09.11.2013 - 09:22 [ Techdirt ]

FBI Uses Invitation To Investigate One Email As An Excuse To Dig Through Multiple Email Accounts

As we just recently covered, the FBI‘s enthusiasm for starting investigations far outweighs its interest in ensuring they are justifiable. A site owner who forwarded an email containing a threat to hack his site was misinterpreted by an FBI agent to be a threat against the agency, kicking off (at least) six years of monitoring. Even as evidence failed to pile up, the investigation went continued unabated, ultimately costing the site owners‘ a chunk of income as donors scattered when news of the investigation became public.