By Associated Press


SAN JOSE, Calif. - The Bush administration, seeking to revive an online pornography law struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court, has subpoenaed Google Inc. for details on what its users have been looking for through its popular search engine.

Google has refused to comply with the subpoena, issued last year, for a broad range of material from its databases, including a request for 1 million random Web addresses and records of all Google searches from any one-week period, lawyers for the U.S. Justice Department said in papers filed Wednesday in federal court in San Jose.

Privacy advocates have been increasingly scrutinizing Google's practices as the company expands its offerings to include e-mail, driving directions, photo-sharing, instant messaging and Web journals.

Although Google pledges to protect personal information, the company's privacy policy says it complies with legal and government requests. Google also has no stated guidelines on how long it keeps data, leading critics to warn that retention is potentially forever given cheap storage costs.

The government contends it needs the data to determine how often pornography shows up in online searches as part of an effort to revive an Internet child protection law that was struck down two years ago by the U.S. Supreme Court on free-speech grounds.

The 1998 Child Online Protection Act would have required adults to use access codes or other ways of registering before they could see objectionable material online, and it would have punished violators with fines up to $50,000 or jail time. The high court ruled that technology such as filtering software may better protect children.

The matter is now before a federal court in Pennsylvania, and the government wants the Google data to help argue that the law is more effective than software in protecting children from porn.

The Mountain View-based company told The San Jose Mercury News that it opposes releasing the information because it would violate the privacy rights of its users and would reveal company trade secrets.

Nicole Wong, an associate general counsel for Google, said the company will fight the government's efforts "vigorously."

"Google is not a party to this lawsuit, and the demand for the information is overreaching," Wong said.

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<~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>
One man's dream is another man's nightmare~~~~> §¤ Lilith ¤§
~>My Scribbles<~
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What is Google worried about? The Feds aren't going to mis-use this information.

Of course, we all know that Iraq was crawling with weapons of mass destruction, that Samuel Alito is a raging moderate, that the last two national elections were entirely fraud-free, that government conducted eavesdropping on private conversations is completely constitutional, adn that King George II, excuse me, George W Bush keeps his promises to fire anyone on the white house staff who leaks sensitive information that might endanger the lives of US citizens.

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On the kinkometer, my kink measures as a sine wave.

^^^ Shouldn't White House be capitalized? roflmao!

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A blessed thing it is for any man or woman to have a friend, one human soul whom we can trust utterly, who knows the best and worst of us, and who loves us in spite of all our faults.

I've heard the phrase, "dripping with sarcasm" before, but had never seen such a great example until now

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Plug me into somethin'

If the theory does not conform to the facts, then the facts must be discarded.

No good deed ever goes unpunished

Never argue with an idiot. He'll drag you down to his level, & beat you with experience.

seen this today ... good thing google ain't badging in ... interweb is the last bit of freedom we got

OK, just for shit and grins, I did a Google search on the phrase George W Bush is a fuckhead. In quotes.




Thirteen hits.

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On the kinkometer, my kink measures as a sine wave.

Oh nooooooooo! Now I have to rethink my investment in 5 shares of Google!

Anyone see the price of that stock lately? Holy friggin Moly!!!!

Hey G.W.? Bite me...ass and all!

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Minds are like parachutes. They only work when they are open.

~Thomas Dewar~

Im thinking of changing my name to G.W. then,

I'll be along to bite that ass

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Are US citizens the only ones that use Google? I wonder what right our government thinks they have to explore information retrieved from those outside the US.

__________________

The practice of putting women on pedestals began to die out when it was discovered that they could give orders better from there.~ Betty Grable

If I wanted your opinion, I'd remove the duct tape and ask you for it.~ Me
<~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>
One man's dream is another man's nightmare~~~~> §¤ Lilith ¤§
~>My Scribbles<~
==>Gone Shopping<== ~Just a Quickie~ *~A Celebration Vacation~* ~Surprises~ Sleeping With the Window Open
What Did You Do Today? Self Defense Class ~Short Sweet Snippets~ § Summer Spin § Story Challenge Submission Pajamas

LMAO!!

I'm surprised it wasn't more though!!

What I don't understand is I've googled "WMD" before and soooooo many other things, yep some pervy, looking for information on the topics.......are we not allowed to seek INFORMATION about things anymore?


Wake me when the reign of King George is over please......


.

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Everyone knows that laugher is great foreplay!

RandyGal,

It only gets worse! Not only is the federal government attempting to get information from private companies otherwise denied to it, but the copyright law is now being used in ways which limit our access to information.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4742382.stm

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Eudaimonia

here! here! I'm a Canadian citizen using a US web search engine...does that give the US government the right to see information retrieved from me? HELL NO I SAY!!!! And if it were the Canadian government wanting info on what I retrieved, then I'd say the same damn thing! What the hell happened to our right to privacy? I realize the government has to make laws to stop things like child pornography....but at who's expense? The people that elect these morons to office?

Just once I'd like to see an election where the only people that showed up to vote were the candidates themselves. Then the people can argue against that government, as it was elected "by the people"....but by the backasswards morons that 'try' to rule.

sxxxy14u73,

Unfortunately, a company here in the U.S. does not have privacy rights the way citizens do. So Big Brother can squeeze a company much more easily, and in many more ways than it can a citizen. As the search data is Google’s property, it will be lucky to win this one. Still, you never know…

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Eudaimonia

A follow-up http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/intern...g.ap/index.html

__________________

The practice of putting women on pedestals began to die out when it was discovered that they could give orders better from there.~ Betty Grable

If I wanted your opinion, I'd remove the duct tape and ask you for it.~ Me
<~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>
One man's dream is another man's nightmare~~~~> §¤ Lilith ¤§
~>My Scribbles<~
==>Gone Shopping<== ~Just a Quickie~ *~A Celebration Vacation~* ~Surprises~ Sleeping With the Window Open
What Did You Do Today? Self Defense Class ~Short Sweet Snippets~ § Summer Spin § Story Challenge Submission Pajamas