I was browsing the Internet and came across some interesting spy equitment. A notice at the bottom stated that phone tapping and eavesdropping were illegal activities in certain states. (I mainly interested in the state of CA, as well as PA, GA, and WA.)
201678
No State has a free reign on wiretapping. They all have VERY restraining laws. on TOP of that there is ALSO a FEDERAL statute that makes wiretapping illegal. So if the state does not get you the FEDS might.\nHere are some example of state and federal statutes:\n\nIn Pennsylvania for instance 18 Pa.C.S. § 5703 prohibits:\n"(1) intentionally intercepts, endeavors to intercept, or procures any    other person to intercept or endeavor to intercept any wire, electronic or oral communication;"\nwith following exceptions:\n1. "An operator of a switchboard, or an officer, agent or employee of a   provider of wire or electronic communication service, whose facilities   are used in the transmission of a wire communication, to intercept,   disclose or use that communication in the normal course of his   employment "\nOR\n2. "Any investigative or law enforcement officer or any person acting   at the direction or request of an investigative or law enforcement  officer to intercept a wire, electronic or oral communication involving  suspected criminal activities, including"\n\nIn California, Cal Pen Code § 631 (2006) states:\n"Any person who, by means of any machine, instrument, or contrivance, or in any other manner, intentionally taps, or makes any unauthorized connection, whether physically, electrically, acoustically, inductively, or otherwise, with any telegraph or telephone wire, line, cable, or instrument, including the wire, line, cable, or instrument of any internal telephonic communication system, or who willfully and without the consent of all parties to the communication, or in any unauthorized manner, reads, or attempts to read, or to learn the contents or meaning of any message, report, or communication while the same is in transit or passing over any wire, line, or cable, or is being sent from, or received at any place within this state; or who uses, or attempts to use, in any manner, or for any purpose, or to communicate in any way, any information so obtained, or who aids, agrees with, employs, or conspires with any person or persons to unlawfully do, or permit, or cause to be done any of the acts or things mentioned above in this section, is punishable by a fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars ($ 2,500), or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year, or by imprisonment in the state prison, or by both a fine and imprisonment in the county jail or in the state prison."\nExceptions:\n" (b) This section shall not apply (1) to any public utility engaged in the business of providing communications services and facilities, or to the officers, employees or agents thereof, where the acts otherwise prohibited herein are for the purpose of construction, maintenance, conduct or operation of the services and facilities of the public utility, or (2) to the use of any instrument, equipment, facility, or service furnished and used pursuant to the tariffs of a public utility, or (3) to any telephonic communication system used for communication exclusively within a state, county, city and county, or city correctional facility." \n\n\nThe FEDERAL law  says: \nExcept as otherwise specifically provided in this chapter any person who--\n(a) intentionally intercepts, endeavors to intercept, or procures any other person to intercept or endeavor to intercept, any wire, oral, or electronic communication;\n[is guilty of  a crime]\nEXCEPTIONS:\n(ii) being used by a provider of wire or electronic communication service in the ordinary course of its business, or by an investigative or law enforcement officer in the ordinary course of his duties\n\n\nCONCLUSION:\nDO NOT EVEN THINK about wiretapping someone unless you have their consent, you are a police office and have probable cause, or you work for telephone company and it is a pert of your normal job. YOU WILL get slammed with state and federal penalties.
643687
it depends on who's doing it.  If its part of a legal investigation and the agency doing the investigation has a legal warrant then all they have to do is call the phone company and have a tap put on but otherwise someone would physically have to put a listening device on your line
52200
Not really.  The NSA intercepts are legal under Article 2 of the Constitution (Sections 1 & 2) both in the Oath of Office and vested with the powers as commander-in-chief, plus the joint Congressional resolution of Sept. 14, 2001 which is legally a declaration of war against al-Qaeda\n\nBesides, the European democracies have been doing stuff like this for decades, and to an extent that would give the ACLU massive cardiac arrest.  The city with the greatest degree of CCTV and other surveillance is London, and the  European police and security services don't have the same restrictions that American police do, And in France, you're guilty until proven innocent.  Something to keep in mind.
56291
The Patriot Act did not create any new laws, only consolidated existing ones, so terrorism has nothing to do with it.  The government, with reasonable premises and a sometimes a court order, can pull IMs and phone logs for a number of reasons, just being that they believe you or her were involved in any crime they are investigating.
456036
Don't you read the news?  This was a partisan dirty trick to keep democrats from voting in key states -- the calls went something like, you are registered in some other state and if you try to vote you will be arrested.  Virginia has called in the FBI to investigate; if you have evidence, you should contact your election authorities.
267637
If government agencies such as the NSA are allowed to overhear or read private phone conversations or e-mails or otherwise scrutinize private communications of people who live in this country — whether citizens or non-citizens — *without* the scrutiny and oversight of judges, who are in the last instance answerable to the law and to the public, they are creating a domain within the state that is exempt from the sovereignty of the people. This undermines democracy (however fake of a democracy it is anyway) and creates a state within the statue — usually thought to be a distinguishing feature of dictatorships, in which secret services, torturers, etc. are also neither answerable to the law nor to the people.
324005
People are missing the point. There may not be an expectation of privacy requiring a warrant, but the phone call database is in direct violation of applicable federal law.\n\nWhether I have anything to hide or not is irrelevant. It was against the law for the NSA to be doing what they are doing, especially if it has been going on for years. See the 1986 Stored Communications Act.
57013
I believe that the gubment monitors every aspect of telecommunications. Bush is the crookedest mofo to have squatted in the whitehouse in years. He has allowed spying in the USA under the guise that he is trying to foil terrorism. His dad used to be the deputy director of the CIA. So he has and will to continue to do whatever he and his vp deputy dog want to do.
384031
I actually received this exact complaint from several young girls in my town in Ontario Canada.  The cases went to our computer expert and he determined that the bad guy was in a country overseas.  \nI would contact your local police service, there may not be alot they can do if the guy lives in Uzbekistan or something like that but he could be a local.
578274
YES!!!!!!!!!  as an example is a man-in-the-middle attack, eavesdroping and many more
430985
Yes,  ISP's and other corporations such as Yahoo have a legal and ethical obligation to inform the internet crime division of the police agency in the jurisdiction that the poster made these postings.  The user's IP address is pretty much a road map to their house at the time that they posted the comment.  This is why a lot of cyber cafe's and places that the people think they are anonymous have discrete video surveillance or require a credit card etc.  Someone who incites hate, makes threats or confesses a criminal offence will be investigated, but there is a huge backlog on these investigations so the poster won't get a knock on his door likely for weeks or months.
595344
is Did this really happen.Someone needs to read the papers and just see what  is and has happening in our country. tell them to read about 911 and other security breaches.I do believe that home Land security is following up. they sure as hell wouldn't just let this pass as if it were nothing, or would they
558592
Congressman Tancredo is going to hold hearings on this, so I assume we will all hear more about it.  I think it is disturbing it was kept so secret here.  Apparently in Canada it isn't a secret at all.  They post the working group identities on their governmental web page.
404503
Politicians exempted themselves from having to obey the do not call list. Telling them "That may be legally true, but I won't vote for you if you do call" might help. I screen by caller ID, usually avoid unknown number or toll free calls.
291854
I feel that its totally against everything that is American. How about everyone straps a GPS system to their legs so the government knows where everyone is, oops that's right cell phones i almost forgot. Besides this the government is saying its all in public safety, but i dont kno how safe i feel if i know someone is listening to my phone calls. Give me a break if i wanted to blow some shit up I wouldn't talk on the phone to make plans for it anyway.
152637
I wonder if you could look into some type of computer ani terrorism job?  I mean this is an open network and I remember some talk on one of the channels that the internet is an open channel for terrorism and that it was closely monitored.  Maybe punch in some keywords, anti-terrorism,interent, computer, jobs to monitor, security,internet terrorism............play around with the words and see what comes up?
319740
If we talk to each other on our cell phones, it's not your phone talking directly to mine, like a radio.\n\nIt's your phone hooking into a network that is shared with my phone's network.\n\nOnce on the network, it's the same as if we were using the old wire cable.  Every call is logged (they have to bill us!) and these logs are available as they happen.\n\nComputers listen to these conversations and when a key word is spoken (Osama Bin-Laden, jihad, bombs, etc.) they have the capability to start recording and notify the Information Techs that there was a comment of note made.\n\nNow they have your number and mine.  We'll go on a special list of interest and be monitored more closely.  Our association with terrorism will be discovered and we'll be arrested.  You'll go to jail 'cause I'm gonna talk.\n\nThank you for your time.