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Daily Archives: January 19, 2005

Washington Post Examines Data Aggregator ChoicePoint

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In Age of Security, Firm Mines Wealth Of Personal Data (reg. req’d): the Post provides an overview of ChoicePoint, described as a “little-known information industry giant.” However, many librarians and researchers are well acquainted with the company’s products, and it has been in the bulls-eye of privacy advocates for selling its vast databases of personal data to the government. Also in the Post, see this associated chart of ChoicePoint’s services and clients.

  • The article’s author, Robert O’Harrow, recently published a new book on homeland security issues, No Place to Hide: Behind the Scenes of Our Emerging Surveillance Society.
  • Related references about the company’s activities have been the topic of past postings on beSpacific, dating back to April 2003.

    • Innovative Legislative Tracking Tool Now Available

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    Joshua Tauberer, a grad student at U. Penn, has created an amazing legislative tracking service, GovTrack.us, which won the top prize in the Technorati Developer’s Contest. The site’s automated monitoring services are free, and the data is obtained from federal sources including THOMAS and the websites of the U.S. House and Senate. Users may track… Continue Reading

    FBI’s Net Surveillance Tool Abandoned in Favor of ISP Provided Data

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    From EPIC: “Through the Freedom of Information Act, EPIC has obtained FBI reports to Congress stating that the agency did not use its DCS 1000 Internet monitoring system — formerly known as Carnivore — during fiscal years 2002 (pdf) and 2003 (pdf). According to the reports, the FBI used commercially available software to conduct court-ordered… Continue Reading