The weird thing about that ITAR stuff is that he could have just digitized the manual, hosted it on Google Drive, left the US and the physical manual there, and been fine.
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My guess is that he didnāt consider the possibility that it was against the law.
I mean, if scanning it and sending it digitally is allowed, why wouldnāt it be ok to ship it?
Another case that got some attention was the information that a user posted on the ED Forum, regarding the Viggen. The user got declassified information from the Swedish Govt. Archives, that shouldnāt have been declassified. An employee of the archives was investigated and was convicted of gross negligence. The Swedish news media made an issue about the fact that the info was posted on a russian software developer forumā¦
The info was potentially harmful for Swedish National Interests, but to no fault of ED or the user who posted it.
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Iām sure that I am preaching to the converted here, but US border security is a nightmare.
It is very easy to understand how you could be in trouble without even realising that you were doing anything wrong.
I donāt know if it is the minimum wage earning rent-a-cop with NFI that you have to deal with, an overly bloated bureaucracy, or what?
The number of times that I entered the US on an Official Passport with an A2 Visa but was still given the 3rd degree!!! It got to the point that we actually did what @Clutch said. If I was carrying a laptop, apart from the OS it was clean and after I had passed through Immigration/Homeland Security (whatever they are calling it these days) I would then upload the files I needed from the cloud, so I could then give my UNCLAS/FOUO presentatation to - and here is the kicker - to a US military audienceā¦ and all because the clown at the point of entry into the US couldnāt understand āneed to knowā.
Rant over, I will get off my soapbox now.
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This was what I was trying to say 
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That reminds me I should probably purge my iPhone of all the NATOPS and CNATRA stuff I have on it before I go back to the US this winter 
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Your Name is Harry Bumcrack Seriouslyā¦What Do You Expect The Border Guards to do when they see that???
ā¦ok Iām leaving now
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Itās sadly become something of a meme in the US that there are so many laws, youāre almost certain to break at least one a day.
And, the police tasked with enforcing the laws, cannot themselves keep track of what is or is not legal (Mrs Whiskey is a cop and expresses frustration about this constantly).
Edit: but, Iām flirting with going off-topic.
I genuinely hope Casmo is able to restore at least some or a version of his content. I very much enjoyed it, and I donāt want to see this current sweep of former aviators feeding our world to be discouraged.
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iāve seen all of Casmoās videos, I dont see where thereās any case to present itself.
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@Whiskey_two It is becoming the same here and I have a few friends, ex-Army that moved on to law enforcement who have expressed similar sentiments. Most of them excercise common sense and judgement, but there are some who get a bit over-zealous and if they arenāt sureā¦ āWe will just arrest you anyway and let the judge sort it outā.
And yeah, I hope Casmo can repost as well.
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And that is the Catch-22 in this situation. If nothing had been said, nobody would be any wiser. But now it has created a lot of speculationā¦
I admit that this stuff often gives me pause when I consider saying anything on a forum.
In an earlier time, it seemed easy to distinguish between what was not permissible to speak about (generally classified stuff) and what was perfectly fine to speak about.
Now it seems that almost anything can be considered improper, even retroactively.
So, if I point out something about an aircraft Iāve flown, even if I can go right to Google and download the manual, illegal or not?
Dunno.
Reference a HUD element that is clearly visible in a YouTube video?
Dunno.
Iāve always tried to ask myself if what Iām saying could possibly be used in some manner against the US, even if itās readily available.
But how can you ever know?
Is Robert Shawās book exporting defense information?
Itās frustrating. I love aviation and love sharing (the safe bits) with other pilots and enthusiasts.
But I learned to fly in the military. Is everything Iāve ever learned now a state secret?
I literately have no idea. 
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Not long ago, i took a picture of the Virpil collective handle, while holding it beside the MH60R collective. I intended to post it here for comparison, but in the end decided not to.
Iām pretty sure thereās plenty of pics of the real deal out there, but I just donāt want to take any chances with it.
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Exactly. But is even speaking of it exporting defense information? What about finding an open source picture of it online and then speaking of it?
The issue with this is really the issue with anything.
If you were ever in the military theoretically anything you say could be construed as divulging some sort of information, if taken to the extreme.
Military secret? Speaks to logistics, supply etc.
I know itās a silly example. But, if in WWII, you could have disrupted the ability of soldiers to open their rationsā¦
The hard part is that you might not realize that you were crossing some line until after you crossed it.
Even though I have always thought I was being mindful and careful, these discussions always make me want to completely recuse myself from any military conversation.
How the guys on Youtube manage not to get arrested is beyond me.
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Maybe not the same even in the civilian world there are similar concerns. Most of us are reminded by our companies that anything we do publicly on our days off still has consequences at work. The words we post and the rallies we attend can have consequences at work. This doesnāt bother me so much because the filter that guides my life is sufficient to protect me from the current SM constraints that my company enforces. My fear is that people will someday have to constantly defend themselves against AI Large Language Models successfully posing as them. This defending will be done on the defendantās time and on the defendantās dime. And if it involves unpaid leave, that will be on him or her as well. Weāve entered an era where if you wanāt to be a d*** to someone else, you can turn their life upside down with very little effortāeither legally or anonymously.
Funny, as I write, the new completion bot (which I hate) is pretty consistently finishing the sentences. Hey @Discobot, are we married?
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Hi! To find out what I can do, say @discobot display help.
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And to see so many people post every little detail of their lives on social media is disturbing to say the least. Itās like they donāt have a clue what their divulging may actually harm them in the end.
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(UK)
What is an offence under the Official Secrets Act.
- Disclosing a secret to an unauthorised person.
- Failing to secure/control a secret.
- Possessing a secret without authorisation.
- Disclosing the existence of a secret.
And theres moreā¦
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Thanks 
Thanks heaps @Chuck_Owl . You sir are a dead set legend. Although I am a Patreon supporter, if you are ever in this part of the world I also owe you a beer or three 
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Beerā¦ now thereās a proper currency! 
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