EPIC files FOIA suit for documents regarding Google/NSA partnership

from the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC):

EPIC has filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the National Security Agency in the United States District Court in the District of Columbia. The agency failed to respond to EPIC's FOIA request for documents about an "Information Assurance" partnership with Google. EPIC previously appealed to the agency to comply with its legal duty to produce the documents, but he agency failed to respond. EPIC is also seeking the Presidential Directive that grants the NSA authority to conduct electronic surveillance in the United States.

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Google tool tries to make data mining easy

The recently launched Google Public Data plans to start with U.S. population and unemployment data and add on emissions stats from the EPA, the Washington Post reported. The new tool "is taking data, reformatting it so it's immediately consumable ... so people don't have to go through rows and rows of data." Google says many agencies do not organize their Web sites in ways that can be easily indexed by search engines. Some embed codes into their sites, which makes the information invisible in searches.

Google launched a new search tool yesterday designed to help Web users find public data that is often buried in hard-to-navigate government Web sites.

The tool, called Google Public Data, is the latest in the company's efforts to make information from federal, state and local governments accessible to citizens. It's a goal that many Washington public interest groups and government watchdogs share with President Obama, whose technology advisers are pushing to open up federal data to the public.

The company plans to initially make available U.S. population and unemployment data from the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, respectively. Other data sets, such as emissions statistics from the Environmental Protection Agency, will roll out in the coming months.

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Calif. considers limiting Internet mapping sites

Clearly, maps such as Google Earth and Microsoft's Virtual Earth aren't the only places one can find photos of schools, hospitals, churches and government buildings. But a California lawmaker is concerned that the ready availability of these images may assist terrorists and has proposed that restrictions be placed on certain images.

A California lawmaker wants to force Internet mapping services to blur detailed images of schools, hospitals, churches and all government buildings, reviving a debate over whether such images can assist terrorists.

Assemblyman Joel Anderson, a San Diego-area Republican, said he decided to introduce his bill after reading that terrorists who plotted attacks in Israel and India used popular services such as Google Earth and Microsoft 's Virtual Earth.

But even if his bill becomes law, it might be difficult to prohibit Google Inc., Microsoft Corp. and other mapping companies from posting such photographs. That's because those images already are public and often are posted on the institution's own Web site.

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New online repository for fed. docs goes live

You could always Google whatever federal document you're looking for, but the new Federal Digital System will now house the originals along with an archive of documents released by the White House Press Office.

The Government Printing Office today launches Federal Digital System (FDsys), the new online home for original federal documents.

Users will eventually be able to search for information from the government's 50 different collections. The site currently hosts the eight most-popular collections, including the Federal Register, the Congressional Record and archive of Congressional hearings. The other collections will be added to the site by this summer, according to GPO's chief information officer Mike Wash.

The new site also marks the launch of the Federal Register's new Daily Compilation of Presidential Documents, an archive of executive orders, speeches and other information released by the White House Press Office. The daily online compilation replaces the printed Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents.

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