Able Danger Techniques And NSA Program Respect Privacy, Might Have Prevented 9-11

Do the words Able Danger mean anything to you? If so, read on. Lost in the political and media hype over the NSA Collects Phone Data story of today is that there is a good case to be made that, not only does the program actually protect the privacy of most Americans, it also might have allowed the government to prevent the tragic terror attack on 9/11 from taking place. Also, it would significantly help to prevent another attack, given previously disclosed facts.

According to reports, what the NSA does with that huge volume of data is data mining.

one way to use all that information is in “social network analysis,” a data-mining method that aims to expose previously invisible connections among people.

There are many ways to mine data, but one critical factor is that it is basically a form of pattern analysis.

Data Mining, also known as Knowledge-Discovery in Databases (KDD), is the process of automatically searching large volumes of data for patterns.

A fundamental question for Americans to ask themselves here is, would you prefer having the actual content of your phone calls monitored before or after you displayed a pattern which rose to a level of concern for those in charge of our national defense?

By applying pattern analysis to a large volume of call data it's easy to understand how 99.9999% .... and probably more of Americans would never rise to any level of concern for our government in this sense. Consequently, the NSA program rules the vast majority of Americans out and thereby protects their privacy in a very real sense. Keep in mind, all this data being analyzed is simply bits and bytes in a database, not something read-able to the human eye in any practical sense.

Now, as regards Able Danger. It was actually data mining which was claimed as the method for determining the identity of Mohammed Atta.

Also see here:

A year before the 9/11 attacks, through data mining a U.S. Army intelligence group had identified two terrorist cells, including Mohammed Atta and three other 9/11 hijackers. Lieutenant Colonel Anthony Shaffer, a liason officer of a unit called Able Danger, has spoken on the topic. By analysis of non-military data, several of the terrorists with direct links to top Al-Qaeda leadership were identified.

That was said to come from Open Source data mining:

SHAFFER: Open source -- anything that's not a classified database. We're talking about commercial databases, financial databases. Anything that's out there that relates to the real world."

It's believed that information from Able Danger wasn't allowed to be shared due to concerns of the Pentagon.

He said he learned later that lawyers associated with the Defense Department's Special Operations Command had canceled the F.B.I. meetings because they feared controversy if Able Danger was portrayed as a military operation that had violated the privacy of civilians who were legally in the United States.

Now, even with any breaking down of the so-called Gorelick wall, the NSA and the Bush administration has assured us that they abide by US Law while protecting us against future terrorism. For the record, I believe them.

... the DoD – hands tied by Gorelick’s policy – declined to alert the FBI, a step that might have prevented the 9/11 attacks.

And that brings us to the FISA Act as we are now, and only now, actually beginning to talk about any wire-tapping, as it is commonly called. As with any Court, I assume the FISA Court wants some facts in evidence to show probable cause. The calling pattern analysis cited above could be a very useful tool in that regard. As some very few items percolated up from the database, potentially corroborating data mined from open sources while leaving most all American's information behind, the government could identify people and other groups communicating and possibly acting in concert with those known to be affiliated with terrorists groups. Is that you?

Assuming it isn't, maybe it is about time for warrants and wire taps to kick in.

In short, the case could be made that, ultimately, by combining a stream-lining of process as recommended by the 9/11 commission in combination with existing and additional new, powerful macro-data analysis techniques, ones that leave more than the over whelming majority of Americans absolutely alone - the Bush administration appears to be attempting to build us a state of the art terrorism protection process and policy totally within the confines of existing law. Meanwhile, an uninformed media and politically and agenda motivated Congress appear to be getting ready to try and tear it down.

It is a post 9/11 world, my friends. Perhaps everyone needs to ask themselves, whose side are you really on?

Comments

[warrenb]

You are so full of it Dan. You will support this administration unitl....well until you're the last idiot standing.

[tester]

Lets hope those geeks know what they're doing....and we don't find the data sitting on top of the trashcan outside the Whitehouse.

[MrsLevy'sNiece]

Good Germans love the NSA.

MrsLevy'sNiece

[Samayel]

A worthy review. Still, the question lingers, why does a program that already allows warrants 'after the fact' for emergency action, need to be streamlined into a paper trail-less carte blanche?

I accept that data-mining is necessary AND useful. I further accept the reality of tracking modern terrorism demands new techniques for detection and prevention. Sadly, I do not accept that government, headed by either party, is responsible or trustworthy.

To maintain a free and democratic society, and to protect values that are part and parcel of our way of life, we must demand total accountability from our government. Expecting the intelligence community to eventually justify their actions before a judge, or board of review, is an entirely reasonable concept. This 'check and balance' on our government should not be done away with in the name of expediency.

Try to remember that, irregardless of the party and politics any of us favor at the moment, eventually, the power we give to one administration will fall into the hands of another. We should expect the same accountability of all administrations in perpetuity, and base our policy decisions accordingly, to prevent future abuse.

None the less, it was still a fine article, and much appreciated in an era of news hype.

[dnichols]

Why do we not read in the press the SUCCESS of this program? Obviously, it works! For example, we have not had a terror attack here since 9/11. Why have these people not seen this?

The liberal press and Democratic politics have created a culture of ungrateful, complaining, grumbling and blind Americans who hate Bush, fail to recognize the success here on the war on terror, and who will do anything to sabatoge this Administration, all the way down to CIA leaks and trashing our heros on the front lines.

And even with "low approval ratings", Bush stays on task, working diligently to keep all of this mess together.

Can you imagine the tone if people in this country actually found a way to be THANKFUL for all these efforts and for no terror attacks since 9/11?
I can imagine the victims who died in NY that day would love the luxury of becoming a grumbling American liberal complainer...this has become the second tragety of 9/11, the culture that has been created since, the spoiled, blind, hateful ugly left.

[Sgt. York]

Look, if you guys want to live in a totalitarian police state move your ass to Iran. This is the same as the no-gun garbage, "there are bad people who might hurt others so nobody should own a gun." but in this case it is, "there are crazy people who shit in the corner of Afgan caves and they want to hurt you - so let's turn the USA into a locked-down police state and track every phone call of every American so you don't get hurt."

This is happening because you worms are frightened of the boogyman, frightened of moslems, frightened of the world. Maybe if you people served a few years in the military you wouldn't be such frightened bowls of jello. This is wrong, this is America.

That's my 2-cents.

[IMHERE]

I thought they said Clinton could have prevented 9/11?

[Florida Patty]

Excellent read Dan.

[annie]

I don't care who listens to what I am saying, just so long as I am allowed to continue to say it!!

I would say to them, 'please, listen in, you might learn something worth knowing'!

It is the taking away of my freedom of speech that I object to!!

[annie]

I would also like to say this, and I hope the powers that be read it!!

Beware the UNELECTED European Union's High Representative, Dr. Javier Solana. He is running a DICTATORSHIP, yet he will emerge very soon as some kind of Saviour of the World.

He is of Marxist origin, and a real charmer, and I predict that the people of the US will be really taken in by him.

If he can get the monetary exchange for oil changed to euros, instead of dollars, then he will be the most powerful person in the whole world. That will mean the US will go under!!

And all this will be done in plain sight, while everybody is running around looking elsewhere!!!

He is a very dangerous man!!

He was given these powers under Declaration 666 of the European Union. He is also the leader of the ten nation Western European Alliance, which is the Military Arm of the European Union, which is a different body to the European Union.

JAVIER SOLANA - REMEMBER THE NAME!!!

[Rick]

Posted by Sgt York
"This is happening because you worms are frightened of the boogyman, frightened of moslems, frightened of the world. Maybe if you people served a few years in the military you wouldn't be such frightened bowls of jello. This is wrong, this is America"

York you're the only one here who makes any sense. I don't want the freakin' guvment knowing my grandma's banana pudding recipe either. What I find really offensive is Rummy ja...... while I whisper sweet nothings to wifey.
Where the hell are all you outraged people when little old ladies are forced from their homes so a new wally world can be built on the property.Kruschev was right..........without ever firing a shot.

[dnichols]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/12/AR2006051201656.html

[annie]

Rick

Do you honestly believe anybody is interested in anybody whispering sweet nothings to anybody!!

They just aint got time to listen to stuff like that!!

This is much ado about nothing!

[annie]

And one thing's for sure.

The enemy has now been given plenty of warning not to communicate with each other by phone any more!!

[Rick]

annie; Of course GW and Rummy are interested in our heavy breathing and I just know Laura is stealing granny's recipes. If it weren't true the media would not report it as such!!! You just be careful what you say to mom tomorrow.

[annie]

Rick

As I have said before, I don't care who listens to what I am saying.

All I care about, is that they don't stop me from saying it.

That is far more worrying!!!

[Rick]

annie;
If I really thought calls were being listened to at random I would think differently. Knowing a wee bit about how this stuff works though, I'm not concerned. The 'puters pick up on call routing and key words/phrases that the average American does not use. Now the first time some jerk is arrested for discussing a bank robery with his gang...AND.... there is no warrant to listen in. I will see it differently. Of course, when you tell your daughter that you put rum in the coffee cake and the ATF breaks in your door.....it's time to fix bayonets!