(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The U.S. government ordered Google to provide it with the names addresses, telephone numbers, user activity and IP addresses of the accounts that watched certain YouTube videos between January 1 and 8, 2023, according to a recent report from Forbes.
Citing unsealed court records, Forbes reported Friday that the federal government collected that information as part of an investigation into someone who uses the name “elonmuskwhm” online.
According to Forbes, elonmuskwhm is suspected of illegally selling bitcoin for cash. Undercover agents reportedly sent the suspect links to videos of YouTube tutorials for mapping via drones and augmented reality software. However, those videos were public and were viewed by thousands of other YouTube users—meaning that those accounts were subject to a federal investigation even though they weren’t suspected of a crime.
“There is reason to believe that these records would be relevant and material to an ongoing criminal investigation, including by providing identification information about the perpetrators,” authorities reportedly told Google in their request for the YouTube data.
In another incident, according to Forbes, authorities asked Google for a list of accounts that “viewed and/or interacted” with eight YouTube livestreams.
“Cops requested for that information after learning that they were being watched through a stream while they were searching an area following a report that an explosive was placed inside a trashcan,” wrote Engadget, summarizing the Forbes report, which is behind a paywall. “One of those video livestreams was posted by the Boston and Maine Live account, which has over 130,000 subscribers.”
A court apparently ordered Google to keep the government’s request private. It’s also reportedly unclear if Google handed over the data the authorities were asking for. A Google spokesperson reportedly told Forbes that the company follows a “rigorous process” to protect the privacy of its users.
The Forbes report is the latest example of the government collecting large troves of data from social media companies. As exposed by Headline USA on Nov. 27, the Justice Department’s investigation into Donald Trump included a search warrant against Twitter for every account to like, follow or retweet the former President.
That warrant revealed that the DOJ took from Twitter “all lists of Twitter users who have favorited or retweeted tweets posted by [Trump], as well as all tweets that include the username associated with the account (i.e., mentions or replies)”—as well as other information.
Numerous outlets picked up the story, politicians discussed the issue and presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy even used the information as a talking point during a recent debate.
Vivek takes on Deep State at GOP debate for getting warrant for every American who has retweeted Trump, then UNLOADS on Nikki Haley for joining their forces by DEMANDING every American give-up their name online BY LAW 🔥
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) December 7, 2023
Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.
