US spy chief clarifies internet tapping policy

US spy chief James Clapper has admitted the government collects communications from internet firms, but says the policy only targets “non-US persons”.

Internet tapping aimed at non-US people outside US, says official

WASHINGTON (REUTERS) - Information collected through a US government surveillance programme that taps into the servers of internet companies targets only non-US persons living outside the United States, a senior administration official said.

The US law that allows the collection of data under this programme does not allow the targeting of any US citizen or of any person located in the United States, the official said on Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"This programme was recently reauthorised by Congress after extensive hearings and debate," the official said.

"Information collected under this programme is among the most important and valuable intelligence information we collect, and is used to protect our nation from a wide variety of threats."

US secretly mining data from Internet giants

US intelligence agencies are accessing the servers of nine Internet giants as part of a secret data mining programme likely to fuel fresh debate about government surveillance, The Washington Post reported.

Some of the biggest firms in Silicon Valley were involved in the programme, including Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook, Apple, PalTalk, AOL, Skype and YouTube, reports said.

Dr Yaacob’s incorrect and embarrassing New Zealand comparison

This morning, my eyes nearly popped out of my skull when I read in the ST that Minister for Communications and Information (MCI) had compared the MDA Licensing Regime to recommendations made by a New Zealand Law Commission Report on new media.

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AP admits its mistake in Shane Todd article

American news agency Associated Press (AP) has admitted its mistake in a story last week on the death of American researcher Shane Todd, saying it was “erroneously reported”.