the agents spend time in the
classroom to stay on technology's ever-evolving edge.
"We're trying to build a rapport with companies, a lot of computer
guys don't necessarily know we exist," Laanui said. "Virtually anyone
in the high-tech arena is up for a visit with the FBI."
Although Laanui declined to disclose specific numbers of arrests and
prosecutions involving cooperation by computer-repair technicians, the
squad has made some high-profile collars unrelated to the repair
technicians.
Jesus Norberto Evans-Martinez, 34, was arrested March 21, 2003, after
the FBI received a complaint from an e-mail service in Copenhagen,
Denmark. The complaint alleged that an e-group provided by Internet
server Yahoo! was being used to transmit and share child pornography,
according to U.S. Attorney Ed Kubo.
The FBI was given several e-mails that had been sent to and from an
account, which was traced to Evans-Martinez, Kubo said. Some of the
e-mails contained child pornography, and others discussed ways to use
alcohol or drugs to have sex with minors.
On the day of his arrest, FBI agents searched Evans-Martinez's
Schofield Barracks home and found computers and other items that
contained child pornography, including images of him having sex with a
girl.
Evans-Martinez faces up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to
sexual abuse of a minor, advertising child pornography and witness
tampering. He will be sentenced Nov. 1 by U.S. District Judge David
Ezra.
In April 2003, the Hawai'i-based FBI cybercrime squad arrested Jason
Starr, 23, of Pennsylvania, on charges of hacking into 'Ohana Net. The
hacking cost the business $8,352.
Joshua Conley, 29, co-owner of Greenlight Design Studios, a Honolulu
based Web design and marketing company, said he understands that the
FBI is just trying to do their job and that it is only a matter of
time before the government gets more involved in the regulation of the
computer industry.
"Its a touchy subject," Conley said. "To a point, some of it is
necessary, as long as you don't break someone's rights."
Eric Seitz, a Honolulu criminal defense and civil-rights attorney said
that if someone takes a computer into a repair shop, they surrender
their right to privacy.
"I'm not really sure there is a problem," Seitz said. "You are
inviting someone to search your private information system, and if
that person finds evidence of illegal activity, that person can report
it."
