Exclusive: In case of a test, the United States fails to force Facebook to listen to calls from Messenger – sources

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – US investigators have failed in a recent courtroom attempt to force Facebook to listen to its Messenger application in a closely monitored test case, according to two people informed of the case. sealed decision.

Members of a joint federal and state task force investigating the MS-13 international criminal gang tried in August to condemn Facebook in contempt of the court for failing to execute a court order. electronics, Reuters reported last month.

Arguments were heard during an airtight procedure before a US District Court in Fresno, California, several weeks before 16 alleged gang members were charged, but the judge ruled in favor of Facebook, according to the report. same source.

The details of his reasoning were not available.

The government's request had alarmed technology leaders and privacy advocates. In the United States and other Western countries, authorities are stepping up attempts to ban or limit enhanced encryption and expand their wiretap capabilities.

An affidavit from an FBI agent publicly filed during the criminal proceedings in Fresno indicated that at the time of the arrests, law enforcement could not control any calls from Messenger.

Telecommunications companies are required to give the police access to calls under federal law, but many applications that rely solely on Internet infrastructure are exempt. Facebook claimed that Messenger was covered by this exemption.

Public records showed that the government intercepted all ordinary phone calls and messaging messages between the accused gang members.

The FBI affidavit cited three courier appeals that investigators were unable to hear. The participants in these appeals are now in prison awaiting trial.

Neither prosecutors nor Facebook were answering questions about the Fresno US attorney's attempt to hold Facebook guilty of contempt of court or on the underlying wiretap application, including on the reasons for the rejection of the file.

On August 14, the judge heard the arguments of the contempt motion. Facebook and a spokesperson for the Justice Ministry declined to comment.

The FBI agent, Ryan Yetter, in the affidavit of August 30, wrote: "At the present time, there is no practical method for the forces of law and order to monitor calls "on Messenger. The affidavit was filed in support of a criminal complaint against members of MS-13, active in the United States and Central America.

The MS-13, also known as Mara Salvatrucha, is an international criminal gang born in Los Angeles in the 1980s. The gang's activities then spread to many parts of the United States, Canada, Mexico. and Central America.

US President Donald Trump frequently uses the gang to symbolize what he sees as a lax policy on immigration.

Most of the 16 suspects belonging to a gang were arrested on August 30 and the indictment was released on September 13. In California, more than two dozen people have been charged with murder and other crimes.

Lawyers for the 16 accused could shed more light on clashes between the government and Facebook. Mark Broughton, the lawyer for one of the defendants, Denis Barrera-Palma, said that he would soon start receiving government evidence.

While the prosecutor's application to tune in to Facebook Messenger's voice calls is not included, Broughton said he would request it.

"I would be interested to see or try to get an order to properly represent my client," said Broughton.

Barrera-Palma faces federal accusations of aggression with a deadly weapon and a drug plot, and conspiracy charges of murder in California. He pleaded not guilty to federal indictments and has not yet pleaded in a state court.

The still private statements in the skirmish with Facebook could explain why federal officials have chosen Messenger's voice calls as the target.

One of the questions that judges weigh in the wiretap questions is the weight that this would represent for the company. Unlike Facebook's WhatsApp email application and a separate part of Messenger, called secret conversations, Facebook plays a small technical role in facilitating voice calls in Messenger, making interception possible with some effort.

Nevertheless, Facebook maintained that it could not be ordered to modify its software or to hack its user to help the FBI. Apple has advanced a similar argument by refusing to introduce into the iPhone of a terrorist in 2016.