Minecraft ban reports investigated

11 March 2015 Last updated at 15:36 By Kevin Rawlinson BBC News

Minecraft owner Microsoft is investigating reports the Turkish government is preparing to ban the game, the BBC understands.

A Turkish Family and Social Policies Ministry study said the game promoted violence, according to local media.

There were conflicting reports about what action the government was planning to take as a result.

Some said it would ask a court to ban the game, others that it would ask Microsoft to edit it.

According to the Haberturk newspaper, the ministry's report said: "Although the game can be seen as encouraging creativity in children by letting them build houses, farmlands and bridges, mobs [hostile creatures] must be killed in order to protect these structures. In short, the game is based on violence."

'Social isolation'

The report said some children could confuse Minecraft with the real world and be led to believe torturing animals would cause no pain, the newspaper reported.

It added the report was based on the experience of a nine-year-old and suggested playing Minecraft could lead to "social isolation".

Haberturk reported the ministry's legal affairs department had been instructed to take the first steps towards banning Minecraft.

But, according to Fatih Oke, a spokesman for the Turkish Embassy in Washington DC, a ban was "out of the question".

Mr Oke told Christian Science Monitor: "There will be no ban.

"The game is not banned and is not going to be banned.

The Family and Social Policy Ministry does not have that kind of authority to ban any product.

"I understand that this is what has been said in the Turkish media, but it is incorrect.

"The ministry can only work with complaints.

"In this case, I am told there were numerous complaints from parents about Minecraft and its influence on children.

"The function of this ministry is to raise awareness."

The government would not be able to unilaterally ban the game, it would have to convince a court to do so.

While Turkey is not noted for banning computer games, some websites have been taken down recently.

Last year, access to both Twitter and YouTube was temporarily shut down, while Facebook was required to block some pages said to insult the Prophet Muhammad in January this year.

'Creative freedom'

A spokesman for Mojang, which makes Minecraft under the Microsoft umbrella after the latter bought the game for $2.5bn (£1.68bn) in September 2014, would not comment directly on the reports.

He said: "Minecraft is enjoyed by many players in a wide variety of ways.

"Many enjoy the creative freedom that's presented by Minecraft and its tools, some are more interested by the opportunity to explore a landscape without boundaries and to go on exciting adventures with friends.

"We encourage players to cooperate in order to succeed, whether they're building, exploring, or adventuring.

"The world of Minecraft can be a dangerous place: it's inhabited by scary, genderless monsters that come out at night.

"It might be necessary to defend against them to survive.

"If people find this level of fantasy conflict upsetting, we would encourage them to play in Creative Mode, or to enable the Peaceful setting.

"Both of these options will prevent monsters from appearing in the world."

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More

Cheap 'Apple Watch' copies on sale

11 March 2015 Last updated at 14:41 By Leo Kelion Technology desk editor

Smartwatches that mirror the look of the Apple Watch's hardware and software are being advertised on China's most popular online shopping service.

Alibaba's Taobao site lists devices branded the AW08 and the iWatch.

They both feature "digital crown" dials on their sides, similar-styled straps and identical user interface graphics to Apple's forthcoming wearable.

However, their listings reveal they run on Google's Android platform rather than Apple's Watch OS.

Other giveaways that the watches are not the iPhone's official "companion" include:

• They are being offered for about 250 yuan ($40; £26.50) - a fraction of the 2,588 yuan that Apple will charge for its smartwatch in China when it goes on sale next month
• They do not feature the same heart-monitoring sensors on their rear - although this is not always made clear
• They boast longer battery life

Taboao acts as a showcase for third-party sellers - much like eBay and Amazon's Marketplace service - and some vendors have taken pains to make clear that the devices they are selling are not Apple's own technology.

One listing, which was highlighted by the Financial Times, even used the slogan: "Knockoff Apple watches have hit the market!"

Taobao's owner said it did, however, remove deceptive ads.

"Alibaba Group is dedicated to the fight against counterfeits," a spokeswoman for the company told the BBC.

"We work closely with our government partners, brands and industry associations to tackle this issue at its source.

"We also utilise technology like data mining and big data to scrub our platforms of counterfeits."

'Room full of mice'

The copycats first came to light in January, when a reporter from the news site Mashable discovered one being displayed at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

One Beijing-based expert - who has not seen any of the copycat watches in person - said there could be considerable demand for the gadgets now that they were being advertised online.

"Apple products are very popular in China, and it's possible that Chinese consumers will want to be seen to be the first person on their block to wear its Watch," said Matthew Forney, president of the business consultancy Fathom China.

"However, I think most of those consumers are aware that there has been an issue with fakes and copycats on Taobao and would be highly suspicious of the devices.

"And most people who buy them will do so knowing they are not Apple's real Watch."

One Hong Kong-based intellectual property lawyer, who has worked for Apple in the past, said the US company had ways to block the sale of smartwatches that had copied its designs, but added that doing so could be expensive and time consuming.

"There's a legal concept called unfair competition that is recognised around the globe, but in China you can't get a preliminary temporary restraining order for it - you have to go through the law as a slog, and that takes time," said Joe Simone, director of Simone IP Services.

"There are other possibilities - such as making copyright or design-patent infringement claims - but the real problem is the amount of infringing activity that's taking place in China, there's just too much of it.

"The other option for Apple would be to ask Alibaba itself to take down these ads, but that involves filling out forms for each of them.

"For Apple it's like going after a room full of mice - there's just too many of them and even if you clear the room today they'll be back tomorrow."

Watch deposits

Confusingly, some listings on Taobao that appear to advertise copycats may in fact represent the genuine article.

One ad for an "Apple iWatch" initially suggests the product will be available for shipping within 15 days - ahead of the Apple Watch's release.

But the listing's fuller description reveals it only represents a "booking link", meaning the shopper is only putting down a deposit that must be added to later once the vendor has obtained stock from Apple.

Alibaba was criticised by a regulator at the China's State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) in January for failing to do enough to tackle the sale of counterfeit goods on Taobao.

The company's founder, Jack Ma, later insisted that his company took the problem seriously.

"We don't want to be misunderstood by the world that Taobao is a platform for selling fake products," he said.

In light of this, Mr Forney said that the e-commerce giant was expected to crack down on listings that might give consumers genuine cause to feel they had been deceived.

"Alibaba faces heightened scrutiny by its regulator for fakes sold within China," he said.

"So, I would imagine that Alibaba would want to remain above suspicion regarding sensitive new product releases such as Apple devices."

Apple could not be reached for comment.

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More

UK ISPs block Pirate Bay proxies

11 March 2015 Last updated at 11:48

UK internet service providers have begun blocking access to websites that provide a list of Pirate Bay alternatives, as part of the battle against online piracy.

Under a court order, ISPs already block access to many of the biggest sharing sites that link to illegal content, including Pirate Bay.

But users can visit so-called proxy sites that bypass the restrictions.

One of the newly blocked sites said the ban was "totally unreasonable".

Growing list

Under a High Court ruling in a case brought by rights holders, it was agreed that ISPs would ban sites on a list that could be regularly updated.

Rights holders include music industry body BPI and the Premier League.

"Under existing BPI blocking orders relating to 63 illegal websites, ISPs are required to block the illegal sites themselves, and proxies and proxy aggregators whose sole or predominant purpose is to give access to the illegal sites," according to the BPI.

Virgin confirmed that it, along with the other major ISPs, was now blocking proxy sites in line with the original ruling.

"Virgin Media is required to block certain sites by the UK High Court. As a responsible ISP, we comply with court orders addressed to us."

'Censorship'

Among the blocked sites are piratebayproxy.co.uk, piratebayproxylist.com and ukbay.org.

The operator of UKBay.org, identified just as Dan, told piracy news website TorrentFreak that the new bans were "totally unreasonable".

"To block a site that simply links to another site just shows the level of censorship we are allowing ISPs to get away with," he said.

"UKBay is not even a PirateBay proxy. It simply provides links to proxies. If they continue blocking sites that link to sites that link to sites, there'll be nothing left."

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More

Apple hit by online service faults

11 March 2015 Last updated at 21:02

Apple has suffered a fault that struck several of its online services.

The tech company's iOS App Store, Mac App Store, iTunes music and video marketplace and iBooks shop are all refused to allow users to download new material or update existing files.

According to its status page, the problem affected users worldwide for more than 11 hours.

Users were also unable to access email and documents stored on the Apple's iCloud facility for four hours.

A spokesman indicated that the problem had been caused by the firm's own engineers.

"We apologise to our customers experiencing problems with iTunes and other services this morning," he said.

"The cause was an internal DNS [domain name system] error at Apple. We're working to make all of the services available to customers as soon as possible, and we thank everyone for their patience."

A DNS error refers to a fault in the phone book-like system that is used to marry up a domain name - such as https://itunes.apple.com.... - to a string of numbers known as an IP address, used by networking equipment to send and receive data.

Apple's website said the problems had begun a little while before 09:00 GMT and ended shortly after 20:00 GMT.

Other products affected include its iTunes Connect and Testflight tools, used by developers to submit apps and control others' access to their products.

According to Apple's financial statements, its online media stores generated a total of $2.6bn (£1.7bn) of sales over the last three months of 2015.

That represents $1.2m an hour, giving an indication of the scale of the potential lost sales shared by publishers and Apple itself.

The news comes in the same week Apple released an update to its iOS operating system and unveiled products, including a new laptop and smartwatch, in San Francisco.

Apple confirmed that the fault was not related to the iOS upgrade.

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More

Twitter bans 'revenge porn'

Twitter has changed its rules in an attempt to stop users posting so-called "revenge porn".

The social network's rules now state: "You may not post intimate photos or videos that were taken or distributed without the subject's consent."

Last month posting revenge porn images became a criminal offence in England and Wales.

A spokesperson for the company said users found to have broken the new rule "will have their accounts locked".

Users who complain to Twitter about photos or videos posted will be asked to verify their identity and prove they did not give consent for it to be shared publicly.

Anyone found to have posted material against the new rule would then be required to "delete the content in question before being able to return to the platform".

A change in the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill in England and Wales means anyone found guilty of posting intimate pictures of someone without their consent can face up to two years in jail.

The new law classes revenge porn as "photographs or films which show people engaged in sexual activity or depicted in a sexual way or with their genitals exposed, where what is shown would not usually be seen in public".

The law applies to images sent on social networks and by text message.

Dick Costolo says Twitter "sucks" at dealing with trolls

Several US states have revenge porn laws in place including California, Texas and Utah.

Twitter's rule change may be seen as an attempt to counter criticism that it is not effective in dealing with abuse among its users.

Twitter CEO Dick Costolo recently admitted the company "sucks" at dealing with trolls.

In a leaked memo to staff, Mr Costolo wrote: "We suck at dealing with abuse and trolls on the platform and we've sucked at it for years.

"It's no secret that the rest of the world talks about it every day. We lose core user after core user by not addressing simple trolling issues that they face every day."

In December, Twitter said in a blog post that it would it would give users more controls and improve the way users could report abusive accounts.

Twitter is confident it can deal with all reports of revenge porn "in a timely manner".

The company said it would act in response to "specific" cases of its rules being broken, but suggested it could make use of technology to ensure banned images were not reposted.

"Twitter is continuing to explore product solutions to allow us to act faster and more efficiently to protect our users," said a spokesperson.

Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter, BBCNewsbeat on Instagram and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More

Access to blocked news sites restored

12 March 2015 Last updated at 07:16

Websites banned in China, Russia, Saudi Arabia and other countries, are being made available to their citizens.

Reporters Without Borders has set up mirrors, or copies, of nine websites that are banned in 11 countries, allowing people there to see them.

They include the Tibet Post, which is blocked in China, and Grani.ru, which is blocked in Russia.

The group said it would maintain the sites for several months as part of Operation Collateral Freedom.

It stated that the intention was to provide citizens with access to independently-reported news and information.

A spokesman for the campaign group explained that it had set up "proxy/mirrors" - essentially replica websites updated in real-time - on Amazon Web Services, a division of the online retailer that sells cloud-based computing services to third parties.

'Political cost'

In addition, mirror copies have also been placed on similar cloud platforms run by Microsoft and Google.

This means the news websites can now be accessed via the tech giants' internet protocol (IP) addresses rather than their own, and the hope is that the authorities will be discouraged from trying to block these new links at their source.

"The countries concerned could block these services but almost certainly will not," explained Reporters Without Borders.

"Blocking Amazon, Microsoft or any major cloud computing service provider would cripple the thousands of tech companies that use them every day.

"The economic and political cost of blocking the mirror sites would therefore be too high."

A spokesman added that because the mirror sites were only accessible via the secure https protocol, the data transmissions would be encrypted.

This, he explained, would prevent the authorities using keyword searches to censor specific content.

Initiative

However, Prof Alan Woodward - a cybersecurity expert at the University of Surrey - was not convinced that the mirror sites would remain effective over the several months that Reporters Without Borders intends to run the initiative.

"It is an interesting principle because it shows people are aware of censorship and want to do something about it," he said.

"How much impact it will have, I wonder?"

The problem, he explained, was that once the authorities had found the mirrored webpages they could simply block the relevant URLs, or web addresses.

"The key will be how often Reporters Without Borders are changing them," said Prof Woodward.

"Switching them rapidly is good, but then how are people going to find them?" he asked.

The professor drew an analogy between the Reporters Without Borders initiative and the news that websites listing proxies for the file-sharing site Pirate Bay had been blocked in the UK.

The unblocked sites in full

• Grani.ru, blocked in Russia

• Fergananews.com blocked in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan

• The Tibet Post, blocked in China

• Dan Lam Bao, blocked in Vietnam

• Mingjing News, blocked in China

• Hablemos Press, blocked in Cuba

• Gooya News, blocked in Iran

• Gulf Centre for Human Rights, blocked in United Arab Emirates

• Bahrain Mirror, blocked in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More

Alibaba invests $200m in Snapchat

12 March 2015 Last updated at 11:18

Chinese internet giant Alibaba has invested approximately $200m (£133m) in a stake in messaging application Snapchat, the BBC understands.

That values the four-year old firm at nearly $15bn (£10bn)makes it one of the world's most valuable start-ups.

Snapchat allows users to send text and picture messages which disappear in 10 seconds.

Snapchat says its users send 700 million snaps daily, recently started generating revenue from advertising.

The $15bn valuation puts the business in a league with taxi service Uber and Xiaomi, the Chinese smartphone maker.

Alibaba has invested in a range of start-ups in China, but its portfolio in the US is relatively small.

The company has stakes in video call app TangoMe and Lyft, a competitor to Uber.

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More

BBC in school computer giveaway

12 March 2015 Last updated at 11:27 By Jane Wakefield Technology reporter

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Rory Cellan-Jones explains what Make it Digital is all about

The BBC will be giving away mini-computers to 11-year-olds across the country as part of its push to make the UK more digital.

One million Micro Bits - a stripped-down computer similar to a Raspberry Pi - will be given to all pupils starting secondary school in the autumn term.

The BBC is also launching a season of coding-based programmes and activities.

It will include a new drama based on Grand Theft Auto and a documentary on Bletchley Park.

Digital visionaries

The initiative is part of a wider push to increase digital skills among young people and help to fill the digital skills gap.

The UK is facing a significant skills shortage, with 1.4 million "digital professionals" estimated to be needed over the next five years.

The BBC is joining a range of organisations including Microsoft, BT, Google, Code Club, TeenTech and Young Rewired State to address the shortfall.

At the launch of the Make it Digital initiative in London, director-general Tony Hall explained why the BBC was getting involved.

"This is exactly what the BBC is all about - bringing the industry together on an unprecedented scale and making a difference to millions," he said.

"Just as we did with the BBC Micro in the 1980s, we want to inspire the digital visionaries of the future. Only the BBC can bring partners together to attempt something this ambitious, this important to Britain's future on the world stage."

It is hoped that the Micro Bit will encourage children to get involved in coding and programming.

The BBC Micro, launched in the 1980s, played a big role in making computing mainstream but it was not without controversy.

The broadcaster's decision to link up with Acorn Computers angered Sir Clive Sinclair as he prepared to launch a rival machine, the ZX Spectrum.

Meet the Micro Bit

The BBC does not see Micro Bit as a rival to similar computing devices such as Raspberry Pi, Arduino, Galileo and Kano, but rather hopes it will act as a "springboard" to these more complex machines.

The tiny programmable machine is still a prototype and the BBC is working with several partners, including chip-designer Arm, Microsoft and Samsung, to get the end product right.

When it launches in September it will be compatible with three coding languages - Touch Develop, Python and C++.

The device is tiny - fitting easily into the palm of a hand. Children will be able to create text via a series of LED lights and they will also be able to use it to create basic games.

The final version will have a Bluetooth link enabling it to be hooked up to other devices such as a Raspberry Pi.

The Raspberry Pi Foundation is helping to develop learning resources for it and the BBC is being careful not to repeat the mistakes of the BBC Microcomputer launch, which angered rivals such as Sinclair.

BBC Learning's Gareth Stockdale, who is developing the device, said: "The BBC's role is to bring focus to the issue, and then we will withdraw from the market."

After the first million Micro Bits go out to schools, there will be no more.

One day they might become a museum piece like the BBC Micro, which is now housed at the National Museum of Computing at Bletchley.

'Get creative'

As part of its Make it Digital programme, the BBC has also launched an apprenticeship scheme for 5,000 young unemployed people to boost their digital skills.

The scheme is the first of its kind to be developed in partnership with the Department for Work and Pensions.

Radio 1, which is closely involved in the initiative, will offer top-performing trainees the opportunity to go on to an apprenticeship at the station.

The nine-week traineeship, which will include training from the BBC Academy, aims to teach basic digital skills such as creating websites and short videos for the web.

The BBC is also drawing on its vast vault of content to bring digital content into shows such as Doctor Who, EastEnders and the One Show. Radio 4 will have a series of programmes that look at the history of coding, digital content and future technologies.

"With a dedicated season of programming on the BBC, 5,000 digital trainees, one million children who take their first steps with a Micro Bit, and a host of educational activity, we hope to inspire a new generation to get creative with digital," said Jessica Cecil, controller of Make it Digital.

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More

EU plans to target cyber-terrorism

12 March 2015 Last updated at 12:11 By Kevin Rawlinson BBC News

Plans for a new Europe-wide counter-terrorism unit are being presented to European ministers.

The Internet Referral Unit would be part of law enforcement agency Europol and would seek to remove jihadist content from the internet.

EU policy makers want to pool member states' resources to deal with the "sheer volume" of such material.

The Paris terror attacks had pushed the item up the EU's agenda, said a senior official.

"The internet is a major facilitator for radicalisation to terrorism. Addressing this matter poses a number of different challenges," a briefing document detailing the plans says.

It adds: "The sheer volume of internet content promoting terrorism and extremism requires pooling of resources and a close cooperation with the industry."

Extremist content

The proposal from European security officials is for an extension of an existing Europol tool used to store information on Islamist extremist websites into a continent-wide referral unit.

It will be presented to ministers from the governments of EU member states at a meeting of the EU's Justice and Home Affairs Council.

The new unit will be expected to flag "terrorist and extremist online content" and to support investigations by law enforcement agencies.

Under the proposals, which have come from the Latvian presidency of the council, each member state would be expected to nominate a partner authority to work with the new unit.

"This can be the national cybercrime or internet safety department, or a dedicated unit dealing with terrorist content on-line," the document says.

The council wants the unit to be operational by 1 June this year, with the funds being provided by member states.

'Urgency'

The news follows the attacks in Paris and the unmasking of Jihadi John as Mohammed Emwazi, who has appeared in numerous Islamic State propaganda videos posted online.

According to the Financial Times, Gilles de Kerchove - the EU's counter-terrorism chief - said: "[The Paris attacks] have added... urgency to countering the extremism problem. Dealing with material online is the first item on the agenda."

The newspaper reported that the EU unit would be modelled on the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU), which was set up in 2010 by the UK's Home Office and Scotland Yard to prevent the spread of extremist content online.

The Home Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More

UK surveillance 'lacks transparency'

12 March 2015 Last updated at 15:29

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

The BBC's Gordon Corera: "This isn't a completely clean bill of health"

The legal framework surrounding surveillance is "unnecessarily complicated" and "lacks transparency", a Parliamentary committee says.

The Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) report also says there should be a single law to govern access to private communications by UK agencies.

Its inquiry has considered the impact of such activities on people's privacy.

Meanwhile, official regulators revealed a case last year when a GCHQ employee was sacked over unauthorised searches.

The Interception of Communications Commissioner's Office (IOCCO) report said it was the first known instance of deliberate abuse of GCHQ's interception and communications data systems in this way.

The ISC inquiry began after leaks in 2013 about surveillance by US and UK agencies.

Edward Snowden, a former US intelligence contractor, who now lives in Russia after fleeing the US, gave the media details of extensive internet and phone surveillance.

'Patterns and associations'

BBC security correspondent Gordon Corera said Mr Snowden's revelations raised concerns in some quarters that spies had accrued too much power in secret.

The committee's report looked at whether current legislation provides the necessary powers, what the privacy implications are and whether there is sufficient oversight and accountability.

Following its publication, Shami Chakrabarti, director of rights campaign group Liberty, said the ISC was "a simple mouthpiece for the spooks".

Among its findings, the report said that the UK's intelligence and security agencies "do not seek to circumvent the law" and that its activities do not equate to "blanket surveillance" or "indiscriminate surveillance".

Analysis: Gordon Corera, BBC security correspondent

Today was not quite a clean bill of health for Britain's spies.

The ISC does come firmly down on the side of GCHQ in arguing that collecting data in bulk in order, but only reading small amounts of it, does not constitute mass surveillance.

But on a wider issue of transparency and accountability, the committee has taken a tougher line.

The legal system is deemed as lacking transparency and requiring a total overhaul.

Some of the problems were evident today.

The committee revealed that "bulk datasets" are acquired, but was not able to tell people what they are.

The interception commissioner will now also oversee the way in which the 1984 Telecoms Act is used to acquire data but the clear implication is that no one was overseeing this in the past.

And finally for GCHQ there is the embarrassing revelation that a member of staff had to be sacked for gross misconduct in conducting unauthorised searches.

It also said the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) agency requires access to internet traffic through "bulk interception" primarily in order to uncover threats by finding "patterns and associations, in order to generate initial leads", which the report described as an "essential first step".

"Given the extent of targeting and filtering involved, it is evident that while GCHQ's bulk interception capability may involve large numbers of emails, it does not equate to blanket surveillance, nor does it equate to indiscriminate surveillance.

"GCHQ is not collecting or reading everyone's emails: they do not have the legal authority, the resources, or the technical capability to do so."

'Adequate' powers

The ISC also said that it had established that bulk interception methods cannot be used to search for and examine the communications of an individual in the UK unless GCHQ "first obtain a specific authorisation naming that individual, signed by a secretary of state".

Ms Chakrabarti said the ISC was "so clueless and ineffective that it's only thanks to Edward Snowden that it had the slightest clue of the agencies' antics".

Who is Edward Snowden?

Edward Snowden, a former Central Intelligence Agency technical worker, is the source of one of the worst information leaks in US history.

In 2013 his exposure of massive US surveillance, including routine tapping of internet traffic, grabbed the headlines worldwide.

A Parliamentary inquiry was launched into whether surveillance laws needed to be updated in light of his leaks suggesting wholesale interception by GCHQ of internet traffic passing through the UK.

Profile: Edward Snowdon

But Nigel Inkster, from the International Institute for Strategic Studies, told the BBC's Today programme that the security and intelligence agencies had "pretty adequate" powers of surveillance, which should remain.

He added: "What we're talking about here is the bulk collection of civilian telecommunications, something which has actually been going on for decades without obvious detriment to civil liberties or human rights, in order for the intelligence agencies to identify very narrow and specific sets of information about threats."

The inquiry heard evidence in public and in secret, and among those to appear publicly were:

There were 2,795 interception warrants issued to access communications content in 2014, according to the IOCCO report.

Overall, the commissioner Sir Anthony May said there was relatively little change in the number of interception warrants and communications data requests from intelligence agencies and police.

In June 2013 the Guardian reported that GCHQ was tapping fibre-optic cables that carry global communications and sharing vast amounts of data with the NSA, its US counterpart.

The paper revealed it had obtained documents from Mr Snowden showing that the GCHQ operation, codenamed Tempora, had been running for 18 months.

Although GCHQ did not break the law, the Guardian suggested that the existing legislation was being very broadly applied to allow such a large volume of data to be collected.

23.34 | 0 komentar | Read More