Re: Does Hotmail, Gmail, and Yahoo Mail cooperate with the NSA?

[coderman <coderman () gmail com>]

On 12/16/05, Richard M. Smith <rms () computerbytesman com> wrote:
> ... "Does Hotmail, Gmail, and Yahoo Mail cooperate with the NSA?"

seeing how most interaction with these companies is plain text, yes. 
cooperation by default.  i was under the impression the DCS1000
network got a huge boost post 9/11 [1] so it is interesting the NSA
casts an even wider net with regards to the communication methods
listed in the article.

i tend to use SSL/TLS with gmail, and noticed that one day last week i
could not complete a successful handshake / cipher negotiation with
*.google.com from my home DSL line from any computer.  any other
internet path (work, pub hotspot) worked fine with my account.

couple of hours later, no issues.  does DCS1000 / $TLA_spy_tech
support Thawte/Verisign certificate MITM?  i'd really like to know how
often the big three cert co's cooperate...

[i'm sure this is nothing; it'd be easier to simply request account
access from google via court order, but it does make you wonder.]

1. http://www.lasvegasweekly.com/2001_2/09_20/news_coverstory_enemy_6.html
"anonymous techs at major ISPs like America Online and Earthlink
describe how the FBI came calling last week with Carnivore devices
(also called DCS1000), surveillance hardware that sits on an ISP's
backbone and monitors every data packet that comes and goes. And the
ISPs let them install the devices without protest."

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