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Wasted Youth

Submitted by bsfootprint on Fri, 02/03/2012 - 18:08
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First, a quick lunchtime survey:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=MHtDF-z77wk

Which leads us, naturally, to this insanity:

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=VxHfYNTrnic

Which leads me to this:


http://www.plognark.com/?q=node/1129

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Well, duh.

Submitted by bsfootprint on Wed, 02/01/2012 - 18:10
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First, we have The Onion Facebook-CIA faux-expose.

Now this:

In February 2011, the Department of Homeland Security announced that the agency planned to implement a program that would monitor media content, including social media data. The proposed initiatives would gather information from "online forums, blogs, public websites, and messages boards" and disseminate information to "federal, state, local, and foreign government and private sector partners." The program would be executed, in part, by individuals who established fictitious usernames and passwords to create covert social media profiles to spy on other users. The agency stated it would store personal information for up to five years.
[...]
The records reveal that the DHS is paying General Dynamics to monitor the news. The agency instructed the company to monitor for "[media] reports that reflect adversely on the U.S. Government, DHS, or prevent, protect, respond government activities."
[...]
The DHS instructed the company to "Monitor public social communications on the Internet." The records list the websites that will be monitored, including the comments sections of [The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, the Huffington Post, the Drudge Report, Wired, and ABC News.]"

Source: EPIC v. Department of Homeland Security: Media Monitoring via British Tourists Arrested in the U.S. for Tweeting (Bruce Schneier)

All I can say is... what did you expect?

Sources: 
EPIC v. Department of Homeland Security: Media Monitoring (epic.org)
British Tourists Arrested in the U.S. for Tweeting (www.schneier.com)
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Peak Sustainability

Submitted by bsfootprint on Sun, 01/29/2012 - 15:05
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Peak Sustainability - Google Nrams chart

Sustainable. Sustainability. Those words were rarely used before 1960. Then there was a rapid increase in the use of the word "sustainable".

According to Google Ngrams, we reached peak sustainability sometime around 2004.

It's all downhill from here.

Inspired by xkcd:


Source:xkcd
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Encryption won't save you

Submitted by bsfootprint on Sun, 01/29/2012 - 09:34
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Note to lawbreakers or anyone relying on encryption to protect them: Judge Orders Defendant to Decrypt Laptop.


Source: xkcd

A judge on Monday ordered a Colorado woman to decrypt her laptop computer so prosecutors can use the files against her in a criminal case.

The defendant, accused of bank fraud, had unsuccessfully argued that being forced to do so violates the Fifth Amendment’s protection against compelled self-incrimination.

...just another example why you shouldn't encrypt anything without compelling reasons: the mere presence of encrypted data puts you at risk. Legally and physically. Of course, it may be useful for preventing surreptitious disclosure, but it probably won't protect you from being compelled to cough up the goods. You'd best be prepared for some serious giblet-cracking.

More here and here.

Via: Bruce Schneier.

For more information, see: Self Incrimination and Cryptographic Keys by Greg S. Sergienko

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Facebook

Submitted by bsfootprint on Mon, 01/23/2012 - 09:12
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THIS. IS. FUNNY. (Or is it?)

View video

Via Bruce Schneier

Addendum

Privacy? What privacy?

View video

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