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Jesus, we have traded our privacy as the price of safety and security--show us how we can operate in this overly-surveilled nation! Give us wisdom, please!
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Law enforcement officials seeking out participants of the riot at the Capitol last week have one big leg up: a plethora of social media posts and data of the suspects they’re searching for.

Widespread posts on social media from last week’s deadly riot, along with other less public-facing technology such as cellphone metadata, are aiding officials as they seek to identify members of the pro-Trump mob that stormed the Capitol building on Jan. 6.

The Department of Justice has already charged dozens of people associated with the riots just over one week after the event took place. Law enforcement experts say that social media has not only helped track these individuals but also provided ample evidence for prosecutors to build airtight cases.

“A treasure trove of rich evidence was created and released by the insurgents themselves,” Adam Wandt, deputy chair for academic technology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, told The Hill. . . .

Lawmakers are also looking to wireless providers to share data related to the Capitol riots to aid in the investigations.

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), the likely incoming chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, wrote letters to tech giants and mobile carriers urging them to preserve content and associated metadata connected to the attack at the Capitol.

A spokesperson for AT&T said, “We have received and are reviewing the senator’s letter” but declined to comment as to the action the carrier has taken in providing information to law enforcement officials. T-Mobile confirmed it received the letter and will cooperate fully with requests from law enforcement.

A spokesperson for Verizon, which also received a letter from Warner, did not respond to a request for comment.

“I think the suspects don’t realize the amount of information that is out there because with geolocation devices, you can pinpoint location,” West said. “A lot of the things they are doing are time-stamped down to the minute and second, so law enforcement is going to know what they were doing, where they were doing it and when they were doing it.”

In addition to social media and wireless data, the use of facial recognition technology has also aided in law enforcement’s search for the Capitol rioters. The controversial facial recognition company Clearview AI has seen a spike in use.

Clearview CEO Hoan Ton-That confirmed in a statement that the company saw a 26 percent spike in usage on Jan. 7. The company’s spike was first reported by the Times.

(Excerpt from The Hill. Article by Rebecca Klar. Photo credit: Canva.)

How do you feel about this level of ability the government has to surveil its citizens? Have we given up our privacy in the name of security? Share your thoughts and wisdom below!

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Debra
January 18, 2021

I think we are in Ezekiel 36 today. Most people are familiar with Ezekiel 37, the Valley of Dry Bones. But how did the bones become dry? What happened before Ezekiel 37? I feel like “they” are stripping off the skin, the flesh and the tendons of our nation. Very soon we will be a Valley of Dry Bones. But our God will come. He will come and ask us if we have the faith of Ezekiel. When he comes and says, Can these dry bones live? Will he find faith on the earth? Will we still say, YOU ARE SOVEREIGN AND GOOD, no matter how long we are in the valley of dry bones? No matter how desolate things look? Sovereign Lord, you alone know the future, but personally, I believe that there are no bones so dry that you can’t breathe life into them and add back their skin and flesh and tendons and muscles and make them better than before. O Death, where is your victory? O Death, where is your sting? We ride with the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords who is called Faithful and True.💃🦁🦋

4
Anne Forbes
January 18, 2021

I think it is critical that the people who are guilty of storming the Capitol last week be found, charged, and held accountable. So many thousands of people were innocent of wrong-doing, and were there to simply pray and support the President. So I don’t mind that the technology is being used, as long as it doesn’t implicate innocent people.

10
david du bois
January 18, 2021

I am hoping and praying the truth will be revealed by the Capitol attack investigation that is going on. I am hoping the those who were not but were disguised as pro-Trump will be clearly revealed, which makes me sympathetic to the use of technology. But also I realize truth is a two-edged sword. I think we should be willing to have our own sins exposed and dealt with – shouldn’t judgment begin first with us?

6
Jesse
January 18, 2021

If you want us to trust you, do not parrot the MSM propaganda terminology such as, “…pro-Trump mob that stormed the Capitol…”. There was a mixed multitude that included pro-Trumpers, yes, but also Antifa, BLM and other lefties disguised as pro-Trumpers.
This is the essential deception the MSM has driven down America’s throat. It is maddening! Please stop agreeing with their strong deception.

11
    Lois Robords
    January 18, 2021

    I noticed that, too, and didn’t like it. It has been shown that the riot was planned before the event and it started while the President was still speaking. Agreed that some of them did support Trump, but do not imply that all were Trump supporters because that is a lie.

    9

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