This is brilliant if people would take a second to think about it. In the past, FBI undercover agents or snitches would have to wear a wire tap and if they get discovered, they'd get killed right on the spot. Right now, they can just carry an unsuspecting phone that's running Android that can act as a wire tap without causing suspicion to the criminals. They'd be able to get the evidence or confession they'd need to get criminals off the street in a much safer way now.

Yes, this use would be brilliant, and also the option for citizens to enable it if they feel in danger would be very useful, but remotely enabling it without the phone owner 's permission and awareness is no good.

It all depends, while they can't use the source in court, they can use it to prevent disasters like 911. They really don't care to do it to the average Joes like you or me, we are quiet irrelevant to the FBI.

Yes, but actually protecting average Joes could be its only useful function: surely terrorists have been aware of the dangers of planning attacks by phone or internet for quite a long time, so they'll either avoid any electronic communication until the last moment (for example using them only to trigger detonators) to avoid being intercepted in time, or they'll use every possible precaution when using them. If FBI wants to bust terrorists that aren't complete amateurs, but still make a limited use of electronic communications, it must use zero-day exploits, not official backdoors.

Hmmm with me all they'd hear is me talkin to chicks and meeting with friends to go to concerts. Also warhammer and jrpgs.

What do you guys think about the latest reports about NSA and DEA "cooperation", "parallel construction" etc.?

Here's a short summary, in case you haven't read about yet:
The NSA is giving hints acquired by surveilling american citizens to a special unit of the DEA with more than 100 people, which is using these hints to prosecute drug dealers and users. But the fact that these hints originally came from the NSA is not being revealed; instead, a strategy called "parallel construction" is being used: they have to construct a credible alternative story about how they became aware of those "crimes". For example, the NSA would give hints when and where the DEA should examine cars. If the DEA guys find drugs, they can claim that it was just a random car search that by pure luck made them aware of a drug crime/criminal.

There seem to be quite a number of american cannabis smokers on this website, so I wonder if this changes their feelings on the NSA surveillance. (My impression so far is that many people don't care about the NSA surveillance, simply because they don't see how it could possibly affect themselves)

Sure, but the DEA is becoming less and less focused on weed as the citizenry of this grand nation are gradually demanding legalization, and that's why many of the states have followed suit, at least with medical marijuana.  

so, the government can look for weed all they like, it will be only for a brief amount of time that they will be able prosecute marijuana anyway.-+

Except that's not true.

If anythign the DEA has gotten MORE focused on weed ever since states have improved medical usage.  Going out of their way to hassle the state governments, shut down dispenseries etc.

The prosecution of people running legal (statewise) dispenseries and just growing them has been on a sharp upswing.

Its on of my major concerns. people act as if the NSA isnt sharing this info among other government agencies. I would not be suprised to find other links (NSA-IRS)(NSA-DEA)(NSA-ATF) You name it. Let alone the ease of possible civilians using it against their neighbors. How many people have acces to this info? If snowden could hack it and reveal, can't others? Once the info is there, it can also easily be used to keep political adversies at bay, and to keep a political party in power using the opression of information. I mean look at what the IRS has done with targetting conservatives. Wouldn't it suck to try and run for office only to get auditied and have personal details "leak" about you? I know it worries me more than any terroism ever will.

I absolutely agree. I think it's perfectly rational to expect that since they're using the collected information to give tips to the DEA, why shouldn't they give similar tips other agencies? If the technological capabilities are there anyway, one can assume that they will be used wherever it seems beneficial.

And I too think that the problem of the humans having access to the information is severe too. I alone know of several people who've used their access to certain credential information for private matters.