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Permalink Reply by RIPLEY on July 2, 2012 at 6:44pm

Twitter Ordered to Cough Up Occupy User Data http://t.co/PnwlpSXR

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Permalink Reply by RIPLEY on August 7, 2012 at 8:38am

Sorry, I've been busy as of late, snooping. Found out a bunch of good stuff...will be posting it all soon...heres something....
Traditional antivirus software is useless against military malware http://t.co/QfCLc28w

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Permalink Reply by RIPLEY on August 7, 2012 at 8:57am

Uncovering License Plate Scanners: The Next Big Thing in Government Tracking http://t.co/nNwFN04X

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Permalink Reply by RIPLEY on August 7, 2012 at 8:58am

The Biggest New Spying Program You’ve Probably Never Heard Of http://t.co/mDDgMLyD

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Permalink Reply by RIPLEY on August 7, 2012 at 9:05am

Did you know??? Surveillance Under the Patriot Act http://t.co/FrKS0vn7

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Permalink Reply by RIPLEY on August 7, 2012 at 11:00am

Cybersecurity too crucial to leave to politicos? It's looking that way http://t.co/cRETeP3a

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Permalink Reply by RIPLEY on August 7, 2012 at 1:31pm

Another slap in our faces....Appeals Court OKs Warrantless Wiretapping http://t.co/uyybMJAj

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Permalink Reply by RIPLEY on August 26, 2012 at 11:45am

Well folks, the FBI have really gone an stuck their foot in the mud on this one! Important! A Must Read!

FBI To Give Facial Recognition Software to Law-Enforcement Agencies

By Ryan Gallagher

|

Posted Thursday, Aug. 23, 2012, at 5:08 PM ET
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A security camera is seen across the street from the World Trade Center site

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images

The speedy onward march of biometric technology continues. After recently announcing plans for a nationwide iris-scan database, the FBI has revealed it will soon hand out free facial-recognition software to law enforcement agencies across the United States.

The software, which was piloted in February in Michigan, is expected to be rolled out within weeks. It will give police analysts access to a so-called “Universal Face Workstation” that can be used to compare a database of almost 13 million images. The UFW will permit police to submit and enhance image files so they can be cross-referenced with others on the database for matches.

Instituting the technology nationally is the latest stage in the FBI’s $1 billion Next-Generation Identification program, which will also establish a system for searching a database of scars, marks, and tattoos. The FBI’s Jerome Pender, who was recently named executive assistant director of the Information and Technology Branch, says in a statement that Hawaii, Maryland, South Carolina, Ohio, New Mexico, Kansas, Arizona, Tennessee, Nebraska, and Missouri have already expressed interest in trying out the UFW. Pender says that “full operational capability” for facial recognition is scheduled for the summer of 2014.

The FBI has been keen to emphasize that the 12.8 million images stored on the database will only include “criminal mug shot photos” taken during the booking process. Last week, in a bid to quell privacy concerns, the bureau said in a podcast that it will not “store photographs obtained from other sources such as social media.”

But it’s unlikely that assurance will satisfy civil liberties enthusiasts. In a blog post earlier this month, the Electronic Frontier Foundation said it was concerned that the “FBI wants to be able to search and identify people in photos of crowds and in pictures posted on social media sites—even if the people in those photos haven’t been arrested for or even suspected of a crime.” This sentiment was echoed in July by Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., during a hearing at the Senate judiciary committee’s subcommittee on privacy, technology, and the law. Franken said that he feared the FBI’s technology “could be abused to not only identify protesters at political events and rallies, but to target them for selective jailing and prosecution, stifling their First Amendment rights.” (The same fears punctuated the recent hysteria about TrapWire, which is not actually facial recognition software, contrary to widely published claims.)

In addition to privacy concerns, UAW has another weak spot: It still isn’t that great at tracking people. Last year, the Wall Street Journal reported how human analysts still trump machines when it comes to comparing and identifying people from photographs. Poor quality images or bad lighting, for instance, can render facial recognition almost useless.

One thing that is true is that the software is advancing rapidly—and developments show no sign of slowing down. Aside from the FBI’s facial network software, companies are turning to facial recognition technology to take snapshots of shoppers in order to offer them customized deals linked to Facebook preferences. It’s enough to make you reluctant to show your face in public again. As Anonymous hacktivists have pointed out in a new video, however, there are some alternatives. Options include walking about with your head tilted at a 15 degree angle, caking your face in make-up, or wearing a plastic mask.

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Permalink Reply by Chancy Yardbird on August 26, 2012 at 12:18pm

Good after noon, RIPELY. We must do all we can at least in our local circles to keep technology like this out off the hands of bureucrats who would abuse their power.

When they steal robotic noses, the technology born in the food and beverage industry, some will surely abuse it. Currently it is and will advance their direction under the guise of being used as it should to search for missing children and real crooks.

Unfortunately, the crooks will use our good tools and our good systems and even good laws against us to gain what they want. UNLESS WE all do the work required in our local city and county and state government/political processes.

If we can't stop the crime and corruption, then by golly let's at least slow it down by doing all we can do.

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Permalink Reply by Chancy Yardbird on September 13, 2012 at 5:27pm

Anonymous’s Barrett Brown Arrested for Threatening FBI Agent, Anonymous Retaliates (Updated)

According to this: Barrett Brown, who has often stepped forward as a kind of spokesguy for Anonymous, was arrested during a live chat late Wednesday night. Wired reports the incident occurred as Mr. Brown chatted with his girlfriend and several others on TinyChat:

“Two minutes into the recorded chat session, loud voices can be heard in the background of Brown’s residence while the woman in the room with him is in front of the computer screen. She quickly closes the computer screen, but the audio continued to capture events in the room as the FBI appeared to be strong-arming Brown to put handcuffs on him. Brown can be heard yelling in the background.”

Some who were chatting with Mr. Brown at the time had no idea what was going on, whether it was a prank or not, but Mr. Brown was indeed booked into the Dallas County Jail before midnight Wednesday. A spokesperson for the Dallas County Sheriff told Wired Mr. Brown had been “removed from the jail” Thursday morning and taken elsewhere.

http://betabeat.com/2012/09/anonymouss-barrett-brown-arrested-for-t...

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Permalink Reply by Chancy Yardbird on October 9, 2012 at 4:42am

Ex-Anonymous activist under federal indictment, potentially faces 20 years in prison

Barrett Brown, the occasional face of the leaderless hacker group Anonymous, is now under federal indictment for threatening and conspiring against an FBI agent.

Brown was indicted on three accounts: Internet threats, conspiracy to make publicly available restricted personal information of an employee of the United States and retaliation against a federal law enforcement officer.

The indictment, signed Oct. 1 and filed Oct. 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern Division of Texas, named the threats made by Brown against an FBI agent and his family — threats he had made in response to a raid on Brown’s residence six months prior. The agent’s name was redacted in the indictment.

After the FBI unmasked an influential member of the Anonymous spin-off group, LulzSec, as an FBI informant, Brown alleged on Twitter in March that FBI agents came to his home and confiscated computers that he owned.

Brown then threatened via his Twitter and YouTube accounts to publicize private information about the agent and his family, as well as retaliate with physical violence.

Still rattled by the March raid, the social media posts not only documented Brown’s threats, but also his public breakdown, due to in part to his weaning himself off of Suboxone, a prescription drug used to treat opiate dependence. Brown’s battle with drug addiction is a well-known part of his public persona.

His mother, caught in the crossfire, was being threatened with obstruction of justice by the Justice Department, Brown told The Daily Caller prior to his arrest.

Heightened by the drug withdrawal, he said in videos posted online that the danger he perceived his mother to be in was also a motivation for his planned retaliation against law enforcement.

Brown threatened to reveal information about Attorney General Eric Holder and his staff as part of his retaliatory efforts.

Brown, arrested in an FBI raid in mid-September during an online video chat, could face up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted on all three accounts. Video of his arrest was posted online shortly after the arrest.

Details of his whereabouts post-arrest had been clouded in obscurity for weeks. Brown’s critics even suspected the arrest may have been staged, since the arrest took place off screen. The audio of the struggle, however, could be heard in the background of the video.

Brown first alluded to his location in a letter posted to Pastebin.com several days after his arrest. He detailed his physical condition and treatment while in captivity, as well as regrets over how he has publicly handled himself and his operations.

Brown’s girlfriend confirmed on Twitter that the letter was real and that it had been delivered by a close friend. His supporters also built a website to raise funds for his legal defense fund.

Brown, an activist and a journalist, does not hack, but his work with Anonymous goes back to the hacker group providing cybersupport to rebel groups during the Arab Spring. Recently he has denied ever being officially part of Anonymous, although news reports often refer to him as one of the group’s “spokesman.”

Having publicly advocated for the overthrow of the U.S. government, a principle he considered resonant with the founding of America, Brown founded Project PM — a network of bloggers and activists — to collect and expose information about the U.S. intelligence community, and its various connections to federal contractors and PR firms.

His critics have viewed him with ire, stating that he has used his association with Anonymous to gain fame and notoriety.

Read more including the text of the indictment: http://dailycaller.com/2012/10/08/ex-anonymous-activist-under-feder...

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Permalink Reply by RIPLEY on September 14, 2012 at 10:12am

Yea Chancy, its getting to be a slippery slop out there! And the worse part, its getting worse all the time. I'm into the tech stuff bigtime....we've discovered something insidious going on.
Because the coding and system changes occurring on systems and softwares, Big Brother has strongarmed alot of people that when software updates occur, stuff can be installed on your system without your knowledge. The, low and behold, if your firewall is aggressive, a sneaky piece of software asks for permission to access the internet.
IF YOU DON"T KNOW IT, REFUSE IT!!!!!
If it keeps asking for permission, copy it and do a google search. Find out what the hell it is!
The bad part about it, you need to upgrade your software to keep going on the net, because systems and the net changes
KEEP YOUR EYES AND EARS OPEN!

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