Homeland Security Monitoring Social Media of the Day: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has been monitoring social media sites, including Facebook and Twitter, a government document has revealed.
As part of a “privacy compliance review” last November, DHS said it routinely checks “publicly available online forums, blogs, public websites and message boards” as part of its “Social Networking/Media Capability.”
The document said the purpose of the monitoring is to help DHS and its agencies respond to events like the earthquake in Haiti and border control issues at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver — events where social networking may be the best source of up-to-date information.
Homeland Security also monitors news and gossip sites including the Huffington Post and the Drudge Report, as well as several blogs about terrorism and security. Wikileaks is also on the list, although some other government agencies have been banned from accessing the site because it contains information that’s considering legally classified.
DHS says everything it monitors is publicly available and only used to “provide more accurate situational awareness” for the department’s decision-makers. It also claims any data collected will only be retained for five years.
Submitted by: Unknown
-
-
Copy & paste this:
