http://www.pogowasright.org/?p=567
Privacy Requires Security, Not Abstinence
Simson Garfinkel has written a commentary on the state of privacy and security in Technology Review. Here’s a bit from his conclusion:
For more than 100 years, American jurisprudence has recognized privacy as a requirement for democracy, social relations, and human dignity. For nearly 50, we’ve understood that protecting privacy takes more than just controlling intrusions into your home; it also requires being able to control information about you that’s available to businesses, government, and society at large. Even though Americans were told after 9/11 that we needed to choose between security and privacy, it’s increasingly clear that without one we will never have the other.
We need to learn how to protect privacy by intention, not by accident. Although technology can help, my belief is that such protections need to start with clearly articulated polices. Just as Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency to protect our environment, we need some kind of Privacy Protection Agency to give our rights a fighting chance. Our piecemeal approach is no longer acceptable.
[From the article:
The fact that a dusty Harvard Law Review article corresponds so closely with the online privacy problems we face today suggests that even though technology is a driving factor in these privacy invasions, it's not the root source. The source is what sits in front of the computer's screen, not behind it.
… Wiretapping was employed by both sides during the Civil War, prompting some states to pass laws against it. [Pre-telephone Bob]
… Here's a kōan for the information age: Why do so many privacy activists have Facebook pages?
Originally conceived as a place for Harvard undergraduates to post their photos and cell-phone numbers--information that Harvard, because of privacy concerns, wasn't putting online back in 2003--Facebook has grown to be the fourth-most-popular "website" in the world...
… I believe that we will be unable to protect online privacy without a strong electronic identity system that's free to use and backed by the governments of the world--a true passport for online access.
Simple, we transfer their data to the terrorist watch list! (The alternative would be to allow anyone with a card that looks like a Clear card to skip through security.)
Verified Identify Pass Shuts Down "Clear" Operations
Posted by timothy on Tuesday June 23, @08:55AM from the will-you-also-clear-the-database dept.
torrentami writes that Verified Identity Pass, operator of the "Clear" program, which allowed pre-screened passengers faster access to US airport gates,
"sent out emails to its subscribers today informing them that as of 11 p.m. PST they will cease operations. Clear was a pioneer in speeding customers through security at airports and had planned on expanding to large events. The service, where it was available, offered a first class security experience for travelers willing to fork over $200 a year and their biometrics. Customers are now left holding their Flyclear cards with encrypted biometrics. The question now becomes, what happens to all that information? This is not the first time Clear has been in the news. A laptop containing customer records was reportedly missing from the San Francisco International airport recently but then turned up shortly thereafter. Another casualty of the recession's downturn in business travel."
Is this an Ethical decision or merely Cost Cutting?
http://www.pogowasright.org/?p=575
White House to Abandon Spy-Satellite Program
The Obama administration plans to kill a controversial Bush administration spy satellite program at the Department of Homeland Security, according to officials familiar with the decision.
The program came under fire from its inception two years ago. Democratic lawmakers said it would lead to domestic spying.
The program would have provided federal, state and local officials with extensive access to spy-satellite imagery — but no eavesdropping capabilities— to assist with emergency response and other domestic-security needs, such as identifying where ports or border areas are vulnerable to terrorism.
Read more on WSJ.
[From the article:
It would have expanded an Interior Department satellite program, which will continue to be used to assist in natural disasters and for other limited security purposes such as photographing sporting events. [Does the NFL know they are spying on “The Big Game?” Bob]
Interesting. Will this study be cited when government wants to justify reading all our emails? (Nah.. They'll just do it, justification be damned.) Still, we could create an index based on this research which the Board of Directors and/or the outside auditors might find useful.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-10270493-71.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-5
How smart IT workers know when their company's doomed
by Chris Matyszczyk June 22, 2009 3:50 PM PDT
… A couple of researchers at the Florida Institute of Technology seem to be in the e-mail study camp. Or perhaps there was simply nothing better to think about in Melbourne, Fla., recently.
In any case, they took it upon themselves to examine the e-mails sent at Enron, specifically, how the e-mailing patterns changed as Enron was revealed to be channeling the spirit of Bernie Madoff, rather than Bernie Mac or Bernie Kosar.
The researchers, Ben Collingsworth and Ronaldo Menezes, concluded, according to a report in New Scientist, that e-mailing patterns just might be a rather accurate barometer of your company's innards.
… They simply looked at who sent e-mails to whom and how many were sent.
What they discovered was that a month before Skilling fell on his letter-opener, the number of active e-mail cliques--the researchers defined them as e-mail groups in which every member had direct e-mail contact with each other--rose from 100 to 800.
Here's the other characteristic that seemed to foreshadow the spilling of corporate o-positive: more messages were sent within these groups to the exclusion of anyone else in the company.
“Greed is good!” G. Gecko
http://news.slashdot.org/story/09/06/22/225207/ASCAP-Wants-To-Be-Paid-When-Your-Phone-Rings?from=rss
ASCAP Wants To Be Paid When Your Phone Rings
Posted by kdawson on Monday June 22, @06:20PM from the don't-even-think-about-whistling-the-beatles dept.
gerddie notes a piece up on the EFF site outlining the fairly outlandish legal theories ASCAP is trying out in their court fight with AT&T.
"ASCAP (the same folks who went after Girl Scouts for singing around a campfire) appears to believe that every time your musical ringtone rings in public, you're violating copyright law by 'publicly performing' it without a license. At least that's the import of a brief (PDF, 2.5 MB) it filed in ASCAP's court battle with mobile phone giant AT&T."
The new threat of self-incrimination.
http://www.pogowasright.org/?p=553
Facebook ‘Fans’ Claim Hack Exposes Private Profile
FBHive, a new site covering news and opinions about Facebook started by ‘two twenty-something guys’ who are self-proclaimed ‘avid fans’ of the social networking service, is launching today with a bang. According to the website owners, a security loophole allows anyone to view private profile information even if that information has been shielded off by privacy settings.
Think FBHive is touting this hack simply to draw attention to the new site? Think again.
As a challenge, I asked them to tell me some things about me that they could only find on my Facebook account, which is protected from public viewing and should only be accessible to my networks and friends. Almost immediately, they replied with my birth date, the name of my hometown, the name of my fiancé and my political views. That’s scary (and more proof is available if you click the link below).
Read more on TechCrunch. FBHive updated their site to report:
Update: Facebook have now fixed this exploit, and have also ask we remove the pictures of proof below. We’re going to comply with their request, but expect a follow up story shortly on how we did it.
[From the article:
Update: statement from Facebook:
We have identified this bug and closed the loophole. We don’t have any evidence to suggest that it was ever exploited for malicious purposes. [Does that mean they couldn't even detect the 'proof of concept' hack documented above? Bob]
Where does liability lie if a non-profit fails to recognize a crime in progress? Looks like a lot of downside here.
http://www.pogowasright.org/?p=531
Lancaster, Pa., keeps a close eye on itself
Lancaster, Pennsylvania — the historic town where America’s founding fathers plotted during the Revolution and Milton Hershey later crafted his first chocolates, now boasts another distinction. It may become the nation’s most closely watched small city. The Los Angeles Times reports:
Some 165 closed-circuit TV cameras soon will provide live, round-the-clock scrutiny of nearly every street, park and other public space used by the 55,000 residents and the town’s many tourists. That’s more outdoor cameras than are used by many major cities, including San Francisco and Boston. [Hard to believe Bob]
[...]
Unlike anywhere else, cash-strapped Lancaster outsourced its surveillance to a private nonprofit group [Is there a business model here? Bob] that hires civilians to tilt, pan and zoom the cameras — and to call police if they spot suspicious activity. No government agency is directly involved.
Perhaps most surprising, the near-saturation surveillance of a community that saw four murders last year has sparked little public debate about whether the benefits for law enforcement outweigh the loss of privacy.
Commentary: This story is disheartening. I used to live in Lancaster and it was a great place to live where strangers helped each other and you could leave your car engine running and your car unlocked while you ran into a store for something — and still find it there when you came out. [“You can't go home again.” “You can't step in the same river twice.” Small towns are breeding grounds for clichés. Is this a cliché in the making? Bob]
Interesting capsule summaries of the players. More interesting, who they can't find pictures of...
http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/021646.html
June 22, 2009
National Journal Profiles Key Players in Obama Administration
Obama's Team: The Face Of Diversity, by James A. Barnes | "Excluding Bush holdovers, white men fill just under half of senior posts."
Tools & Techniques For those times when you absolutely positively want to be overwhelmed by search results. Might be a useful tool for my website students too.
http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/limmz-start-page-with-multiple-search-engines/
Limmz: Start Page With Multiple Search Engines
Limmz acts like a search engine start page that provides links to a huge list of search engines and websites. Enter your query in the search box and click on the desired search engine. [Click on the column headings and it opens all the search engines at once... Bob] It then opens in a new tab showing the results. The search engines are neatly categorized under web, image, video, news, music and more. Hence it lets you comprehensively search a term across different search engines from one page.
If only I had time to increase my productivity... Not the best guide but one my students might benefit from.
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/a-computer-geeks-productivity-guide-pdf/
A Computer Geek’s Smart Productivity Guide [PDF]
Jun. 22nd, 2009 By Simon Slangen
… MakeUseOf.com proudly presents A Computer Geek’s Productivity Guide, written by fervent MUO contributor, Stefan Neagu from tuxgeek.me.
In this free twenty-paged PDF, Stefan will show you the most common productivity mistakes, as well as a number of applications to improve your touch typing, your time organization, and your global workflow.
If you enjoyed this release, you should also check out other available MakeUseOf manuals.
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