Saturday, February 21, 2009

police state int'l: skype, shop, cyber katrina & operation arcadia

eu agency supports wiretapping skype conversations
eu agency supports wiretapping skype conversationsfrom eu observer: EU's judicial cooperation agency Eurojust will take the lead in finding ways to help police and prosecutors across Europe to wiretap computer-to-computer phone conversations enabled by programs such as Skype. "We will sit together with all member states to see how this can be done technically and legally," Joannes Thuy, Eurojust spokesman told this website. Mr Thuy stressed that the wiretapping would not affect "normal users", but would have to be carried out only as part of a criminal investigation.

big brother likes to watch you shop
from ahmenra2012: Mall ads watch shoppers... Cameras inside ad displays gather advertising data about shoppers. KSDK’s Kasey Joyce reports. More blatant invasions of privacy!

chicago mayor vows surveillance cameras on every street corner
from chicago sun-times: Mayor Daley has argued that security and terrorism won’t be an issue if his Olympic dreams come true because, by 2016, there will be a surveillance camera on every street corner in Chicago. But even before that blanket coverage begins, the "Big Brother" network is being put to better use... In 2004, City Hall used a $5.1 million federal homeland security grant to install 250 cameras at locations thought to be at high risk of a terrorist attack and link them and 2,000 existing city cameras to the 911 center. Chicago then launched "Operation Virtual Shield," by linking 1,000 miles of fiber cable to a unified "homeland security grid" — complete with hundreds of additional cameras and sensors to monitor the city’s water supply and detect chemical and biological weapons. On Thursday, Orozco refused to say how many cameras are currently linked to the 911 center. But, he reiterated Daley’s earlier promise. “We’re going to grow the system until we eventually cover one end of the city to the other,” he said.

vampire cops to draw blood at dui checkpoints in florida
from wpbf: Drunken drivers beware: If you drink and drive, especially during the last weekend of February, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office and other area law enforcement will be out for blood. PBSO deputies plan to set up driving under the influence checkpoints. If they suspect a driver is under the influence, they'll offer an on-the-spot Breathalyzer. If drivers refuse, deputies will ask to draw blood from their arms. "I think that's really personal and I think that if you deny a Breathalyzer and you say that you don't want that, I think that's outrageous if they take blood without your consent," driver Courtney Liddle said. Attorney David Olson said that "would only be lawful if a warrant is issued by a judge." That's just what deputies plan to do. They'll actually drive to a judge's home for a signature and return to the checkpoint. Olson said drawing blood from drivers is usually done in extreme cases like homicides and fatal collisions. Olson said he's not sure a judge would actually sign a warrant.

flashback: forced dwi blood samples challenged in texas

fearing 'cyber katrina,' obama candidate for cyber czar urges a 'fema for the internet'
fearing 'cyber katrina,' obama candidate for cyber czar urges a 'fema for the internet'from businessweek: For all the fears of sophisticated digital intrusions preoccupying many computer security professionals, President Obama’s leading candidates for “cyber czar” also are focusing on an all-too-human vulnerability: The nation’s inability to respond to a full-fledged Internet-borne crisis for lack of a central cyber commander. Former White House cybersecurity official Paul B. Kurtz, in his first public remarks since becoming an advisor to President Obama’s transition team following the election, describes his biggest worry: A “cyber Katrina” in which fragmented bureaucracies and companies fail to share critical information and coordinate responses to cyber intruders attempting to disrupt power grids, financial markets, or any number of now-plausible scenarios involving a Web shutdown. One recent fear is the cascading effects of even a partial Internet blackout that could add to economic anxieties. There’s such electronic insecurity afoot, some are even beginning to suggest building an entirely new global computer infrastructure. “The bottom line is, is there a FEMA for the Internet? I don’t think there is,” Kurtz told an audience of security professionals at a Feb. 18 Black Hat security conference in Virginia. Kurtz’ solution: A trio of key agencies - the Defense Department, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Federal Communications Commission - but overseen by a new national cybersecurity center.

faa breach heightens cybersecurity concerns
from fcw: The Federal Aviation Administration was doing such a good job at protecting data in its computer systems that the Office of Management and Budget chose it in January to be one of four agencies to guide other federal agencies in their cybersecurity efforts. Just a month later, FAA officials had to admit that hackers breached one of the agency’s servers, stealing 48 files. Two of the files contained information on 45,000 current and former FAA employees, including sensitive information that could potentially make them vulnerable to identity theft. The security breach, although significant and potentially far reaching, is not necessarily a reflection on FAA’s security measures. Rather, it demonstrates the problems of securing federal computer systems and difficulty in evading every potential attack.

iowa national guard rolls back arcadia invasion
from kurt nimmo: According to Drew Zahn, writing for WorldNetDaily, the Iowa National Guard has “scaled back” its “training exercise” planned for April in Arcadia, Iowa, population 443. Military spokesman Lt. Col. Greg Hapgood, told Zahn and WND that the operation has now been “scaled back” and no longer involves an “invasion” of Arcadia. “And while Hapgood confirmed the Guard had been inundated with objections from citizens concerned about soldiers patrolling the streets of an American town, he said most came from people out of state and unfamiliar with the operation. Iowans, he explained, typically cooperate with the Guard. The change in plans was based on troop evaluation, he said, not public outcry.”

states rediscover 10th amendment to combat stimulus strings
from washington times: Worried the federal government is increasing its dominance over their affairs, several states are pursuing legislative action to assert their sovereignty under the 10th Amendment of the Constitution in hopes of warding off demands from Washington on how to spend money or enact policy. The growing concerns even have a handful of governors questioning whether to accept federal stimulus money that comes with strings attached. The sentiments to declare themselves legally independent from Washington have swept across as many as a dozen states, renewing a debate over so-called unfunded mandates that last raged in the 1990s. The states question whether the U.S. government can force states to take actions without paying for them or impose conditions on states if they accept certain federal funding.

firestorm brewing between the states & the feds

video: glenn beck again predicting doomsday & revolution
from raw replay: President Obama has been criticized for warning of economic “catastrophe” but Glenn Beck’s prediction is far more dire. Beck says the military is preparing for a revolution. This video is from Fox’s Fox & Friends, broadcast Feb. 20, 2009.

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