| Topic: |
Religions > Atheism |
| User: |
"stoney" |
| Date: |
13 May 2006 06:11:32 PM |
| Object: |
An example of passionate service from AT&T Wisconsin |
http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/node/1482
An example of passionate service from AT&T Wisconsin
Kristian Knutsen on Thu, 05/11/2006 - 5:13pm.
I read with great interest the biggest issue burning up the internets
today, a USA Today article about the National Security Agency (NSA)
collecting a database of phone records with the assistance of AT&T,
Verizon and Bell South. "For the customers of these companies," USA
Today reports, "it means that the government has detailed records of
calls they made -- across town or across the country -- to family
members, co-workers, business contacts and others."
Having been an AT&T Wisconsin customer since it was named SBC, I take
this news seriously and immediately thought of two questions I'd like my
phone company to answer. Were records of my calls made via AT&T included
in data provided to the NSA? If so, did this violate the company's
privacy obligations as a service provider?
More importantly, would I be able to get a direct answer from the
company?
The adjective Kafkaesque has become hackneyed, but there is no better
way to describe my experience trying to get basic answers to my
seemingly simple questions.
I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you
The first obvious step was to call AT&T's customer service line. While I
was sure the representative wouldn't be able to give me much, I was
curious to hear the scripted response the company is dispatching to its
concerned customers.
I bypassed the touch-tone directory and was sent immediately into the
queue for a human operator. "Due to the extraordinary interest in AT&T
services," a recorded voice read, "the estimated wait time is six
minutes."
After waiting about four, a man with a southern accent and a pleasant
demeanor picked up. Giving him my account details to verify my status as
a customer, I asked my question.
Were records of my calls included in the data dumps to the NSA?
"We don't give any information about matters of national security," was
his response. Asking again with different wording, the representative
replied similarly, saying "any information that we give to the federal
government would be related to national security," and therefore he
would not say anything more.
Are you saying my customer records are a matter of national security, I
asked.
"I couldn't tell you if it was," he said.
All that was missing was the Scottish brogue.
Trying one more time to get something out of the guy, I asked if what he
meant was that the company has no response to concerns about this issue
by its customers.
"Exactly."
With this channel obviously exhausted, I decided to try another tack.
Local
Jim Maurer is the vice-president of AT&T Wisconsin, a 27-year employee
of the regularly-renamed company, and works from an office in downtown
Madison. In a late April interview with the State Journal, Maurer said
"it's a good time to be in this business" before discussing his career
and the ongoing changes in the telecom industry –- particularly the
reemergence of Ma Bell.
Right off the bat, he responded to questions as a consummate salesman,
promoting AT&T as an institution devoted to serving its customers.
"We've always been very focused on our customers," he said. "Now I see
us (as) passionate. We always work to satisfy our customers. I see us
now doing things that we want our customers to be very satisfied.
There's an incremental difference."
Mauer went on to talk about AT&T's ongoing growth, its hope "to be the
No. 1 not only communications, but also entertainment company that our
customers will ever need," and his beekeeping hobby. Neither the term
network neutrality nor its relevance to AT&T's desired business model
were mentioned.
Would Maurer be able to satisfy a customer by helping with this
question? The short answer is no. As expected, he was fairly difficult
to reach, with his phone line jumping quickly to voice mail through much
of the afternoon. I was able to reach out and touch base with him
eventually, though.
Bringing up the issue of AT&T providing call pattern data to the NSA,
Maurer said that he was unfamiliar with the issue, having been busy with
other concerns earlier in the day. He would not speak further on the
issue, directing me to call Jeff Bentoff, the AT&T Wisconsin
spokesperson.
Long-Distance
Based in Milwaukee, Bentoff previously worked as a press secretary for
former Milwaukee Mayor John Norquist before becoming a governmental
affairs spokesperson for SBC, and subsequently AT&T. He, too, would not
speak on the matter, saying that he does not speak for the corporation
on all issues and would therefore not speak further on anything to do
with this matter about AT&T's affairs with the federal government.
Bentoff did punt me up the chain, however, directing me to Walt Sharp.
All around the world...
Sharp, based out of AT&T's corporate headquarters in San Antonio, is a
national spokesperson for the company.
Sharp immediately said, "We have a statement, I can give it to you and
beyond that I cannot say anything." He immediately emailed me the
statement, which read in full:
AT&T has a long history of vigorously protecting customer privacy.
Our customers expect, deserve and receive nothing less than our fullest
commitment to their privacy.
We also have an obligation to assist law enforcement and other
government agencies responsible for protecting the public welfare,
whether it be an individual or the security interests of the entire
nation.
We prize the trust our customers place in us. If and when AT&T is
asked to help, we do so strictly within the law and under the most
stringent conditions. Beyond that, we don't comment on matters of
national security.
These claims are instantly belied by the actions of Qwest, however, a
competing company that did not comply with the NSA's data mining
program. As reported in the USA Today:
According to sources familiar with the events, Qwest's CEO at the
time, Joe Nacchio, was deeply troubled by the NSA's assertion that Qwest
didn't need a court order -- or approval under FISA -- to proceed.
Adding to the tension, Qwest was unclear about who, exactly, would have
access to its customers' information and how that information might be
used.
Financial implications were also a concern, the sources said.
Carriers that illegally divulge calling information can be subjected to
heavy fines. The NSA was asking Qwest to turn over millions of records.
The fines, in the aggregate, could have been substantial.
The NSA told Qwest that other government agencies, including the
FBI, CIA and DEA, also might have access to the database, the sources
said. As a matter of practice, the NSA regularly shares its information
-- known as "product" in intelligence circles -- with other intelligence
groups. Even so, Qwest's lawyers were troubled by the expansiveness of
the NSA request, the sources said.
The NSA, which needed Qwest's participation to completely cover the
country, pushed back hard.
Trying to put pressure on Qwest, NSA representatives pointedly told
Qwest that it was the lone holdout among the big telecommunications
companies. It also tried appealing to Qwest's patriotic side: In one
meeting, an NSA representative suggested that Qwest's refusal to
contribute to the database could compromise national security, one
person recalled.
In addition, the agency suggested that Qwest's foot-dragging might
affect its ability to get future classified work with the government.
Like other big telecommunications companies, Qwest already had
classified contracts and hoped to get more.
Unable to get comfortable with what NSA was proposing, Qwest's
lawyers asked NSA to take its proposal to the FISA court. According to
the sources, the agency refused.
In other words, the statement provided by Sharp, and in effect provided
by AT&T Wisconsin's primary public faces, are little more than a thin,
coppery hiss and crackle.
"We're just not going to comment beyond the statement," Sharp said.
Local again
I don't need to be an AT&T customer to have a land line in Madison.
There are competitors that offer their services.
One major alternative is TDS, which operates two services in the region
under its 'Metrocom' and 'Telecom' banners. The company published a
response on its website today addressing this very issue and its
customers' concerns of privacy and freedom. The statement, dated May 11,
reads:
TDS has a strong policy to protect our customer records and is in
fact mandated by the Communications Act, section 222 to protect your
records, and we do so with great care. TDS would only assist law
enforcement or government agencies when requested via a valid subpoena.
When these requests are made we do comply with state and federal laws.
Calls placed outside of our network which connect to one of the
carriers that do participate in this program may become part their
database, we are unable to restrict this activity. TDS does not have any
authority over the other Carriers that complete your call.
We have no further information regarding the NSA program.
This statement doesn't cover all of TDS customers' potential concerns,
however. As raised in discussion on TDPF, TDS Metrocom is a Common
Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC), and as such leases phone
lines from AT&T in order to provide its service. Are TDS customers'
records being transmitted by AT&T to the NSA?
TDS spokesperson DeAnne Boegli says no:
TDS Metrocom does lease lines from AT&T. However, we have our own
Switch.
Which means that if AT&T is using the Switch to collect data
records, which is most likely; then no, our customers' records would not
be in the AT&T data.
The data on the call record is held within our own Switch. The
Switch is used to complete calls, collect billing and call data. We have
our own Switches and do our own billing. Therefore AT&T would not have
access, we simply lease the physical line.
If the person you are calling is a Verizon or AT&T customer, then
the portion of that call record originating with them may be subject to
the data collection.
There's one solution, then, for AT&T Wisconsin customers who are not
satisfied with their service.
Representation
In statements issued today addressing this latest in a long train of
abuses and usurpations, Sen. Russ Feingold calls for further
information, while Sen. Herb Kohl states "the pattern troubles me and
raises many grave questions."
Tammy Baldwin has not released a statement on the matter, and will
likely not do so on Friday, according to her spokesperson Jerilyn
Goodman. She is, however, an amici to a brief (PDF) filed Wednesday on
behalf of 72 Democratic members of the House against the NSA, which
"challenges the Bush Administration's illegal warrantless domestic
spying," as described by Michigan representative John Conyers.
"We've always been very focused on our customers"
The answer to both of my original questions is certainly yes, as sure as
the fact that ***** Cheney resembles Laventry Beria in more ways than
one. But there was never any question about that. The real test here was
whether or not AT&T representatives would respond directly when queried,
both from the perspective of a customer and from someone seeking comment
for publication.
All levels of AT&T failed. Its customer service representative, its
regional officer, its regional spokesperson and its national
spokesperson all begged off. But is anyone surprised to learn that?
/end
--
Fundies and trolls are cordially invited to
shove a wooden cross up their arses and rotate
at a high rate of speed. I trust you'll
be 'blessed' with a plethora of splinters.
.
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| User: "" |
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| Title: Re: An example of passionate service from AT&T Wisconsin |
13 May 2006 09:51:55 PM |
|
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stoney wrote:
http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/node/1482
An example of passionate service from AT&T Wisconsin
Kristian Knutsen on Thu, 05/11/2006 - 5:13pm.
I read with great interest the biggest issue burning up the internets
today, a USA Today article about the National Security Agency (NSA)
collecting a database of phone records with the assistance of AT&T,
Verizon and Bell South. "For the customers of these companies," USA
Today reports, "it means that the government has detailed records of
calls they made -- across town or across the country -- to family
members, co-workers, business contacts and others."
<snip>
These claims are instantly belied by the actions of Qwest, however, a
competing company that did not comply with the NSA's data mining
program. As reported in the USA Today:
According to sources familiar with the events, Qwest's CEO at the
time, Joe Nacchio, was deeply troubled by the NSA's assertion that Qwest
didn't need a court order -- or approval under FISA -- to proceed.
Adding to the tension, Qwest was unclear about who, exactly, would have
access to its customers' information and how that information might be
used.
Joe Nacchio is currently facing SEC indictments for accounting
fraud by Qwest. These charges were laid AFTER the NSA twisted
the arms of the phone companies. The question becomes, is this
a vindictive punishment of Nacchio (think Mikhail Khodorkovsky of
Yukos Oil) or is he simply a dirty?
Bob Dog
-----
"Easily the biggest challenge facing the ID community
is to develop a full-fledged theory of biological
design. We don't have such a theory right now, and
that's a real problem. Without a theory, it's very
hard to know where to direct your research focus."
- Paul Nelson, creationist
and anti-science advocate
"Texas: 50th in education, first in executions...
how's that working for you?"
- Kinky Friedman's campaign slogan
in the Texas governor's race
.
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| User: "stoney" |
|
| Title: Re: An example of passionate service from AT&T Wisconsin |
16 May 2006 07:48:33 PM |
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On 13 May 2006 19:51:55 -0700, wrote in alt.atheism
stoney wrote:
http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/node/1482
An example of passionate service from AT&T Wisconsin
Kristian Knutsen on Thu, 05/11/2006 - 5:13pm.
I read with great interest the biggest issue burning up the internets
today, a USA Today article about the National Security Agency (NSA)
collecting a database of phone records with the assistance of AT&T,
Verizon and Bell South. "For the customers of these companies," USA
Today reports, "it means that the government has detailed records of
calls they made -- across town or across the country -- to family
members, co-workers, business contacts and others."
<snip>
These claims are instantly belied by the actions of Qwest, however, a
competing company that did not comply with the NSA's data mining
program. As reported in the USA Today:
According to sources familiar with the events, Qwest's CEO at the
time, Joe Nacchio, was deeply troubled by the NSA's assertion that Qwest
didn't need a court order -- or approval under FISA -- to proceed.
Adding to the tension, Qwest was unclear about who, exactly, would have
access to its customers' information and how that information might be
used.
Joe Nacchio is currently facing SEC indictments for accounting
fraud by Qwest. These charges were laid AFTER the NSA twisted
the arms of the phone companies. The question becomes, is this
a vindictive punishment of Nacchio (think Mikhail Khodorkovsky of
Yukos Oil) or is he simply a dirty?
I'd say the former.
--
Fundies and trolls are cordially invited to
shove a wooden cross up their arses and rotate
at a high rate of speed. I trust you'll
be 'blessed' with a plethora of splinters.
.
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