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Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Files Motion to Modify Terms of TRO

By Pamela Jones et al.

The lawyers for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority have just filed a motion asking for a modification of the terms, but not the duration, of the temporary restraining order [PDF] it won against the MIT students who had wanted to present a security paper at DEFCON on vulnerabilities in Boston transit cards. I'll show you the motion. It asks that the terms be altered to "correct any public or intra-party misperception concerning the TRO and the MBTA's goals in this matter" so we don't get the impression they are trying to act unConstitutionally by interfering in free speech.

I'd say the cluetrain is nearing the station. It's a culture clash thing, from the looks of it, like maybe the MBTA folks thought they were dealing with script kiddies, and now they realize that others view this paper as authentic security research, which is mostly already out there anyway. This Declaration of Eric Johanson [PDF], a security consultant for the MIT students, might be what started the plaintiffs realizing this was a horse of a different color. Johanson states that it is his professional opinion that the information in the slides of the MIT presentation are based on public information, and that the key information needed to compromise the security of the MBTA's system is excluded from the presentation.

[ Update: EFF says it will appeal the TRO.]

But here's the kicker. The MBTA filed the students' report as an exhibit with PACER, which included the confidential information the students had deliberately excluded from their presentation, thus making it publicly available to the world. The students' attorney, Jennifer Gralnik, writes to the MBTA suggesting they urgently remove it. Which they have, from all I see. You can read her email in this exhibit [PDF] on the last two pages.

Full post as published by Groklaw on August 11, 2008 (boomark / email).