FBI scanning software sparks armed response at UK school - Echelon at work?

G'day ATS,

I read this story today and thought it was definitely worth posting.

Armed police at Merseyside school after FBI warning

Police mounted a major operation to protect pupils at a Merseyside school after they were alerted by the FBI.

I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand it's a possible tragedy averted, on the other it's quite scary the ability of the FBI to track us online.

The United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation raised the alarm after picking up a threat posted on social networking site Facebook.

The school said it was the FBI who raised the alarm after internet scanning software picked up a suspicious combination of words.

It's pretty freaky to see Echelon at work!! I'm not sure they run ECHELON (the FBI) but they must have their equivalent.

It picked up a posting showing a picture of a gun being held above a scrawled note, which read "tomorrow - last day of school" and went on to mention bullies and "leaving this world".

You have to wonder at some of the combinations of words we've all posted right here on ATS!!

Echelon (signals intelligence)

ECHELON is a name used in global media and in popular culture to describe a signals intelligence (SIGINT) collection and analysis network operated on behalf of the five signatory states to the UK–USA Security Agreement (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States, known as AUSCANZUKUS). It has also been described as the only software system which controls the download and dissemination of the intercept of commercial satellite trunk communications.[

PLEASE GO TO THE LINK FOR MORE DETAILS OF THIS TECHNOLOGY!!

I just thought it was a story ATS would be interested in, all the best, Kiwi







[edit on 15-6-2010 by kiwifoot]

Did you read that??

It said that the scanner picked up this from a PHOTO.

That means it somehow READ the Photo of a handwritten note the kid was holding in that photo.

How the hell can a scanner read words in a PHOTO???

This is some sophisticated stuff seriously.

I can understand simply scanning all words typed on internet pages, but scanning a photograph is different.

It would have to have some sort of software that analyzes photos specifically. I am amazed they are admitting they have this software.

reply to post by muzzleflash


Cheers mate, I hadn't picked up on that! That's even more disturbing.

I guess it was the gun that was flagged initially, but as you say, pretty sophisticated.

Man some of the stuff I've posted on ATS!!!

reply to post by muzzleflash


Welcome to the 21st century. It's not called the information age for nothing.

The FBI has the best of the best. Of course they are watching this site.
They wouldn't be good at what they do if they weren't.
If I was in charge I'd be checking this site out too.

Things are leaked here and posted here where the population at large doesn't even know it exists.
We see things here first. I'd assume that the FBI then gauges public opinion here first and then comes up with a plan on dealing with that news.

At least that's what I'd do.

To be fair, it does look like a legitimate use for this software. If they stopped a kid shooting pupils and him/herself, then it's a good thing, surely?

I know it's creepy as hell to think that everything we do and say is monitered, but this is the world we live in. What can we do? Invent another internet? (which I believe has been done a couple of times already)

reply to post by kiwifoot
Yes I did enjoy that article, thanks for posting it. That's some fancy software indeed!

I have no doubt some ATS posters are on a watch list at the FBI after seeing some of the things a few people have posted, which resemble domestic terror innuendo!

This is what transnational corporatist governments do.

They use the information siphoned from commercial applications all over the word because "It's an American company."

Now if the FBI we gathering intelligence from an overseas source there would be congressional chaos. Besides the CIA is funded precisely for 'foreign intelligence' gathering efforts, I guess somehow they are cool with this too.

At least it was ostensibly for the benefit and safety of school children. But I can't say that I'm all warm and fuzzy about automated systems sifting through data streams... especially if the automation includes 'alerts' that haven't been vetted by a human who might realize that some kid scrawling:

"I hate school, I am glad I'm out of this world of theirs, tomorrow will be the last day!"....

does not constitute a threat to society meriting the reaction of the authorities.

Let's face it, this 'centralized' control and monitoring strategy will get stupider before it gets any smarter. Because it's all fueled by contractor profit, and not reason.

I found out that they where using electronic mind control in school in 1992, in london. So what the feck are they doing in schools today. The peopel with these techs care not for ruining lifes.

I would not be surprised at anything going on in uk and usa schools.

If they where using electronic mind control on me to wreck my life in 1992, what would they be doing in a case like this today.

Something alot more than this is going on.

[edit on 6/15/2010 by andy1033]

Originally posted by Maxmars
Now if the FBI we gathering intelligence from an overseas source there would be congressional chaos. Besides the CIA is funded precisely for 'foreign intelligence' gathering efforts, I guess somehow they are cool with this too.

You will find that the fbi is like a world police force, not just like some sort of mi5 in usa.

Its global.

I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand it's a possible tragedy averted, on the other it's quite scary the ability of the FBI to track us online.

All the more reason to continue visiting anti-gov sites and expressing yourself even more.

Generally the real deals never threaten. They just do it.
Islamic fundamentalist terrorist's don't even threaten until after the fact and
90 % of the time they are riding in on the coat tails of the actual perpetrators.

Thats pretty intresting, and the thought that the scanner could pick up the image then key words...

Although, if any third party seen that, its easy to imagine why they had that sort of response.

Another factor is that it was on facebook and more evidence of Snooping.
And the fact that the FBI got in touch with police in Liverpool is quite... Good I suppose. So even smaller 'would be' threats are picked up as apposed to Terrorism.

Its easy to say their here on ATS too.

The question is, what else could this software do?

Originally posted by Maxmars
Now if the FBI we gathering intelligence from an overseas source there would be congressional chaos. Besides the CIA is funded precisely for 'foreign intelligence' gathering efforts, I guess somehow they are cool with this too.

It's an interesting problem. Possibly it was caught by Echelon. The fact that it was some UK kids adds credence to it, we toss things back and forth over the wall due to UKUSA. It also is typical for "the FBI to discover it" if we want to publicize it, you'll never hear that NSA had anything to do with it directly. It's always an attentive cop who just happened to be somewhere, or a training operation that was in progress right at the site of the deed, or the FBI found it.

At one time Echelon had issues with reading handwritten scanned notes, not anymore apparently, if that's them.

On the other hand, we also have everyone and their dog doing data mining ops these days. The Armed Services have maybe a dozen of them now, just for themselves, and I wouldn't doubt the FBI has bought at least one, and Facebook, myspace and a number of popular forums are "seed stock", especially Facebook. So anything you put on Facebook, ANYTHING, is going to be first scanned when they start a new sweep.

Both CIA and NSA do forint, but NSA is the signals part of it, and CIA isn't, so CIA wouldn't much care. The nature of the Internet also makes it sort of odd as to whether that constitutes foreign intel. We've got some half-arsed directives that preclude the NSA delving US only blogs, although that doesn't stop the JSOC from doing it, and the protection is so minimal that they often do it anyway and make it right after the fact. It's not that hard. If even one foreign national posts in a thread, it's fair game. So if you want to legitimize yourself on a blogscan, you just get Nigel to post "Hello from Down Under!" on a thread and it's fair game, sort of like letting a vampire in the door.

At least it was ostensibly for the benefit and safety of school children. But I can't say that I'm all warm and fuzzy about automated systems sifting through data streams... especially if the automation includes 'alerts' that haven't been vetted by a human who might realize that some kid scrawling...

Ah, but they do. No system acts without layers and layers of review and human intervention. The sources that might be interesting but are too full of triggers to scan they pay people to read. Every. Stinking. Post.

www.sthelensstar.co.uk...

A picture posted on an internet image board - which is circulating the web and has been seen by the Star – shows a gun-toting man displaying a handwritten message that reads: “Tomorrow last day of school. We gonna **** up the bullies and leave this world 11/06/2010.”

From the LOCAL paper. The STHELENS star (Newton-Le-willows is a borough of Sthelens).

One message posted online read: “Tested it at firing range, we have two shotguns as well, it’s locked in but tomorrow I have a key.

Twice it mentions the word 'WE' ... That means TWO or more. So why has only one person been arrested?

reply to post by Acidtastic


yes, I would use this tech for security

the problem is that we live in a world where our leaders are psychopaths, selling themselves to the industry, they dont want to improve general life, they want to do careers and put $$ in their banks

so, they use it most to spy good people

so what if a blogger wrote,

i got a call to do a job,fix a leak!
i did the job now they wont pay!
pipe's cost a bomb and i'm gonna
go there tommorrow and they will pay!
it was a god dam goverment contract job.
mr jones the plumber.

There was no scanning involved. The picture and threat were originally posted on /b/ on 4chan. As with most things that happen on 4chan, other anon's did some digging and found out details of the school and location of the people who posted it. They then proceeded to send the picture and links to the thread to various news and gov agencies "for teh lulz". At the time, the original posters put up another timestamped picture holding a "trolled" sign as an attempt to diffuse the situation. However, trolling 4chan is an easy way to upset the various /b/tards so the reports continued to flood in from 'concerned citizens'. The FBI obviously took these threats as seriously, and forwarded it to the British police.

In short, it was a 4chan trolling attempt that got out of hand. I think the FBI used the scanning claim to make it appear that they have this super software that allows them to scan the entire internet and single out an individual from a photo. Add to that shows like CSI, where they have huge databases with everyone on it to help solve crimes, then the population can sleep well at night. However, this could backfire on the FBI should a school be shot up after being planned on the internet, as the media will no doubt ask why it wasn't flagged.

[edit on 18/6/10 by ro01xc08]

[edit on 18/6/10 by ro01xc08]

Originally posted by muzzleflash


How the hell can a scanner read words in a PHOTO???

This is some sophisticated stuff seriously.

I can understand simply scanning all words typed on internet pages, but scanning a photograph is different.

It would have to have some sort of software that analyzes photos specifically. I am amazed they are admitting they have this software.

My bank does that now.

To deposit a check, I just throw the check in the machine. It reads all the writing on the check and deposits it without me telling it the amount.