IP: Echelon

[David Farber <farber () cis upenn edu>]

> Date: Thu, 7 Oct 1999 15:29:59 -0700 (PDT)
> From: "Ole J. Jacobsen" <ole () cisco com>
> To: David Farber <farber () cis upenn edu>
> Subject: Echelon
>
>
> Found this on O'Grady's PowerPage (which is located at www.ogrady.com)
>
> [If you send this to IP, that alone shoudl trigger the event ;-)]
>
>
> The Search For Echelon
>
> 07 Oct 99 13:19 EST
>
> For several years now, members of the hacker underground have been talking
> about the possible existence of a secret government spy network known as
> Echelon. Supposedly operated by the US National Security Agency (NSA), the
> alleged worldwide computer spy network reportedly scans all email, packet
> traffic, telephone conversations around the world, in an effort to find
> potential terrorist or enemy communications.  Once various keywords are
> detected a recording of the conversation or email in question is
> triggered.
>
> On 21 October, a group of activists orginating on the "hacktivist" mailing
> list hope to to trip up Echelon on a much wider scale. Use of various
> keywords such as the following will supposedly activate the spy network,
> and according to the hactivists, overwhelm its capabilities if everyone is
> using the keywords in email:
>
> FBI CIA NSA IRS ATF BATF DOD WACO RUBY RIDGE OKC OKLAHOMA CITY MILITIA GUN
> HANDGUN ASSAULT RIFLE TERRORISM BOMB DRUG KORESH SPECIAL FORCES CLINTON
> GORE
>
> Neither the NSA, nor its UK equivalent -- the Government Communications
> Headquarters -- has admitted that the system exists, although its
> capabilities have been debated in the European Parliament.
>
> Ole
>
>
> Ole J. Jacobsen
> Editor and Publisher
> The Internet Protocol Journal
> Tel: +1 408-527-8972
> e-mail: ole () cisco com
> URL: http://www.cisco.com/ipj
>
> VP for Chapters, The Internet Society.