Thursday, May 18, 2006

Judge ruled against AT&T.

Good Morning Silicon Valley: AT&T. Your world, delivered.:

"A federal judge dealt a blow to AT&T Wednesday, ruling that secret documents supposedly linking the company to a vast domestic surveillance program can be used in a lawsuit. The suit, filed in January by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, says AT&T illegally gave the National Security Agency the telephone and Internet records of millions of customers without a court order or warrant (see 'Can you hear that on your end -- a faint rendition of 'Someone To Watch Over Me'?'). In a standing-room-only hearing Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker rejected AT&T's motion asking the court to order EFF to return the documents, noting, 'Plaintiffs say they got the documents innocently, therefore, their possession is in no way improper and in no way illegal.' But Walker also ordered the documents, which allegedly show AT&T providing the government with access to millions of e-mail messages, Web browsing sessions and phone calls, sealed on the grounds that they may contain trade secrets. "

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