Department of Justice Sacrifices Child Porn Case In Favor Of Protecting Tor Exploit

Even though it had a suspect for violating anti-child pornography laws on the ropes, the US Department of Justice decided to drop the case it had because of its unwillingness to release details about an exploit that could break through a vulnerability at Tor. Privacy advocates and defense attorneys have been trying to get the exploit for a long time, but it would seem that the DOJ is unwilling to budge on anything.

The suspect in question is a school administrator in Vancouver, Canada named Jay Michaud, The Tech Portal reports. Michaud was arrested in 2015 for the suspicion of accessing a child pornography scene called Playpen in the dark web portal called Tor. He supposedly browsed over 100 threads that contained images and videos, which the DOJ had collected enough evidence of.

This was possible through the Tor exploit that the FBI had been using for years called NIT (network investigative technique). Based on what most security experts have been able to ascertain, NIT is a malware that basically breaks through the layers of security walls surrounding Tor, which allows it to maintain the anonymity of its users.

It was with NIT that the DOJ nabbed over 135 suspects all over the country for similar crimes as Michaud, many of whom are yet to be prosecuted. Based on how the case is being dropped right now, it would seem that these suspects have reason to hope that they won’t be prosecuted as well. As to why it’s actually being dropped, Annette Hayes, the federal prosecutor handling the case says that releasing NIT is not even worth considering.

"The government must now choose between disclosure of classified information and dismissal of its indictment,” Ms. Hayes said. “Disclosure is not currently an option. Dismissal without prejudice leaves open the possibility that the government could bring new charges should there come a time within the statute of limitations when and the government be in a position to provide the requested discovery."