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Verizon's latest press release (from today)
From: David Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 18:12:27 -0400
NEWS RELEASE (Embedded image moved to file: pic15835.jpg) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media contact: May 16, 2006 Peter Thonis 212-395-2355 peter.thonis () verizon com Verizon Issues Statement on NSA Media CoverageNEW YORK -- Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) today issued thefollowing statement regarding news coverage about the NSA program which thePresident has acknowledged authorizing against al-Qaeda: As the President has made clear, the NSA program he acknowledgedauthorizing against al-Qaeda is highly-classified. Verizon cannot and willnot comment on the program. Verizon cannot and will not confirm or denywhether it has any relationship to it.That said, media reports made claims about Verizon that are simplyfalse. One of the most glaring and repeated falsehoods in the media reporting is the assertion that, in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks,Verizon was approached by NSA and entered into an arrangement to providethe NSA with data from its customers’ domestic calls.This is false. From the time of the 9/11 attacks until just fourmonths ago, Verizon had three major businesses – its wireline phonebusiness, its wireless company and its directory publishing business. Italso had its own Internet Service Provider and long-distance businesses.Contrary to the media reports, Verizon was not asked by NSA to provide, nordid Verizon provide, customer phone records from any of these businesses,or any call data from those records. None of these companies – wireless orwireline – provided customer records or call data.Another error is the claim that data on local calls is being turnedover to NSA and that simple “calls across town” are being “tracked.” Infact, phone companies do not even make records of local calls in most casesbecause the vast majority of customers are not billed per call for localcalls. In any event, the claim is just wrong. As stated above, Verizon’swireless and wireline companies did not provide to NSA customer records orcall data, local or otherwise.Again, Verizon cannot and will not confirm or deny whether it has anyrelationship to the classified NSA program. Verizon always stands ready,however, to help protect the country from terrorist attack. We owe thisduty to our fellow citizens. We also have a duty, that we have alwaysfulfilled, to protect the privacy of our customers. The two are not inconflict. When asked for help, we will always make sure that any assistance is authorized by law and that our customers’ privacy is safeguarded.
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- Verizon's latest press release (from today) David Farber (May 16)