Very long article for SlashDot.
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/07/11/169230&from=rss
'Naughty Bits' Decision Not So Nice
Posted by timothy on Tuesday July 11, @05:47PM from the expensive-wireless-at-dulles dept.
Many readers found stifling Judge Richard P. Matsch's decision yesterday that Cleanflix, a service selling versions of popular movies edited (some would say censored) to remove violence, nudity and other elements, was in violation of U.S. copyright law for selling these edited versions, while others welcomed the decision as appropriately respecting the intent of those who made the original movies. Read on for the Backslash summary of the conversation, with some of the best comments of the more than 1200 that readers contributed to the story.
While some comments evaluated the decision as a victory for filmmakers as artists rather than merely as copyright holders, some readers aren't so sure that directors' and studios' interests have much to do artistic integrity, and suggest that it's primarily their commercial rather than aesthetic interests being served here. TheFlyingGoat makes a case for this view:
New political tool? Some wise lawyer (an oxymoron?) thought through how to DO something.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060712/NEWS06/607120382/1008/NEWS
GOP charges governor used gas petition to send e-mail
July 12, 2006 BY DAWSON BELL FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
The state Republican Party claims Gov. Jennifer Granholm used an online petition about gas prices to get the e-mail addresses of signers for campaign purposes. The GOP is seeking information from the petitions. (AL GOLDIS/Associated Press)
... Anuzis initially said Granholm may have violated laws prohibiting the use of government resources for political purposes when he announced his complaint Tuesday morning, and said he was asking Attorney General Mike Cox and Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land to investigate.
But GOP officials softened that claim after Granholm campaign spokesman Chris DeWitt said the gas-price petition e-mail addresses had been obtained under a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request made May 26. [In other words, “We can do it too!” Bob]
I wonder if this is just a “left coast” thing, or if governments have a real concern?
http://www.ktvu.com/news/9500597/detail.html
SF Reviewing Contracts With AT&T Over Domestic Spying Controversy
POSTED: 2:06 pm PDT July 11, 2006
SAN FRANCISCO -- City officials are investigating AT&T's alleged cooperation with the National Security Agency and considering possible "consequences" the company could face in its extensive municipal contracts here if it is violating civil liberties, Mayor Gavin Newsom said Tuesday.
http://www.egovmonitor.com/node/6704
Guidance issued on transferring personal information overseas
Source: Information Commissioner Published Tuesday, 11 July, 2006 - 14:01
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published updated guidance to companies and other organisations on transferring personal information outside the European Economic Area (EEA).
The two pieces of guidance offer data controllers an overview of the 8th data protection principle and the options for transferring information outside the EEA.
... The updated guidance is available on the ICO website at http://www.ico.gov.uk/eventual.aspx?id=19630
This was inevitable when the actual costs were considered. Strategy is not “following trends”
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1987497,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03119TX1K0000594
Study: Outsourcing Boom Is Over
By Stan Gibson July 11, 2006
The outsourcing boom has passed and maturity is setting in, according to a new study from consulting firm DiamondCluster International in Chicago.
Not all hacking is for cash...
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,71363-0.html?tw=rss.index
Hacker Spawns a French Watergate
By Bruce Gain 02:00 AM Jul, 12, 2006
PARIS -- A hack of a Luxembourg bank's records is emerging as a key detail of the so-called Clearstream affair here, a national scandal that's pulled top-level politicians, powerful corporate executives and now a white-hat hacking group into its orbit.
... At the heart of the storm is a sophisticated conspiracy to falsely implicate a number of celebrities, high-ranking officials and political candidates in a bribery scandal.
Among the falsified evidence produced by the conspirators before the fraud unraveled were confidential bank records originating with the Clearstream bank in Luxembourg, which were expertly modified to make it appear that some French politicians had secretly established offshore bank accounts to receive bribes. The falsified records were then sent to investigators, with enough authentic account information left in to make them appear credible.
http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/011783.html
July 11, 2006
New York Courts to Make "Virtual" Case Files Available on the Internet
Press release: "In Manhattan, the public will have free remote access to a virtual file of civil cases in Supreme Court, including pleadings, preliminary conference and other case-management orders, requests for judicial intervention, notes of issue, orders to show cause and notices of motion. (Due to volume, affidavits, exhibits and other supporting motion papers will not be scanned.) In addition to the online virtual case file, access will be provided simultaneously to case activity information, such as a record of all court appearances and the date of filing of all papers with the County Clerk. Procedures will be implemented to ensure the protection of sensitive or confidential information. The pilot will begin in September, allowing for prior notification and consultation with the bar."
http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/011775.html
July 11, 2006
American Lawyer Survey on Law Librarians 2006
Law Librarians Look Beyond Books - "Once endangered, librarians have expanded their role to include such duties as market research and competitive intelligence."
http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/011779.html
July 11, 2006
Model State, Regional, and Federal Enterprise Retrieval System
Why Reinvent the Wheel? Model State, Regional, and Federal Enterprise Retrieval System, by Katie Mugg, Project Manager, State, Regional, and Federal Enterprise Retrieval System, San Diego Association of Governments, San Diego, California
"The Automated Regional Justice Information System (ARJIS) is a complex criminal justice enterprise network utilized by 50 local, state and federal agencies in the San Diego region...The ARJISNet secure intranet contains data on the regions crime cases, arrests, citations, field interviews, traffic accidents, fraudulent documents, photographs, gang information and stolen property."
"Most Warrants issued by the San Diego County Superior Court are available here online."
http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/011780.html
July 11, 2006
VA OIG Audit of Veterans Data Breach
Review of Issues Related to the Loss of VA Information Involving the Identity of Millions of Veterans, Rpt. #06-02238-163, July 11, 2006 (78 pages, PDF)
Related postings on the VA data breach
http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/011785.html
July 11, 2006
2006 White House Salary List
Who's Making What In The White House, by Alexis Simendinger, for NationalJournal.com (sub. req'd)
"President Bush's most senior aides -- the ones who hold the coveted title of "assistant to the president" -- recently received a $4,200 cost-of-living bump-up in compensation and now earn a top pay rate of $165,200, according to an internal White House list of staff salaries. The list [of 433 positions] was compiled by the administration for the year that ended June 30 and is displayed both alphabetically, and by dollar ranking."
“We gotta do something, we gotta do something!”
http://techdirt.com/articles/20060711/1959221.shtml
Congress Now Blaming MySpace For Troubled Children
from the gotta-stop-it dept
On the same day that MySpace becomes the top site online and a bunch of political types try to launch a MySpace for politicians it appears that our elected Congress Critters want to figure out what to do about the MySpace issue. This, right after solving the gambling problem apparently. Earlier this year, we noted some talk in Congress about banning social networks and blogs from schools and libraries that take federal money -- but today even more proposals were discussed. In the discussions today, the same Congress folks who were just blaming video games for everything wrong with kids, are now saying that "MySpace.com has been a center of drug activity, of gang activity, and of Internet predators." After again suggesting that these sites be banned from schools and libraries, they discussed solutions such as forcing some sort of third-party age verification on these sites. That, of course, sounds good to Congress people who don't seem to realize that won't actually do anything other than perhaps push kids to move to some other site adults have even less control over. Oh well. As long as they can head home for election season claiming they're working hard to protect the children, even when their actions tend to make things worse.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/07/11/state.hackers.ap/
Hackers target State Dept. computers
Widespread break-ins appear aimed at HQ, East Asian office
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The State Department is recovering from large-scale computer break-ins worldwide over the past several weeks that appeared to target its headquarters and offices dealing with China and North Korea, The Associated Press has learned.
Investigators believe hackers stole sensitive U.S. information and passwords and implanted backdoors in unclassified government computers to allow them to return at will, said U.S. officials familiar with the hacking.
These people spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the widespread intrusions and the resulting investigation.
The break-ins and the State Department's emergency response severely limited Internet access at many locations, including some headquarters offices in Washington, these officials said. Internet connections have been restored across nearly all the department since the break-ins were recognized in mid-June.
"The department did detect anomalies in network traffic, and we thought it prudent to ensure our system's integrity," department spokesman Kurtis Cooper said. Asked what information was stolen by the hackers, Cooper said, "Because the investigation is continuing, I don't think we even know."
Tracing the origin of such break-ins is difficult. But employees told AP the hackers appeared to hit computers especially hard at headquarters and inside the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, which coordinates diplomacy in countries including China, the Koreas and Japan.
In the tense weeks preceding North Korea's missile tests, that bureau lost its Internet connectivity for several days. [So they couldn't watch CNN? Horrors! Bob]
China's government was considered by experts a chief suspect in computer break-ins at the Defense Department and other U.S. agencies disclosed last summer.
But China also is home to a large number of insecure computers and networks that hackers in other countries could use to disguise their locations and launch attacks.
The Pentagon warned earlier this year that China's army is emphasizing hacking as an offensive weapon. It cited Chinese military exercises in 2005 that included hacking "primarily in first strikes against enemy networks."
After the State Department break-ins, many employees were instructed to change their passwords. The department also temporarily disabled a technology known as secure sockets layer, used to transmit encrypted information over the Internet.
Hackers can exploit weaknesses in this technology to break into computers, and they can use the same technology to transmit stolen information covertly off a victim's network.
Many diplomats were unable to access their online bank accounts using government computers because most financial institutions require the security technology to be turned on. Cooper said the department has since fixed that problem.
I have no comment whatsoever. I don't want anyone to think I would actually use this technology, Nope. Not me. I'm entirely innocent. This is just to foment intellectual discussion.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2006/07/11/porn-browser-heatseek-launches-yeah-porn-browser/
Porn Browser Heatseek Launches (yeah, porn browser)
Michael Arrington July 11 2006
Heatseek is a pornography focused browser that quietly launched today. The point of this software is to make porn browsing more efficent and more secure. The browser is available on Windows machines only, and is built on top of Internet Explorer.
... The basic version of Heatseek is free, with a premium version available for a one time fee of $20.
If you are not a hacker, this would still look good printed in full color on large format paper and framed.
http://digg.com/security/Intricate_Steps_of_How_to_Hack_Into_a_Computer
Intricate Steps of How to Hack Into a Computer
plugitin submitted by plugitin 12 hours 35 minutes ago (via http://www.vulnerabilityassessment.co.uk/Penetration%20Test.html )
Here is a huge map that pretty much shows you all possible ways to gain entrance into a system. From finding exploits and scanning ports to password cracking. It shows all the likely paths you can take to hack into a computer and/or test out it's security.
Foolproof way to solve any Sudoku by yourself, without even thinking!
bentrop submitted by bentrop 15 hours 49 minutes ago (via http://www.instructables.com/id/EJLUBKN48JEPD7QXGR/?ALLSTEPS )
A step by step instruction to solve any Sudoku. All you need is the puzzle, a pencil and an eraser. It's fast and pretty much foolproof. This isn't really a new technique (it's called "candidate elimination" and is almost as old as Sudoku itself) but this is one of the nicest guides explaining it to the casual player.
Should we call it Poli-tech?
Political networkers to get new Web site, HotSoup
Tue Jul 11, 2006 8:39 PM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A team of U.S. political strategists is creating an Internet forum for debating hot-button issues, hoping to connect the politically obsessed the way MySpace.com hooks up hypersocial teens.
HotSoup.com launches in October, shortly before U.S. congressional elections, and aims to draw top political personalities as well as grass-roots community organizers to swap opinions and ideas.
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