Topic: Disrupring Communications | |
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So, NYC looked at the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai and saw the role the terrorists ability to communicate played. Solution? Interrupt communications.
Now on the face of it it sounds logical right? Except...stop and consider the amount of power NYC is asking for. The ability to circumvent courts (is this only during an attack or just when they want to) after all, we all know of cases of employee abuse and mishandling of private information. The potential abuses here are high. The ability to disrupt media? Gee where do we start here? Now I am sure there will be some "what ever it takes" replies here but to that I will counter just how much are you will to give up? Myself, I think the terrorists have already won every time I see something like this. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The New York Police Department is looking for ways to disrupt cell phone calls and other forms of electronic communication among terrorists in the event of another terror attack in New York, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly says. The need to disrupt communications is one of several conclusions that the NYPD has drawn from studying the November attack in Mumbai, India, a three-day rampage by machine gun and grenade-wielding Islamic militants in which at least 165 people were killed and 304 were wounded. Kelly is scheduled to discuss this and other "lessons learned" in testimony Thursday before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. A draft copy of his statement was shared with FOX News in advance of his appearance. Kelly stressed the need for law enforcement to be able to disrupt cell phone calls and other communications during an attack, pointing to threats posed by the media when they disclose law enforcement tactics during live coverage that can get passed back to the attackers. Kelly says that in the Mumbai attack, the terrorists' handlers used cell phones and other portable communications devices to order the killing of hostages and to adjust other tactics while the attacks were underway. It's not clear from his testimony whether the NYPD has the means to disrupt electronic communications for a small group of terrorists without shutting down cell phone service to a large part of Manhattan. The NYPD has also been at odds with the Justice Department over its attempt to get the federal government to loosen up a law governing electronic surveillance. Under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, warrants must be obtained to begin electronic monitoring of terror suspects, and the requests go through a multi-layered vetting process by the FBI and the Justice Department. Kelly is asking for these agencies to expedite NYPD's requests to be able to combat fast-moving terror situations. http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/01/08/nypd-interrupt-cell-phone-service-event-terrorist-attack/ |
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