Good
leak, bad leak. I guess it depends on who you are.
Who
leaked the idea of ASD spying on Australians, and why?
"Secret
plan to spy on Aussies," The
Sunday Telegraph
headlined
the story. "Two powerful government agencies are discussing
radical new espionage powers that would see Australia's cyber spy
agency monitor Australian citizens for the first time."
It was a "power grab" detailed in "top
secret letters" proposing that the Australian Signals
Directorate (ASD) be able to use its cyber offensive capabilities
domestically.
"The Secretary of the Department of Home
Affairs Mike Pezzullo first wrote to the Defence Secretary Greg
Moriarty in February outlining the plan to potentially allow
government hackers to 'proactively disrupt and covertly remove'
onshore cyber threats by 'hacking into critical infrastructure',"
the newspaper wrote.
"Under the proposal, seen by The Sunday
Telegraph, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton and Defence
Minister Marise Payne would tick off on orders allowing cyber spooks
to target onshore threats without the country's top law officer [the
attorney-general] knowing."
… The Australian Security and Intelligence
Organisation (ASIO) and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) are the
agencies charged with tackling domestic threats. They already have
their own cyber capabilities, which can be deployed once a warrant
has been issued. They can also call upon the ASD for technical
assistance if they need it.
The reported proposal in Pezzullo's letter is
clearly intended to bypass the need for a warrant, and the need for
the attorney-general to even be informed. It reportedly also
includes coercive powers to force government agencies and private
businesses to "comply with security measures", and for the
ASD to have a "stronger role in support of the Home Affairs
portfolio".
… The Sunday Telegraph quoted an
anonymous government source as saying: "I am horrified. The
only reason it's not going ahead with ease is because there are good
people who didn't sign up to do this against Australian citizens."
On Monday, former secretary of the Department of
Defence Paul Barratt was somewhat more blunt.
"The leak of highly classified material on
the matter suggests to me that someone, somewhere in the system is
deeply concerned by the prospect of Dutton placing us all in the
Panopticon," Barratt
tweeted.
(Related)
Dilbert
summarizes what today’s world knows about you.
Would
there be value here if the data was 100% accurate? How about 90%
accurate? How inaccurate is acceptable?
Annie
Sweeney reports:
It has grown steadily over many decades with little public attention. Through countless arrests and street stops, Chicago police officers have compiled a database of street gang members that now totals a staggering 128,000 names — and that doesn’t even include juveniles.
But now critics in Chicago are joining a nationwide chorus questioning the value and fairness of these massive lists of gang members, saying they are often inaccurate, outdated and racially skewed.
Advocates complain there’s no way to know if you are in the database or how to get off the list, yet your alleged gang membership is shared with other law enforcement agencies and can hurt you if you pick up a charge — with potentially heftier bail amounts or sentences.
Read more on Chicago
Tribune.
Some
not-so-light summer reading?
‘Army
Of None’: A Clear-Eyed Look At The Rise Of Autonomous Weapons
Part
historical survey, part ethics discussion, part science fiction, Paul
Scharre’s Army
of None
delivers a comprehensive look at autonomous weapons. Paul brings his
years of experience as a policy expert on military technology ethics
and practical experience from serving in the United States Army to
deliver an easy-to-read book on autonomous weapon systems without
heavy jargon.
Legal
stuff.
Library
of Congress Posts U.S. Supreme Court Cases collection
LC
Collection – more than 225 years of decisions –
“United
States Reports is a series of bound case reporters that are the
official reports of decisions for the United States Supreme Court. A
citation to a United States Supreme Court decisions includes three
elements that are needed to retrieve a case. For example, Chevron
U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., 467 U.S. 837
(1984). 467 indicates the volume in which the case is reported, U.S.
indicates the abbreviation for U.S. Reports, 837 indicates the
initial page number of the case, and 1984 indicates the year the case
was decided. Early reports of U.S. Supreme Court decisions were named
for the clerk who compiled them. U.S. Reports includes the content
from these nominative reporters. You can translate a citation from a
nominative reporter to a volume of the U.S. Reports by using this
chart:
http://www.mass.gov/courts/case-legal-res/law-lib/laws-by-source/cases/earlyus.html“
Even more significant, is the change in their
international strategy.
Walmart
Just Took a Big Step Away from the Grocery Business
Walmart
has agreed to sell its U.K. grocery chain, Asda, to local competitor
Sainsbury’s, signaling a shift in the company’s international
strategy.
… The shift comes three months after Walmart
appointed Judith McKenna as the new head of its international
business and seems to be an attempt to revamp the under-performing
unit. Although more than
half of the company’s stores are outside the U.S., the
international business brings in only
about a third of revenue. In the U.K. and Brazil, where
it is downsizing to the tune of hundreds of locations, the company
has struggled for years. Meanwhile, the potential deal with Flipkart
would give Walmart the foothold in India it has been seeking.
Just an interesting resource.
Currency
and cryptocurrencies converter
CurrencyConvertOnline:
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