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FBI Stops Responding To The Most Prolific FOIA Filer, Because He Might Actually Learn Something

Failures

from the he's-so-effective-that-they'd-like-him-to-stop dept

Mon, Nov 18th 2013 11:47am — Mike Masnick
Mother Jones has an interesting profile of Ryan Shapiro, a punk rocker turned animal rights activist turned MIT PhD student, who is officially the "most prolific" filer of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests from the FBI. At a high point, he was filing an average of two per day. In fact, he filed so many FOIA requests so successfully, that the FBI is now refusing to respond and is giving the courts a secret explanation which they won't share.
The FBI claims that it cannot discuss the case in open court "without damaging the very national security law enforcement interests it is seeking to protect." Instead, it has filed a secret declaration outlining its case. "This is an especially circular and Kafkaesque line of argument," Shapiro counters. "The FBI considers it a national security threat to make public its reasoning for considering it a national security threat to use federal law to request information about the FBI's deeply problematic understanding of national security threats."
The FBI is basically arguing that because Shapiro is filing so many requests, he might actually be able to pull enough info together from so many different responses, that it would reveal stuff that wouldn't have been revealed if it had been found in a single FOIA request. In other words, Shapiro is better at this game than the FOIA censors, figuring out ways to get a variety of information that, when put together, is actually kind of useful.

Part of the trick, apparently, is getting a ton of people to agree to sign "privacy waivers" so he can request the FBI's info on those people, which the FBI wouldn't reveal otherwise.
When he started using privacy waivers, Shapiro realized he was on to something. Suppose you and I volunteered for the animal rights group PETA. If Shapiro requested all PETA-related FBI documents, he might get something back, but any references to us would be blacked out. If he requested documents related to us, he'd probably get nothing at all. But if he filed his PETA request along with privacy waivers signed by us, the FBI would be compelled to return all PETA documents that mention us—with the relevant details uncensored.

Shapiro began calling up old friends and asking for waivers. Coming of age amid the 1990s punk scene, he'd been drawn to animal rights causes and took part in their actions. He walked into foie gras facilities to film sick and injured ducks, several of which he rescued, and locked himself to the doors of fur salons. And while he no longer does such things, he has kept in touch with people who do.

Armed with signed privacy waivers, he sent out a few experimental requests—he calls them "submarine pings"—and when the FBI returned more than 100 pages on a close friend, he knew he'd struck gold. The response included pages of information that Shapiro had requested previously, but that the FBI had claimed didn't exist. Using case details from those documents and a handful of additional waivers, he filed a new set of requests.
Later in the article, Shapiro admits that as he got more and more responses, it certainly allowed him to fill in many blanks (and also point him to where to file other requests). This, it seems, is exactly what the FBI fears the most: Shapiro has outsmarted them. While, normally, FOIA responses are done in a manner to limit what information is shared and to never, ever suggest a slightly different query that might be useful, it appears Shapiro has more or less figured out a way around that, in part via bulk requests which lead down other paths of inquiry. No wonder the FBI has stopped responding. Shapiro just plays the game better than they do, and they're used to a world where the house always wins.
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Filed Under: activists, animal rights, fbi, foia, mosaic theory, privacy waiver, ryan shapiro

36 Comments

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Reader Comments

The First Word

“

It pays to look both ways before crossing irony street

For today's tangible dose of irony, note that this is pretty much a straight up admission that large collections of innocuous looking data can add up to more positive information than anyone would want to give away.
—Quinn Wilde
 ”

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  • icon
    RyanNerd (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 11:58am

    FOIA are a waste of time

    I suppose if you get a group together each submitting a FOIA request for differt stuff and then put all the pieces of the puzzle together you may find something interesting. As it is now all you get is a big fat [REDACTED] paper where there are more lines of black marker than there are words.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Reality Check (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 3:57pm

      Re: FOIA are a waste of time

      "I suppose if you get a group together each submitting a FOIA request for different stuff and then put all the pieces of the puzzle together you may find something interesting."

      And that, dear sir, is exactly what he was doing.. Multiple cross references to the same information, and each one redacted slightly different was filling in the blanks.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Bergman (profile), 19 Nov 2013 @ 2:33am

      Re: FOIA are a waste of time

      FOIA requests and subpoenas are often worded in very similar ways when it comes the information you must produce. I bet the FBI would be less than amused if they got back a heavily redacted document, but the funny thing is that doing so is equally legal.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      IonOtter, 19 Nov 2013 @ 9:30am

      Re: FOIA are a waste of time

      Apparently you didn't even read the article. They *are* effective, and NOT a waste of time.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Me, 18 Nov 2013 @ 12:09pm

    Government transparency is essential to a functioning democracy. Government employees, whether at the NSA or the FBI (and others), who object to fulfilling FOIA requests are enemies of the state and should be prosecuted and jailed.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 18 Nov 2013 @ 12:19pm

      Re:

      "Government transparency is essential to a functioning democracy. Government employees, whether at the NSA or the FBI (and others), who object to fulfilling FOIA requests are enemies of the state and should be prosecuted and jailed."

      I agree with you but the vast majority of America is literally asleep or just flat out does not care. These problems can now only be solved by ending lives. I would like to believe I am wrong and overly negative but I do not believe so.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      The Real Michael, 19 Nov 2013 @ 8:51am

      Re:

      What's the purpose of having FOIA requests when the info is either heavily redacted or access is curtailed on a mere whim? The things these agencies get away with on a routine basis would be considered illegal/unconstitutional if done by an ordinary citizen, which makes them seem more the order of an organized crime syndicate on steroids, hiding behind a federal emblem, acting with virtual legal immunity.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Nov 2013 @ 12:23pm

    My company fired me because I was learning things

    My company fired me because I learned too much doing my job every day. That made me too efficient, being able to do things in half the time it took me when I first started.

    It's a perfectly reasonable thing to do though, I mean who wants a more efficient employee with years of experience when they can just hire someone new to do less for the same pay?

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      BernardoVerda (profile), 24 Nov 2013 @ 5:11pm

      Re: My company fired me because I was learning things

      The really sad thing is that I'm inclined to actually believe your story.

      I've seen stuff like this before -- new hires hiding the fact that they already know how to use the new system because the manager is clearly threatened by the possibility (despite being hired precisely because they'd taken training courses), people being sabotaged by co-workers because they were "too" competent, etc...

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Andrew Lee, 18 Nov 2013 @ 12:48pm

    World Record?

    This guy should get in contact with Guinness World Records for holder of most redacted documents.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Nov 2013 @ 1:02pm

    so when is this actual law going to stop being a law, then? if the excuse of interfering with national security or similar can be used, how long before there is no such thing as a 'FOIA' request law at all? this excuse is used a hell of a lot already. i bet it will be used even more now!

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 18 Nov 2013 @ 1:10pm

      Re:

      "so when is this actual law going to stop being a law, then?"

      I'm sorry, the answer to that question is classified.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      That One Guy (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 4:20pm

      Re:

      Why would they ever bother to repeal it, it serves the purpose of making them look 'transparent' to the public, and if they ever feel like ignoring a FOIA request they can just 'forget' it, and should the one who made the request lawyer up, they just send a document 99% redacted.

      The idea behind FOIA requests are good, allowing the public to find out what the government, who is supposed to be working for the public, is doing, the problem comes with how easy it is for the government to claim 'classified/state secrets' to avoid answering anything that might make them look bad.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

      • icon
        nasch (profile), 19 Nov 2013 @ 10:59am

        Re: Re:

        the problem comes with how easy it is for the government to claim 'classified/state secrets' to avoid answering anything that might make them look bad.

        I wonder how well it would work for the agency to just send the document to the court under seal, and a judge decides, without any input from the executive, what needs to be redacted.

        [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Quinn Wilde, 18 Nov 2013 @ 1:06pm

    It pays to look both ways before crossing irony street

    For today's tangible dose of irony, note that this is pretty much a straight up admission that large collections of innocuous looking data can add up to more positive information than anyone would want to give away.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Gwiz (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 1:51pm

      Re: It pays to look both ways before crossing irony street

      +10 insightful

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      That One Guy (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 4:24pm

      Re: It pays to look both ways before crossing irony street

      Someone seriously needs to give this a first word, it absolutely nails the 'metadata is still valuable in large enough quantities' argument.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      PopeRatzo (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 7:52pm

      Re: It pays to look both ways before crossing irony street

      #1 Internet Comment of the Day.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Nov 2013 @ 1:13pm

    People, it's called the Freedom of Information Act, it's not the Learning of Information Act. Information can't be free if it gets inside someone's head instead of being on many different pieces of paper. Actually, why not charge this guy with information theft? He's stealing FBI information with all that illegal brain copying!

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Nov 2013 @ 1:14pm

    He better watch out for the CFAA. I mean he is basically hacking the FBI using a denial of service attack. If he's filing those FOIA requests in electronically or typing them up on a computer, I'm sure they can get him on a CFAA violation.


    Then beware of the added racketeering, espionage, and other completely legit claims that may get added on just to make sure he does jail time.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Nov 2013 @ 1:25pm

    His next step...

    should be to start training other people (lots of other people) in his techniques.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Anonymouse Coward (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 3:50pm

      Re: His next step...

      and the following step should be to diversify into training on how to beat lie detectors.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

      • icon
        PopeRatzo (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 7:54pm

        Re: Re: His next step...

        Or training on how to give FBI officials lie detector tests.

        [ link to this | view in chronology ]

      • icon
        nasch (profile), 19 Nov 2013 @ 11:04am

        Re: Re: His next step...

        and the following step should be to diversify into training on how to beat lie detectors.

        Why would he need to beat a lie detector?

        [ link to this | view in chronology ]

        • icon
          John Fenderson (profile), 19 Nov 2013 @ 1:15pm

          Re: Re: Re: His next step...

          Everyone who might be subject to a lie detector test needs to know how to beat it -- it's not a rare occurrence for it to indicate you're lying when you're not. The only way to protect yourself is to game it.

          [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Nov 2013 @ 1:40pm

    When the government starts to lose the game, they flip the table and stop playing.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Chargone (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 2:14pm

      Re:

      'Course, the public has that option too. They're just the one's stuck with the cleanup afterwards, and thus less keen to use it.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    art guerrilla (profile), 18 Nov 2013 @ 2:00pm

    so, in short...

    ...the gummint is fine with FOIA requests, as long as they don't reveal anything; once you find the magic handshake to reveal actual gummint (OUR) bidness, than *that* is problematic...

    got it...
    (message: it ain't YOUR gummint, citizen-scum)

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 20 Nov 2013 @ 5:04am

    Is this guy doing better than congress?

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 11 Nov 2014 @ 7:39am

    OMG, he's learning about government stuff from the transparency tool that's supposed to help people learn about government stuff...somebody stop him!

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]


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