Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
Summary: Amazon Web Services set the record straight on why Wikileaks was removed from the cloud service: It violated the terms of service because it didn't control the rights to the classified content it posted.
Amazon Web Services on Thursday set the record straight on why Wikileaks was removed from the cloud service: It violated the terms of service because it didn't control the rights to the classified content it posted.
As noted Wednesday, Amazon Web Services (AWS) has the right to terminate accounts if customers violate its terms.
In a blog post, AWS said that Wikileaks wasn't removed due to a government inquiry or hack attacks. Here's the reason (emphasis mine):
AWS does not pre-screen its customers, but it does have terms of service that must be followed. WikiLeaks was not following them. There were several parts they were violating. For example, our terms of service state that “you represent and warrant that you own or otherwise control all of the rights to the content… that use of the content you supply does not violate this policy and will not cause injury to any person or entity.” It’s clear that WikiLeaks doesn’t own or otherwise control all the rights to this classified content. Further, it is not credible that the extraordinary volume of 250,000 classified documents that WikiLeaks is publishing could have been carefully redacted in such a way as to ensure that they weren’t putting innocent people in jeopardy. Human rights organizations have in fact written to WikiLeaks asking them to exercise caution and not release the names or identities of human rights defenders who might be persecuted by their governments.
AWS said it won't shy away from controversy, but folks that violate its terms of service "need to go operate elsewhere."
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Talkback
RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
"AWS does not pre-screen its customers" legal bit to avoid legal actions against Amazon, but which demonstrate that they screened WikiLeaks because someone from the government influenced them.
We are seeing a horrible trend. Google censoring content because of pressure from the film and music industry, Amazon censoring content because government pressure...
The US is becoming by the second closer to censoring China, I hope the general public react and force their politicians to stop the trend if they want the US to really be a free country without political censorship.
...
Here's what we know
(1) the U.S. military formally adopted a policy of turning a blind eye to systematic, pervasive torture and other abuses by Iraqi forces;
(2) the State Department threatened Germany not to criminally investigate the CIA's kidnapping and torture of one of its citizens who turned out to be completely innocent;
(3) the State Department under Bush and Obama applied continuous pressure on the Spanish Government to suppress investigations of the CIA's torture of its citizens and the 2003 killing of a Spanish photojournalist when the U.S. military fired on the Palestine Hotel in Baghdad (see The Philadelphia Inquirer's Will Bunch today about this: "The day Barack Obama Lied to me");
(4) the British Government privately promised to shield Bush officials from embarrassment as part of its Iraq War "investigation";
(5) there were at least 15,000 people killed in Iraq that were previously uncounted;
(6) "American leaders lied, knowingly, to the American public, to American troops, and to the world" about the Iraq war as it was prosecuted, a conclusion the Post's own former Baghdad Bureau Chief wrote was proven by the WikiLeaks documents;
(7) the U.S.'s own Ambassador concluded that the July, 2009 removal of the Honduran President was illegal -- a coup -- but the State Department did not want to conclude that and thus ignored it until it was too late to matter;
(8) U.S. and British officials colluded to allow the U.S. to keep cluster bombs on British soil even though Britain had signed the treaty banning such weapons, and,
(9) Hillary Clinton's State Department ordered diplomats to collect passwords, emails, and biometric data on U.N. and other foreign officials, almost certainly in violation of the Vienna Treaty of 1961.
RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
2) Still nowhere near as bad as Communist China.
3) Nope, nowhere near.
4) So?
5) During a war, right?
6) And?
7) Call me when they ban -references- to that coup happening.
8) The British Government agreed to do something contrary to a treaty? And this is the US's fault how?
9) Cyber-warfare is a part of life these days. That isn't an excuse, but it's just to say that this isn't as bad as you think.
We get it, the US suxxors and does everything bad. But when it comes to censoring? Canada is MUCH worse than we are. France can be at times too.
As that great philosopher, moralist and historian
If the US government did do things as bad as China (and many things they do are worse), would you just move the goalposts again?
Launching aggressive wars, murder, torture, violations of treaties, all that is excused because somebody somewhere is worse?
I'm not excusing any of it
I'm surprised you're quoting O'Reilly, though. Most people (on the web) hate anything from Fox News.
RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
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RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
Glenn Greenwald on Amazon
But, either way, Amazon's denial -- whether you believe it or not -- has no effect whatsoever on the perniciousness of Lieberman's conduct. His efforts to pressure and intimidate companies into suppressing political content are every bit as odious whether, in Amazon's case, it succeeded or not (particularly given that his bullying efforts clearly did succeed in at least one other case)."
US government on record saying no person or entity was harmed
The benefits to the Government from spewing baseless accusations against WikiLeaks are obvious: they inure the public to the thuggish steps being taken to cripple and otherwise intimidate the whistleblowing site from exposing more government secrets about the truth of our wars.
RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
Sigh.... give it a rest, Sparky.
RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
Based on yours and others posts that support wikileaks.
1). The people that you know serving in the armed services don't mean a thing to you. Any harm that may come to them because of these leaks is completely acceptable to you because. Well, because you just don't care if they live or die. Simple as that.
2). You are completely illiterate when it comes to how all governments of the world conduct business. You feel that only the US government keeps secrets and performs actions not all their citizens would agree with.
3). Your justification that its all the American Governments fault to the actions that are occurring against WikiLeaks right now COMPLETELY ignores several facts.
a). Two goverments come to mind who have a history of cyber attacks against those that anger them.China and Russia. These two governments were embarrassed by what was shown in these released documents, so they have every reason to ddos the web site. But again, you blame the US.
b).You quite obviously don't feel that a company does not have a right to terminate an account when their terms of service have been abused.
You are basically a person that
1). Does not care about your fellow citizens lives.
2). Do not feel companies have a right to enforce account terms.
3). Are to ignorant to recognize espionage when it is right in front of you.
Your about as stupid as they come, aren't you.
RE: Amazon Web Services: Wikileaks violated our terms of service
Completely ignorant you are. If you have took the time to read any of the documents, you may actually stop and think for a minute. Most of the information contained in those documents is just information that is showing the true evils of our country (which is why the Gov dislike so much, not because of National Security) They say national security in order win the sides of people like you. I bet you have not even read a single page of it. You are solely choosing sides because your a "good citizen" and you beleive everything your government tells you right. Yeah you can say otherwise, but deep down you know the truth. Remember what Adolph Hitler said, "Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it." The "they", that he's referring to is you, the loyal all believing citizens. What wikileaks did was something that needed to be done. Somebody needed to step on at least to some people to open their eyes to what this country doing. For whoever said we are not like china. Well yeah your right we're not, but we are on a one way ticket to how they are and worse as long as everyone continues to lack a little abiltity to research outside of their loyalty to the Gov. Most of out freedoms are already gone. This is a quote from Abraham Lincoln, "America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter, and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." Which is exactly what were doing!!
You Dan must be a person who lacks self esteem considering that you simply choose all beleifs based off of the idea of others and your loyalty.
Wikileaks was a big step forward.
The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing.
Wikileaks was doing something
Interesting that an up standing, rightous individual
It does not sound like something an honest, upstanding, roghtous individual would do.
In fact doing so indicates he agrees with the methods used by those he claims should not use those methods.
:|
He's no doubt naive.
Charging people that governments don't like with sexual misconduct is par for the course. The minute Eliott Spitzer challenged the oligarchs they did the same.
He has not been charged with anything, they are only wanting to question him. And since Sweden is a country of laws, they'd have to try him, and put these accusers on the stand in front of a jury. That would be good.
So in summary, I suggest you grow up and read a little on how intelligence agencies operate.
Never hear such a foolish argument
In that case amazon book store, selling hundereds of thousand of books, must be closed !
All Bob Woodward's books must be purged
Cue Amazon to be overcome with an advanced case of the vapors.