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The court orders show the government telling Google to provide the names, addresses, telephone numbers and user activity for all Google account users who accessed the YouTube videos between January 1 and January 8, 2023. The government also wanted the IP addresses of non-Google account owners who viewed the videos.

“This is the latest chapter in a disturbing trend where we see government agencies increasingly transforming search warrants into digital dragnets. It’s unconstitutional, it’s terrifying and it’s happening every day,” said Albert Fox-Cahn, executive director at the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project. “No one should fear a knock at the door from police simply because of what the YouTube algorithm serves up. I’m horrified that the courts are allowing this.” He said the orders were “just as chilling” as geofence warrants, where Google has been ordered to provide data on all users in the vicinity of a crime.

    • @[email protected]
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      108 months ago

      It could be, that’s definitely true. At some point, you either have to trust something or self-host everything, though.

    • @fishos
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      58 months ago

      What if unicorns are real but invisible and we can’t touch them?

      I can make up outlandish “facts” too.

      • Alien Nathan Edward
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        18 months ago

        there’s a teapot that I think you’d be quite fond of, orbiting the earth right behind the moon just where we can’t see it

    • RedFox
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      18 months ago

      Damn! That would be epic and well played for sure. Not advocating.