Monthly Archives: May 2013

Reuters: U.S. cyberwar strategy stokes fear of blowback

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“Even as the U.S. government confronts rival powers over widespread Internet espionage, it has become the biggest buyer in a burgeoning gray market where hackers and security firms sell tools for breaking into computers. The strategy is spurring concern in the technology industry and intelligence community that Washington is in effect encouraging hacking and failing to disclose to software companies and customers the vulnerabilities exploited by the purchased hacks. That’s because U.S. intelligence and military agencies are using the tools to infiltrate computer networks overseas, leaving behind spy programs and cyber-weapons.”

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/05/10/us-usa-cyberweapons-specialreport-idUSBRE9490EL20130510

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U.S. Blames China’s Military Directly for Cyberattacks

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“The Obama administration on Monday explicitly accused China’s military of mounting attacks on American government computer systems and defense contractors, saying one motive could be to map ‘military capabilities that could be exploited during a crisis.’  The accusations relayed in the Pentagon’s annual report to Congress on Chinese military capabilities were remarkable in their directness.  Missing from the Pentagon report was any acknowledgment of the similar abilities being developed in the United States, where billions of dollars are spent each year on cyberdefense and constructing increasingly sophisticated cyberweapons.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/07/world/asia/us-accuses-chinas-military-in-cyberattacks.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20130507&_r=3&pagewanted=all&

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How the Iraq War Became a War on Christians

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“The U.S. fails to recognize that the Islamist-Wahabbist commitment to eradicating Christian minorities today will result in the extinction of diverse modes of Islam tomorrow, a fact that is not lost on moderate Muslims. The objective of the Iraq War—to democratize the Middle East—may yet be realized. But democracy in the Middle East is proving less tolerant than the regimes it has succeeded. These democracies will not march ineluctably toward liberty and pluralism, as some naïve optimists continue to forecast despite the evidence, but will end in the ordered barbarism of Saudi Arabia, where punishments include beheading and crucifixion, according to Amnesty International.”

http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/how-the-iraq-war-became-a-war-on-christians/

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Sudan government shuts down local TEDx conference

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“Sudan’s security service on Saturday ordered the closure of a community forum, one of the independently run TEDx events held around the world, even though it was non-political, the organiser said.  ‘They unplugged the electricity,’ Anwar Dafa-Alla, who founded Sudan’s version of TEDx two years ago, told AFP. He said almost 1,000 people were attending the event at a luxury Khartoum hotel when officials stopped it before it was even half finished.  The state minister of information and culture, Mustafa Tirab, said that the government ‘will do our level best to provide freedom of expression and freedom of speech for all those who are inside Sudan’.”

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/05/11/sudan-shuts-down-local-tedx-conference/

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Bloomberg News Used Its Private Data to Spy on Geithner and Bernanke

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“CNBC has learned from a former Bloomberg employee that he accessed usage information of the company’s data terminals of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and former U.S. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner.   The information appeared to concern general functions used by the officials and the frequency with which those functions — such as looking at a bond, equity markets or news — were accessed. The source said all Bloomberg journalists who knew of this capability of the terminal would have had access to the usage information of the officials.”

http://www.economicpolicyjournal.com/2013/05/breaking-bloomberg-news-used-its.html

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IRS Scandal: What Does the US Congress Expect?

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“Obama himself is evidently thin-skinned and his administration, like others before it, obviously sees its mandate not only as implementing chosen policies but battling those in the general populace who would oppose those policies via extra-political means. Within this context, employing the IRS as a weapon against perceived enemies seems eminently logical. After all, the Obama administration would not be the first to use the awesome power to tax as a strategic advantage.  Nonetheless, the fallout has been intense.”

http://www.thedailybell.com/29088/Anthony-Wile-IRS-Scandal-What-Does-the-US-Congress-Expect

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Indian government now snooping on SMSs, online chats

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“The government last month quietly began rolling out a project that gives it access to everything that happens over India’s telecommunications network—online activities, phone calls, text messages and even social media conversations. Called the Central Monitoring System, it will be the single window from where government arms such as the National Investigation Agency or the tax authorities will be able to monitor every byte of communication.  But privacy and internet freedom advocates are worried that in the name of security, the government could end up snooping on people, possibly abusing a system that does not have enough safeguards to protect ordinary citizens.”

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/internet/Government-can-now-snoop-on-your-SMSs-online-chats/articleshow/19932484.cms

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Use of secretive ‘Stingray’ FBI cell phone tracking tool ruled lawful by judge

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“Despite the fact that the FBI was accused of hiding information from judges when obtaining authorization for use of the secretive ‘Stingray’ cell phone tracking device, a judge has ruled that the use of the device by federal agents was lawful. On Wednesday, Judge David Campbell dismissed the motion to suppress the information gathered through the Stingray device in the case of Daniel Rigmaiden. Campbell ruled that the use of the Stingray did not in fact constitute a ‘severe intrusion’ and ruled that ‘no Fourth Amendment violation occurred.'”

http://endthelie.com/2013/05/10/use-of-secretive-stingray-fbi-cell-phone-tracking-tool-ruled-lawful-by-judge/

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Biometric Database of All Adult Americans Hidden in Immigration Reform

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“The immigration reform measure the Senate began debating yesterday would create a national biometric database of virtually every adult in the U.S., in what privacy groups fear could be the first step to a ubiquitous national identification system. Buried in the more than 800 pages of the bipartisan legislation is language mandating the creation of the innocuously-named ‘photo tool,’ a massive federal database administered by Homeland Security and containing names, ages, Social Security numbers and photographs of everyone in the country with a driver’s license or other state-issued photo ID.”

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/05/immigration-reform-dossiers/

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Mexico Bill Loosens Restrictions On Foreigners Buying Residential Property

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“The longstanding restrictions on foreigners buying property along Mexico’s coast and borders were loosened on Tuesday after Congress’ lower house voted on a proposal that drew stiff criticism from some quarters.  For decades, foreigners have had to use real-estate trusts or Mexican front companies to buy beachfront properties, because Article 27 of the constitution prohibits non-Mexicans from directly owning land within 31 miles (50 kilometers) of the coast and 62 miles (100 kilometers) of the nation’s borders. The trusts and front companies have provided a lucrative income for banks, lawyers and notaries who are required to operate them.”

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/money/2013/04/24/mexico-loosens-restrictions-on-foreigners-buying-property/

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