Government Releases List Of Words They Use To Police Internet & Identify “Threats”
If you don’t want the government spying on your online, there are some words you should definitely avoid using. And yes, they include “pork,” “cloud,” and “Mexico.” Because, you know, those words are just so threatening!
Obama’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been forced to release a list of keywords and phrases that it uses to monitor people’s activities online. They search for these words on social networking sites and online media for signs of terrorist or attack threats.
Some other (and more understandable) words they look for are “attack,” “Al Qaeda,” “terrorism,” and “dirty bomb.”
The new list has been released under a freedom of information request. It sheds light on exactly how government officials are told to patrol the internet for threats.
The list of words is included in the DHS “Analyst Desktop Binder,” which is used to instruct workers on how to identify “media reports that reflect adversely on DHS and response activities.”
Department chiefs were made to release the entire manual due to a House hearing over documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit.
DHS officials claim that the practices they conduct are not aimed at policing the internet for negative remarks about the government and distrust. Instead, they say, it is to provide information and awareness about serious potential threats.
Officials don’t just search for evidence of terrorism. They are also instructed to search for evidence of natural disasters, public health threats, and other crime like drug dealing and illegal immigration.
The Electronic Privacy Information Center, a privacy watchdog group, described the DHS list of words as “broad, vague and ambiguous.” They argue it includes “vast amounts of First Amendment protected speech that is entirely unrelated to the Department of Homeland Security mission to protect the public against terrorism and disasters.”
After receiving a lot of scrutiny, the agency admitted that the language used in the manual was dated and too vague.
Matthew Chandler, a spokesman for the DHS, said, “To ensure clarity, as part of … routine compliance review, DHS will review the language contained in all materials to clearly and accurately convey the parameters and intention of the program.”
Below is the full list of the words used by officials to police the internet. If you regularly use any of these words, the DHS could be spying on YOU:
Source
If you don’t want the government spying on your online, there are some words you should definitely avoid using. And yes, they include “pork,” “cloud,” and “Mexico.” Because, you know, those words are just so threatening!
Obama’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been forced to release a list of keywords and phrases that it uses to monitor people’s activities online. They search for these words on social networking sites and online media for signs of terrorist or attack threats.
Some other (and more understandable) words they look for are “attack,” “Al Qaeda,” “terrorism,” and “dirty bomb.”
The new list has been released under a freedom of information request. It sheds light on exactly how government officials are told to patrol the internet for threats.
The list of words is included in the DHS “Analyst Desktop Binder,” which is used to instruct workers on how to identify “media reports that reflect adversely on DHS and response activities.”
Department chiefs were made to release the entire manual due to a House hearing over documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit.
DHS officials claim that the practices they conduct are not aimed at policing the internet for negative remarks about the government and distrust. Instead, they say, it is to provide information and awareness about serious potential threats.
Officials don’t just search for evidence of terrorism. They are also instructed to search for evidence of natural disasters, public health threats, and other crime like drug dealing and illegal immigration.
The Electronic Privacy Information Center, a privacy watchdog group, described the DHS list of words as “broad, vague and ambiguous.” They argue it includes “vast amounts of First Amendment protected speech that is entirely unrelated to the Department of Homeland Security mission to protect the public against terrorism and disasters.”
After receiving a lot of scrutiny, the agency admitted that the language used in the manual was dated and too vague.
Matthew Chandler, a spokesman for the DHS, said, “To ensure clarity, as part of … routine compliance review, DHS will review the language contained in all materials to clearly and accurately convey the parameters and intention of the program.”
Below is the full list of the words used by officials to police the internet. If you regularly use any of these words, the DHS could be spying on YOU:
Source