back to article Shady US sigint base upgrade marred by stolen photograph

An upgrade to a major US signals intelligence centre in Northamptonshire, UK, has been struck by controversy – after architects acting on behalf of the US Air Force and Blighty's Ministry of Defence nicked a photo of it from a website devoted to uncovering secret military bases in Britain. Alan Turnbull, who runs the excellent …

Page:

  1. Semtex451

    Par for the course

    It's not the first time I've seen architects to do unsporting things with golf balls.

    1. Korev Silver badge
      Coat

      Re: Par for the course

      Join the club...

    2. John Smith 19 Gold badge
      Coat

      "It's not the first time I've seen architects to do unsporting things with golf balls."

      Ah, golf.

      The big G.

      It's less a wind breaker and more a shiny latex dinner jacket.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Makes me laugh though

    A secret base design using images marked secret base.

    I imagine the site itself is not really that secret albeit the activities may be. A proper architect would use their own drone or similar. Given that the NSA HQ pics used are normally 20-30 years old its hardly a guarantee of accuracy for actually planning to dig holes.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Makes me laugh though

      Given that the NSA HQ pics used are normally 20-30 years old its hardly a guarantee of accuracy for actually planning to dig holes.

      In that case I would have thought the locals would enjoy a malevolent pleasure in encouraging their use :).

    2. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

      Re: Makes me laugh though

      A secret base design using images marked secret base.

      That's their excuse. They didn't know it was a watermark but assumed the RAF had mown "secretbase" into the grass for the convenience of Russian spy sats

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Can of worms time, did the copyright get transferred to Turnbull and did he have the right to give the Register permission to use it ? Also did the photographer have permission to photograph what is possibly a prescribed place under the official secrets act?

    1. WonkoTheSane
      Headmaster

      PrEscribed - Drugs recommended by a doctor

      PrOscribed - Forbidden by law.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Joke

        NAzi - Person who hates jews and bad grammar.

        1. Cipherpunk

          Just run of the mill bad spelling

      2. MKingpyro

        Prescribed by the act or a prescription order under the act.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      It's in the Public domain.

      1. RedCardinal

        what is? The photo?

        I think someone needs to read up on copyright law. The photo in question is certainly NOT in the public domain (something users of Pinterest need to learn...)

      2. FuzzyWuzzys
        Facepalm

        AC, just 'cos a photo is on the Internet does not make it automatically in the public domain! I post my photos on the Internet but they are still protected and you still need to ask my permission to use them, unless by using a particular website I relinquish that right. There are lot of images on WikiCommons and they're free to use but they're still copyrighted to the original photographer, they simply let you use them ideally with credit back.

        1. Snorlax Silver badge

          @FuzzyWuzzys

          @FuzzyWuzzys:"AC, just 'cos a photo is on the Internet does not make it automatically in the public domain! "

          Totally agree with ya. BTW, don't ever look at @for_exposure_txt on twitter or you'll blow a gasket.

          1. frank ly

            Re: @FuzzyWuzzys re. @for_exposure_txt

            I worked my way through the poorly expressed, spelled and 'grammared' posts to find this gem:

            "I think there is a difference between compensating artists for their work, which is obviously a good thing, and allowing them to keep our culture hostage. At a certain point art becomes bigger than the artist."

            Oh wow!

            1. FIA Silver badge

              Re: @FuzzyWuzzys re. @for_exposure_txt

              "I think there is a difference between compensating artists for their work, which is obviously a good thing, and allowing them to keep our culture hostage. At a certain point art becomes bigger than the artist."

              Isn't that the point of copyright? (Before it got abused by people with money and lawyers...) Allow people to correctly profit from their work but not devalue culture overall.

              Amen brother.

            2. The Indomitable Gall

              Re: @FuzzyWuzzys re. @for_exposure_txt

              " At a certain point art becomes bigger than the artist. "

              In my case when a work measures more than 165cm in its largest dimension.

    3. Chrissy

      Who knows what we're allowed to photograph??

      "did the photographer have permission to photograph what is possibly a prescribed place under the official secrets act?"

      Where and what is a "proscribed place" (or more accurately "prohibited") is almost impossible for the "man on the Clapham omnibus" to now work out if even the Ministry of Justice don't have a clue:

      http://p10.hostingprod.com/@spyblog.org.uk/blog/foia/2008/09/current-prohibited-places-under-the-official-secrets-act-1911.html

      1. Tom 7

        Re: Who knows what we're allowed to photograph??

        If its a secret place you would imagine even the RAF would avoid putting a fucking great painted sign outside of it.

        Well not long ago you would have thought that.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Who knows what we're allowed to photograph??

          That part of the country is littered with unmarked places that nobody talks about much - I've known a few people who worked in them and they were completely unable to say what they did and had to report everything that they did that might become known or detected by their superiors. Mostly I kept my mouth shut around them too - this was a long time ago, how long? Weed was 16 quid an ounce then.

      2. Adam 52 Silver badge

        Re: Who knows what we're allowed to photograph??

        In the case of an RAF base:

        "any work of defence, arsenal, naval or air force establishment or station, factory, dockyard, mine, minefield, camp, ship, or aircraft belonging to or occupied by or on behalf of His Majesty, or any telegraph, telephone, wireless or signal station, or office so belonging or occupied"

        Seems fairly obvious, even to a girl from Clapham.

        Or, more practically, there tends to be a sign outside.

        1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

          Re: Who knows what we're allowed to photograph??

          "any work of defence, arsenal, naval or air force establishment or station, factory, dockyard, mine, minefield, camp, ship, or aircraft belonging to or occupied by or on behalf of His Majesty, or any telegraph, telephone, wireless or signal station, or office so belonging or occupied"

          On the other hand, on a visit to an RAF base to do some work recently, I got there a little early so looked for somewhere to eat my sandwiches before going in. I parked in the specially created "viewing area" under the flight line just off the main public road which passes by.

        2. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

          Re: Who knows what we're allowed to photograph??

          Presumably somebody runs up and down in front of Buckingham Palace shouting "this is secret don't photograph it" then denying that it exists or that it is secret or there is any list of secret places.

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I'm not sure if it was this one, or possibly another "RAF" base elsewhere, but I was chatting to some ex-GCHQ staff, who found it hilarious that at one base the yanks had had enormous trouble with rabbits eating through their cables. "British bunnies munching American cables" was their reaction :)

    1. Teiwaz

      rabbits eating through their cables

      [add poor russian or german accent, replace officer with common derogatory slang for americans] "There's on officer in charge who probably doesn't find Bugs Bunny as amusing any more"

    2. alain williams Silver badge

      What animal munching ?

      "British bunnies munching American cables"

      Your GCHQ friends did not quite tell you the truth, what munched the cables was not British bunnies but British moles.

  5. TrumpSlurp the Troll
    Coat

    Pictures or it didn't.....

    ....sorry, as you were.

    1. BebopWeBop
      Unhappy

      Re: Pictures or it didn't.....

      but shurely there is no playmobil

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Google Wak

    Being a provincial and not knowing Latin. I googled ipsos custodietting and got a single result pointing to this article. I'll be off. Both for not recognising ipsos custodiet and also for bothering to type this... There's probably grammatical errors to be ashamed about also.

    Bye.

    1. VinceH

      Re: Google Wak

      I think it's an attempt at being clever with "who watches the watchmen" in Latin. It might have been better to have tried translating an English phrase derived on it, instead of just mangling the Latin.

    2. Andy The Hat Silver badge

      Re: Google Wak

      "...custodietting ..."?

      I read that as my ideal snake-oil subject - Custard Dieting. Along with a nice free from something obscure jam roly poly ... new year's health resolution here we come!

      1. Andy The Hat Silver badge

        Re: Google Wak

        ... and an ideal subject for any mites from Glut ...

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    When I were a lad.

    There was a 'secret' military listening post just out of town. It had the best conker trees along the outside of its perimeter. We used to sneak up and hide behind the trees when ever there came traffic to and from the base. The innocence of this, thinking no one had spotted us, brigs a smile to my face as I type.

    Also, more than once I was, asked directions to the secret air base. We gave them naturally.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: When I were a lad.

      You were a good and useful part of the training regime providing light relief to the very bored security teams. Also you were much cheaper than using official pen testers.

      1. This post has been deleted by its author

        1. Chris G

          Re: When I were a lad.

          In the early nineties I used to keep my horse next door to some Raytheon offices and labs, one day I saw a bunch of guys panting hardware in the ground along the fence line. I walked over to be most and asked what the gadgets were, One of the security guys told me they were hypersensitive geophones that could pick up anyone crossing the fence line or walking close to it.

          Needless to say after that we regularly galloped up and down the fence line to keep them amused.

  8. Pete 2 Silver badge

    snookered!

    Given the picture shows three balls in a row with another further up the "table", shouldn't they be coloured green brown and yellow (going L to R) with the one in the background being blue?

    C'mon yanks. Show a bit of cultural awareness.

    1. Pedigree-Pete
      Black Helicopters

      Re: snookered!

      @Pete2. I believe there's a spare "white" Golf ball available for sale near Kinross, Scotland if you have a spare mil£. PP

      http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/local-news/iconic-golf-ball-kinross-shire-8278076

  9. Sgt_Oddball

    of copyright...

    The register are using the image in fair use plus they are citing the source of the image and giving credit for it (which is pretty much the entire article). So I think So reg is in the clear over this.

    1. Andy J

      Re: of copyright...

      Well since fair use is an American doctrine, and el Reg is nominally a UK-based site, that should be 'fair dealing'. Except that there is no fair dealing exception which would permit this sort of use. The copying of photographs for the purpose of reporting current events is strictly prohibited by section 30(2) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 [http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/48/section/30]

      1. Sgt_Oddball

        Re: of copyright...

        Normally I'd agree but since the internet is ruled by Google and by proxy the Americans fair use seemed more apt. That or hand them a dmca takedown for shit and/or giggles

        1. Andy J

          Re: of copyright...

          I'm afraid you really don't understand how copyright liability works, do you? The putative owner of the copyright (the secretbases site) is based in the UK and so is the corporate base of the Register. Even if the piece had been written by one the Register's US based journalists, the fact that they have a UK trading presence still means the UK is the jurisdiction where the 'harm' occurs. Ergo, any action for infringement would need to be carried on in the UK courts and under UK law. That is not to suggest that the Register has in fact done anything wrong. They claim to have permission to use the image and if true, then there is no problem.

    2. Solmyr ibn Wali Barad

      Re: of copyright...

      Or they got a permission from the copyright owner. Sometimes it can be had for just asking nicely.

    3. Anonymous Coward Silver badge
      Holmes

      Re: of copyright...

      Or, you know, RTFA

      "Picture supplied by Alan Turnbull of Secret-Bases.co.uk and used with permission"

      So they got permission to use it. No 'fair use' or similar exceptions needed.

  10. Snorlax Silver badge

    Reminds Me Of That Time...

    ...Mark Thomas flew a hot air balloon over Menwith Hill to piss off the Yanks.

    1. My Alter Ego

      Re: Reminds Me Of That Time...

      That video's great. I don't know how have I never heard of him up until now.

      1. Snorlax Silver badge
        Happy

        Re: Reminds Me Of That Time...

        The Mark Thomas Comedy Product and Brass Eye were two great Channel 4 shows.

        I wonder what would happen if he tried the same stunt these days; he’d probably be shot out of the sky or locked up for terrorism offences.

      2. FIA Silver badge

        Re: Reminds Me Of That Time...

        That video's great. I don't know how have I never heard of him up until now.

        If you can find it the programme where he got a load of sixth formers to set up an arms dealing business is well worth a watch too.

    2. allthecoolshortnamesweretaken

      Re: Reminds Me Of That Time...

      Brilliant!

Page:

POST COMMENT House rules

Not a member of The Register? Create a new account here.

  • Enter your comment

  • Add an icon

Anonymous cowards cannot choose their icon

Other stories you might like