Xref: utzoo comp.org.eff.talk:2409 alt.privacy:640 Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!ogicse!orstcs!jacobs.CS.ORST.EDU!hughesl From: hughesl@jacobs.CS.ORST.EDU (Larry Hughes) Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk,alt.privacy Subject: Re: Red Squad BBSs? Message-ID: Date: 17 May 91 15:25:21 GMT References: <1991May17.071900.21980@milton.u.washington.edu> Sender: @lynx.CS.ORST.EDU Organization: Oregon State University, Computer Science Dept Lines: 23 Nntp-Posting-Host: jacobs.cs.orst.edu There is more than just idle rumor to this, although I'd doubt if you can pry much information out on it. There is actually an organization of police officers, who maintain "a network" for information exchange much like what you have described. That BBSs may be a part of the "network" does not really surprise me, but I think that the application is less of what you and I would deem a true BBS, and more of a BBS as it might be run by the government, or a big business. The real caveat to all of this is that the organization, whose name escapes me at the moment (but I promise I will post when I remember it) remains more secret than perhaps even the NSA due to the nature that it is a *private* network. Essentially, it is a network of "off-duty" law-enforcement officials who use it to exchange professional information/stories/etc - and, therefore, is not a public or government-affiliated operation, and is not available for public scrutiny. The "misuse" of such a system is certainly a cause for concern. _ /| l.e.hughes '\`0_o'' hughesl@jacobs.cs.orst.edu =( )- 70012,2213 (CI$) U Sluglick, Oregon