http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-fbi-reporters,0,1737716.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines FBI Issues Order to Media in Hacker Case By PETE YOST Associated Press Writer October 1, 2003, 6:14 PM EDT WASHINGTON -- The FBI has notified 13 reporters that it might subpoena their records regarding a hacker charged with breaking into The New York Times' computer system. A Sept. 19 letter from the FBI directs Associated Press reporter Ted Bridis to preserve any documents pertaining to Adrian Lamo, stating that the request is in anticipation of an order requiring materials to be turned over to federal law enforcement authorities. The FBI said Wednesday that similar letters went to 12 other reporters or news organizations, which the agency did not identify. Lamo, 22, has acknowledged hacking computer systems in the past two years, including the news pages of Yahoo! Inc., and the public Web site of WorldCom. He worked with the companies to fix the security weaknesses. David Tomlin, assistant general counsel of the AP, called the letters "a government effort to turn the news media into criminal investigators." He added, "Reporters who are viewed as tools of law enforcement, even against their will, can't do the job the Constitution sets out for them. Thoughtful prosecutors have generally recognized this and respect the key role that independent reporting plays in our system. We hope that's not changing." ... _______________________________________________ Politech mailing list Archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ Moderated by Declan McCullagh (http://www.mccullagh.org/)
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