[Warning] USA Govt.

[ArticMine]

...

In what way are you dealing with them, as the corrupt governments can give them everything about you for a fee. 


 

By not feeding them. Then they may not be able to afford the fee. 

[MrGood]

...

In what way are you dealing with them, as the corrupt governments can give them everything about you for a fee. 


 

By not feeding them. Then they may not be able to afford the fee. 

Curious perspective.

At least you have the freedom to boycott multinationals. Boycotting governments is a whole different ballgame.

My advice to anyone living in a surveillance state is to either revolt or leave. If you tolerate dystopia then you only have yourselves to blame.

[kiklo]

...

In what way are you dealing with them, as the corrupt governments can give them everything about you for a fee. 


 

By not feeding them. Then they may not be able to afford the fee. 

Clarification is needed, you think an anon blockchain will starve them of Fiat,
I sincerely doubt that.

 

[ArticMine]

...

In what way are you dealing with them, as the corrupt governments can give them everything about you for a fee.  


 

By not feeding them. Then they may not be able to afford the fee.  

Curious perspective.

At least you have the freedom to boycott multinationals. Boycotting governments is a whole different ballgame.

My advice to anyone living in a surveillance state is to either revolt or leave. If you tolerate dystopia then you only have yourselves to blame.

It is a lot easier to leave a country that to avoid any contact with Microsoft for example. This multinational controls close to 90% of all the personal computers in the world.

Edit: An anonymous blockchain can starve them of the data about you they crave. This can actually be even more valuable to them than fiat currency.

[kiklo]

Curious perspective.

At least you have the freedom to boycott multinationals. Boycotting governments is a whole different ballgame.

My advice to anyone living in a surveillance state is to either revolt or leave. If you tolerate dystopia then you only have yourselves to blame.

That is a good point, here is the problem, where do you go that you are safe from the US Gov. for example.
Unless you hide out in a rain forest and live like an animal, you are pretty screwed.
Other Options would be a country with no extradition treaty with the US, but odds are that country is also a corrupt government. i.e. (Mexico & China)
Truly interested if you have a good country without a corrupt government.

 

[kiklo]

It is a lot easier to leave a country that to avoid any contact with Microsoft for example. This multinational controls close to 90% of all the personal computers in the world.

Edit: An anonymous blockchain can starve them of the data about you they crave. This can actually be even more valuable to them than fiat currency.

Again, they can retrieve any info about you for a fee, or do you think exchanges won't sell your trading data , if they need fiat.  
Resellers sell our personal info daily.
i.e.
Grocery Stores use that reward card to track your purchases and sell that information.

 

FYI:
Even it you paid with monero at a grocery store, that reward card would still tell on you.
(Just as using monero on the internet will tell on you, so anon is a pipe dream.)

[ArticMine]

...

Again, they can retrieve any info about you for a fee, or do you think exchanges won't sell your trading data , if they need fiat.  
Resellers sell our personal info daily.

 

... but that information is of very little value to them. So they know I got some Monero big deal. What the greedy corporation really wants to know is where did I spend that Monero and on what.

[kiklo]

... but that information is of very little value to them. So they know I got some Monero big deal. What the greedy corporation really wants to know is where did I spend that Monero and on what.

Again ,
as long as you continue blinding yourself to the real enemy, you are doomed to failure.
Corporation can know all of your personal crap , but the Government gives their selves the right to SEIZE it.
If you can not see which is more dangerous of the two, then their is no helping you.

 

[MrGood]

Curious perspective.

At least you have the freedom to boycott multinationals. Boycotting governments is a whole different ballgame.

My advice to anyone living in a surveillance state is to either revolt or leave. If you tolerate dystopia then you only have yourselves to blame.

That is a good point, here is the problem, where do you go that you are safe from the US Gov. for example.
Unless you hide out in a rain forest and live like an animal, you are pretty screwed.
Other Options would be a country with no extradition treaty with the US, but odds are that country is also a corrupt government. i.e. (Mexico & China)
Truly interested if you have a good country without a corrupt government.

 

It depends what your objectives are. Extradition is a pretty extreme example.

The bottom line is that financial privacy is a human right. If you cannot practice that human right through relocation then your only choice is to stand your ground and fight.

As long as decentralised exchanges like Bitsquare keep popping up, well conceived projects such as Monero will always survive and provide the foundations for those who are up for the fight to succeed.

Anything else is slavery.

[kiklo]

The bottom line is that financial privacy is a human right. If you cannot practice that human right through relocation then your only choice is to stand your ground and fight.
Anything else is slavery.

With the above, I totally agree.

As long as decentralised exchanges like Bitsquare keep popping up, well conceived projects such as Monero will always survive and provide the foundations for those who are up for the fight to succeed.

This part makes me see why Spoetnik gets so frustrated.

For a truly anon solution which monero claims but can in no way truly achieve.
These reasons are why all anon fails.

Your IP address is not anon,
Your Browser info is not anon,
Your Email Address is not anon,
Your Bank Account which you linked is not anon,
Your address where you mailed or received goods is not anon,
there are no guarantees the person that did business with you did not sell your identifiable information.

All anon solutions will fail til they can solve all of the above.

 

[ArticMine]

Apple ID leads Homeland Security to alleged owner of the biggest pirate site on the net..

http://9to5mac.com/2016/07/21/kickasstorrents-apple-id/

Enough said.

Edit: This is my favorite part.

The irony of the alleged owner of the world’s biggest pirate site being caught by a legal purchase from iTunes is straight from the Dept of You Couldn’t Make It Up

[kiklo]

Apple ID leads Homeland Security to alleged owner of the biggest pirate site on the net..

http://9to5mac.com/2016/07/21/kickasstorrents-apple-id/

Enough said.

Edit: This is my favorite part.

The irony of the alleged owner of the world’s biggest pirate site being caught by a legal purchase from iTunes is straight from the Dept of You Couldn’t Make It Up

Events kicked off in November of last year when an undercover IRS agent posing as a representative of a study program booked an ad on the site. That correspondence enabled them to identify an email address linked to both the site and KAT’s presence on Facebook, which led first to an IP address in Chicago and from there to a separate Apple email address (a me.com one).

Apple was served with a court order requiring it to identify any activity from that email address, and responded by releasing details of an iTunes purchase. The IP address for that purchase was found to be identical to one used to access the KAT Facebook page on the same day, providing the crucial evidence linking Vaulin to the pirate site.

And how is that any different from what I said a post or 2 before.
Monero would not have protected the guy.  

 

For a truly anon solution which monero claims but can in no way truly achieve.
These reasons are why all anon fails.

Your IP address is not anon,
Your Browser info is not anon,
Your Email Address is not anon,
Your Bank Account which you linked is not anon,
Your address where you mailed or received goods is not anon,
there are no guarantees the person that did business with you did not sell your identifiable information.

All anon solutions will fail til they can solve all of the above.

 

FYI:
If you truly want to understand what you are up against,
Start up a truly anonymous ISP, that uses inhouse proxy servers and destroys all traceable information every few seconds.
They will shut you down so quickly , you won't know what hit you.
It will be the government at your door not a megacorp.
or they will place a backdoor in your system to report everything back to them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telecommunications_data_retention  

The National Security Agency (NSA) commonly records Internet metadata for the whole planet for up to a year in its MARINA database, where it is used for pattern-of-life analysis. U.S. persons are not exempt because metadata are not considered data under US law (section 702 of the FISA Amendments Act).[51] Its equivalent for phone records is MAINWAY.[52] The NSA records SMS and similar text messages worldwide through DISHFIRE.[53]

FYI2:
Details are here:
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/file/877591/download

25.
On  or  about  November  13,  2015,  an  undercover  IRS  Special  Agent  
(UC-1)  sent  a  request  to  the  email  address  pr@kat.cr  (an  email  account  listed  on  
KAT’s website for “press”),
9
 inquiring about advertising on KAT. Additionally on or
about November 17, 2015, UC-1 sent a private message on the KAT forums to the
9
 KAT’s website has made an email account available for “press” since at least as early as in
or about August 2009

administrator  “Mr.  White”  and  followed  up  with  another  email  to  admin@kat.cr.  
On or about November 24, 2015, UC-1 received a response from the email address
admin@kickass.to regarding UC-1’s inquiry and the two exchanged several emails
during which UC-1 provided the KAT representative with a link for an undercover
website purportedly advertising a program to study in the United States. The KAT
representative agreed to provide UC-1 advertising for $300 per day. During one of
the  exchanges,  on  or  about  December  9,  2015,  a  representative  of  KAT,  using  
admin@kickass.to,   provided   UC-1   with   banking   information   for   payment   to  
advertise on KAT’s website—a Latvian-based account held at Regionala Investiciju
Banka, account #LV32RIBR00185170N0000JSC, in the name of “GA Star Trading
Ltd,  9  Barrack  Road  Belize  City,  Belize”  (the  
Subject  Account
).  After  providing  
the  banking  information,  the  KAT  representative  instructed  UC-1,  “Could  you  
please  make  sure  that  you  don’t  mention  KAT  anywhere?”  in  connection  with  
payment to the bank for advertising.
26.
On or about February 8, 2016, UC-1 reinitiated contact with the KAT
representative. On or about February 19, 2016, the KAT representative responded
with   the   same   banking   information   for   the  
Subject   Account
.   The   KAT  
representative  stated  UC-1  “Please  make  sure  that  the  bank  details  are  entered  
correctly  and  you  don’t  mention  KAT  or  ‘for  advertising’  anywhere.  Could  you  
please also inform me when you send the payment?


30.
On  or  about  May  11,  2016,  in  response  to  a  request  from  UC-1  for  a  
new bank account, the KAT representative provided UC-1 with another account to
receive   funds   for   advertising,   an   Estonian-based   bank   held   at   AS   Eesti  
Krediidipank,   account   number   *6107,   in   the   name   of   “Glomeratus   LTD,  
Beneficiary   address:   1   Straits   Parade,   Bristol,   BS16   2LA,   UK.”   The   KAT  
representative  wrote:  “Please  pay  attention  to  the  bank  details.  They  should  be  
entered  correctly.  Also  please  don’t  mention  KAT  and  ‘for  advertising  anywhere.’  
Could  you  please  inform  me  when  you  send  the  payment?”  On  or  about  May  13,  
2016,  the  KAT  representative  provided  UC-1  with  another  payment  method  for  
advertising,  a  WebMoney  account  as  well  as  an  account  for  a  Russian-based  
payment  system.  On  or  about  July  1,  2016,  as  part  of  the  undercover  operation,  
IRS  wire  transferred  $1,000  from  a  location  in  Chicago  to  the  Glomeratus  LTD  
bank account to purchase additional advertising.  
31.
The  investigation  obtained  bank  records  from  Latvia  pursuant  to  a  
request  under  the  Mutual  Legal  Assistance  Treaty.  Those  records  reflect  that  the  
Subject  Account
  received  a  total  of  approximately  €28,411,357  in  deposits  
between on or about August 28, 2015, and on or about March 10, 2016. The account
balance as of March 10, 2016, was €14,656. A sizable portion of the funds appear to

25
be  related  to  advertising  revenue.
10
  For  example,  there  are  deposits  totaling  
€199,828  from  a  Dutch  online  advertising  company  Adperium  with  a  memo  line  
“KAT  TC  REVENUES.”  The  deposits  also  include  €110,125  over  the  course  of  
fifteen periodic deposits from on or about September 1, 2015, to on or about March
2,  2016  from  a  known  KAT  advertising  partner,  MGID,  sent  from  a  Bank  of  
America account in the United States.
11
C.
KAT’s Use of Social Media
32.
The  operators  of  KAT  also  use  social  media  to  advertise  and  provide  
updates  about  the  website.  Records  from  Facebook  identified  that  on  or  about  
February  19,  2010,  a  Facebook  account  was  created,  titled  “official.KAT.fanclub.”  
Based on historical screen captures of KAT’s website, I have determined that since
at  least  August  2010  the  KAT  Facebook  Account  has  been  the  account  linked  to  
KAT  as  its  official  Facebook  account.  The  account  was  registered  to  the  email  
address  pr@kat.ph.  Based  on  my  review  of  screenshots  of  KAT,  I  know  that  KAT  
has  used  the  email  address  pr@kat.ph  to  receive  inquiries  after  switching  to  the  
domain kat.ph in or about April 2011.

FYI3:
The agent may have know their IP address as soon as they received the email ,
if they used a 1x1 transparent graphic linked to a web site to record the IP of the computer that opened it.
http://resources.infosecinstitute.com/hidden-phishing-threats/

[ArticMine]

...
FYI3:
The agent may have know their IP address as soon as they received the email ,
if they used a 1x1 transparent graphic linked to a web site to record the IP of the computer that opened it.
http://resources.infosecinstitute.com/hidden-phishing-threats/

Which is defeated by the default settings in Thunderbird, the email client used in most GNU/Linux distributions. This is not the case with the default setting in proprietary email clients, such as those in Microsoft and Apple products since they want to cater first to marketers and large corporations who are typically very heavy users of html in email. The security of individuals in the case of Microsoft and Apple is secondary to marketing and DRM to the benefit of large corporations, if it is a consideration at all.

Your link explains well the convoluted process needed to disable this invasion of privacy in most proprietary email clients. I stand by my position the first line of defense for privacy is to say no to the likes of Microsoft and Apple. Monero builds upon a reasonable privacy framework, but it is not a substitute for taking basic measures to protect one's privacy.

[kiklo]

...
FYI3:
The agent may have know their IP address as soon as they received the email ,
if they used a 1x1 transparent graphic linked to a web site to record the IP of the computer that opened it.
http://resources.infosecinstitute.com/hidden-phishing-threats/

Which is defeated by the default settings in Thunderbird, the email client used in most GNU/Linux distributions. This is not the case with the default setting in proprietary email clients, such as those in Microsoft and Apple products since they want to cater first to marketers and large corporations who are typically very heavy users of html in email. The security of individuals in the case of Microsoft and Apple is secondary to marketing and DRM to the benefit of large corporations, if it is a consideration at all.

Your link explains well the convoluted process needed to disable this invasion of privacy in most proprietary email clients. I stand by my position the first line of defense for privacy is to say no to the likes of Microsoft and Apple. Monero builds upon a reasonable privacy framework, but it is not a substitute for taking basic measures to protect one's privacy.

Every single web site & email server you touch records your ip and browser settings and if you don't spoof your network address, they can even trace your PC's serial number down.
And these are just some of the public stuff we know of, the stuff that is still not public is even worse.

I leave you with this, because for some of you it seems to be more of a anon religion than anything to do with reason.

For everyone that believes you can actually do anything anonymous on the internet , where everything from the protocol to any communications will pinpoint your location.

Enjoy the sand. But it will become painfully clear when you are bitten in the ass.



Good Luck you are going to need it.

 

[ImHash]

This is not a thing no one know about, dude try to tell a story where we are not really aware of. of course they are doing all things mentioned in OP, but really what can we do about it?

[ArticMine]

This is not a thing no one know about, dude try to tell a story where we are not really aware of. of course they are doing all things mentioned in OP, but really what can we do about it?

There are so many things one can do to minimize the risk, I do not even know where to begin. The most basic is to say no to Microsoft and Apple, since the first step is to take back control over one's own computer. Close to 98% of all desktop and laptop users; however refuse to do this very basic first step and run GNU/Linux rather than Microsoft Windows or Max OS X.

Think about this. If one does not have control over one's own computer worrying over what some site on the Internet does is pointless.

[kiklo]

This is not a thing no one know about, dude try to tell a story where we are not really aware of. of course they are doing all things mentioned in OP, but really what can we do about it?

Start with your Local Town & State ,
Push for laws to be enacted that remove and outlaw all government data retention policies.
Push for a law that allows ISPs to offer true anonymity and Banks outlawed from giving your personal data to anyone.
Then Push for Laws that weaken corporate power by not allowing them to sue individuals, and make the CEO and Board of director personally responsible for all corporation actions, denying them legal protection for actions they permitted under their leadership. In other words make the CEO and entire Board of directors legally accountable for all wrong doings of their corporation.
That is how you start.

If all of the above fails, at some point the Tree of Liberty will be fed again.  
Which if at all possible, it would be best to avoid, but may be the only choice.


 

FYI:
Even if you use Linux, you don't know what code is in the BIOS or Hard Drive Firmware or even what is stored in your Video hardware, or your Processor core.
The more complex the system, the more places to hide code. Code could be in a driver for a 3rd party game might infect your OS.
The only way to be 100% secure, is to remove all communications.
Disable the ethernet and disable all wifi chips on the board, then place what is left in a Faraday cage with no outside connections forever.
All of that just to get control of a computer that you purchased.  

FYI2:
Additional
All Privacy laws would revert to what they were before 1913, including the removal of the income tax.
Corporations would be banned from giving money to Politicians or suing people, as only individuals would have those rights.
No officers would be able to enter your property without a court order, and would have to inform you before entry.
These Swat style raids are an abomination to our Freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution.
It must be made Illegal for the Government to Seize your personal legally obtained property for any reason.

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government.

[Spoetnik]

I do not consider governments to be the real, or even a significant, threat here...

@ArticMine, You don't ?
You are a fool then and a confirmed Monero ANON COIN shill.

@Kiklo, thanks for your input and i was happy to see you used the words "cross referenced"
EXACTLY !

I have been telling these cocky Monero idiots this for ages (look on the ANON topic i linked to)
They REFUSE to "get it" ..they simply argue on like you're trying to force a horse to drink water.

Cross referencing has emerged to be the single biggest threat in the entire history of computers
And little expert ArticMine says it's nothing he worries about.. no big deal he says ROFL

The key point to this topic here is a cross referencing end-point.. regardless of the system !
And these delusional wacko's like Monero Fanatics seem to think they can place some form of security
in between the starting point and the end point.. and BAM! we have bullet proof security.
..as it says on their Hoodies / Merch (secure & untraceable) 

Any crackers out there know damn well if it runs it can be cracked.
Our entire cracking scene is about finding a way to breach security.. it's what we do !
It's ancient info that when we can't break an encryption algo we simply find another avenue of attack.
Which are limitless..

That boils down to often a cracker coding a keygen vs "patching" a program.
And i schooled a software dev of a well known popular Firewall program about this before.
He got lippy with me so i taught him a lesson and i gave him a spanking he will never forget.
I coded a variety of Keygen's and i told him i could patch his program with 1 fucking byte changed.
He got mouthy called me a liar so i uploaded source code to 3 different Keygen's i coded
then i created a quick image tutorial showing what to patch and the patched binary of course.
PWNED !

That was my cracker package with 5 ways to exploit his Firewall Activation system.
Sure he had a big mouth and was plenty cocky and was very eager to get lippy with me.
He said my patch i had shared with a few members in the past never did work..
I said he was lying and i had to upload source to prove him wrong (he was calling me a liar)
I did.. he was full of shit.. and yeah my Keygen's and patch's STILL work on his joke security. (SHA256 + Custom / Caeser Cipher)
I have had the program installed pirated for 3 straight years even after using every single update that rolls out. 

There is plenty of program i have & still do crack privately.. if i need it cracked i crack it !
Not all cracks are posted publicly people LOL
Don't let the false sense of security fool you because you don't see one on Google. hahhahah

I am more qualified than these Monero idiots..
They think they are experts because they showed up in Crypto THEN decided they will learn c / c++
Even though i started learning it more than a decade ago (as well as other languages)
I have a decade+ of cracking / reverse engineering experience but apparently these morons know more than me because they bought some Monero coins.. and got a "white paper".

ArticMine has a lot of nerve saying that.. that shows his level of ignorance on the subject.

He is not concerned with the abilities of the US govt ?
They are sooo bloody powerful i can barely wrap my head around it.
Their reach is unimaginable !
Most countries have agreements with the USA so that they will comply with various legal requests for example.
hell most people don't know the USA on a regular basis hunts & raids terrorists on Foreign soil with the other countries permission..
And that is all they need *usually*
Even though they went into Pakistan illegally with no permission to assassinate Bin Laden.
That shows that even with out permission they will go ahead anyway even on a 50/50 guess (Obama said on video)

Kim Dotcom learned this lesson this topic delivers the hard way.
He did not think the USA would get permission to raid him in his mansion in New Zealand.
And many people forget the USA law requests are complied with all over..
No matter what or where pretty much.

Cryptsy was "likely" told they HAVE to report users.. they were not doing it voluntarily !
They were /are subject to the Florida laws.
Which is the exact same laws that got the FBI arresting guys doing a Bitcoin deal via LocalBitcoins in a Florida parking lot in 2013.
I recall the amount was about 30 grand.. and the limit was 10 grand i think.
Anything over that 10k needs identification etc or it will be investigated etc.
So yeah you move over 10k on Coinbase i would bet my left nut they report you !
They have to.. it's anti-money laundering laws.

There is many ways to skin a cat ..remember how they eventually caught Al Capone ?
Well most countries these days require you report your Crypto-Currency earnings.
Revenue Canada for example was one of the first countries to publicly state this.
If you are suspected of not claiming your earnings that could be used as a trigger for an investigation.
And the Law system(s) are good buddy's between USA & Canada !
For example..
I seen a News Story where the Canadian govt admitted they have setup and work with the USA
to have a spying end point in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with certain transit locations.
The USA with Canada's permission has setup a cell phone spying system so they can track people.
CSIS & The govt here admitted they let the USA setup and use the surveillance in our country for their monitoring purposes.
..that is no fucking conspiracy people, that is News at 5.

That is.. more cross referencing points.
They go deep too from TOR nodes to ISP's to Internet relay servers etc
..the USA has their fingers in every pie everywhere.
And by extension every company or web site that runs some type of service connected to the USA.

I am sure Kim Dotcom cried conspiracy and laughed lots..
until he was LITERALLY in his Mansions panic room hiding from a swat team booting in his door !

Chuckle it up and get cocky but when you posses power YOU get the last laugh..

When the USA wanted Bin Laden they allocated in secret 52 Million dollars (cost of choppers reported)
..to have 2 custom made stealth choppers created for the raid (designed to evade Pakistani radar defenses)
They then hand selected the soldiers who would go on the mission (out of a pool of anyone they wanted)
They they mobilized the Navy etc to do what ever they asked..
They were extracted after the raid to a US aircraft carrier waiting for them.
Televised raid with the president watching..
and you all knew because they DECIDED to tell you all publicly AFTER the fact.

Snowden mentioned some stuff and various stories in the media have proven it.
It always ends up being a "cross referencing" matter.
And the more end points you can seize and control the more powerful you become.

@ArticMine, you should be worried 

[slapper]

LMAO Spoetnik, keep on keeping on you cuntrag  . One day (Im guessing within the next 2 years) they will dox the fuck outta you and guess what, the bounty will be in Monero. I cannot predict prices of Bitcoin, shitcoins and scamcoins but that is pretty much a guaranteed thingy. Just like I was right about scumbags like Reptilia, that French fag Latapie and other pricks trying to be a face of Monero hurting its image.

Out of all the faggotry in the alt scene, your constant Monero horseshit is annoying. Go save the noobs from Ethereum and other frauds happening on a daily basis. I was thinking I will be out of Monero forever, but seeing trolls infatuated with it & the minds accumulating it, discussing it without making a big fuss etc, I am starting to have second thoughts. I just wish it was led by anon devs like Shen Noether and the real cryptographers behind CryptoNote. I think the current crop's ego is still ruining the show and we can just hope they will learn not to be cunts to everyone.

[ArticMine]

...
Snowden mentioned some stuff and various stories in the media have proven it.
It always ends up being a "cross referencing" matter.
And the more end points you can seize and control the more powerful you become.

@ArticMine, you should be worried  

So what did Edward Snowden do knowing his life would be at risk? Trust Apple and Microsoft products or head straight for the GNU?
He spent months teaching Glen Greenwald how to use GNU Privacy Guard.  Why did he not instead teach Glen Greenwald how to use for example:
1) An Apple iPad?
2) A Microsoft Windows Computer?
The choice of a man who has both the technical knowledge and the insider knowledge, and whose life is at risk depending on the choice of software speaks volumes to me.  

I am not worried.

Edit: The whole idea of torrenting pirated proprietary software, and then facing the legal consequences of such action becomes completely  irrelevant when one can obtain vastly superior Free Libre Open Source Software at no charge that is perfectly legal to use and distribute.