As virtually everyone is aware, the Internet has changed the way people do business and how they live their lives. It has also changed the way people do activism.
Internet
Gary Franchi: Activism, Networking and Media in the Digital Age
Posted: March 18, 2009 1:23 pm
Updated: April 5, 2009 2:26 pm
Surveillance Self-Defense
Posted: March 8, 2009 8:46 pm
You haven’t done anything wrong, so why should you worry about surveillance? It was Cardinal Richelieu who said, “If you give me six lines written by the most honest man, I will find something in them to hang him.” The United States doesn’t hang innocent people any more, but it certainly does imprison them by the millions, and occasionally does kill them.
Spammer in the federal government?
Posted: September 23, 2008 9:25 am
I get more spam than most, and I just hit the Junk button for most of it. But when spam comes in with my real name attached, then I give the spammer a few minutes of extra attention. Usually this results in their web hosting and advertising accounts being canceled.
DHS official gets death threats over shock bracelet letter
Posted: August 8, 2008 9:01 pm
Perhaps the webmaster at Lamperd Less Lethal needs an electric shock.
TSA rules led to pilot’s gun firing in flight
Posted: April 12, 2008 7:41 am
Transportation Security Administration rules are to blame for the conditions leading up to an accidental discharge of a U.S. Airways pilot’s pistol during landing, say airline pilots familiar with the program.
New Hampshire Liberty Forum wrap-up
Posted: January 8, 2008 6:58 pm
The 2008 New Hampshire Liberty Forum, for me, was three action-packed, fun-filled days of meeting great people, hearing some of the best speakers anywhere, and partying hard late into the nights.
New Hampshire Liberty Forum, Thursday
Posted: January 5, 2008 11:44 am
Updated: January 5, 2008 7:37 pm
Thursday afternoon I arrived at the Crowne Plaza Hotel here in Nashua, N.H., to attend this year’s New Hampshire Liberty Forum. And I would have posted this yesterday morning, if it weren’t for Comcast.
Chinese hackers crack Homeland Security computers
Posted: October 1, 2007 1:54 am
Chinese hackers broke into Department of Homeland Security computers and made off with “many megabytes” of data, and the contractor charged with securing the department’s networks attempted to cover up the breaches, according to Congressional investigators who have asked the department’s inspector general to investigate the computer security breaches.
Bush gets surveillance “blank check”
Posted: August 11, 2007 12:17 am
Last weekend the Bush administration pushed through Congress a law to bolster the government’s ability to intercept the electronic communications of foreigners and other “persons reasonably believed to be outside the U.S.” without a court order.
NSA asks hackers for security help
Posted: August 2, 2007 1:17 am
Updated: August 2, 2007 2:15 am
This makes yet another year I didn’t make it to DEFCON, the longest-running hacker conference now in its 15th year. Which is unfortunate, because I really would have loved to have been at the opening speech at the Black Hat Briefings, held just prior to the main event this weekend, and at which the National Security Agency got up and asked the hacker community for help.
To harass and annoy
Posted: July 19, 2007 4:27 am
Updated: July 19, 2007 4:55 am
On June 18, I visited the Plainfield, N.H., home of Ed and Elaine Brown, to attend a press conference. Since then, the U.S. Department of Justice has decided they should keep an eye on me.
But one or two people have decided that they should harass and annoy me as well.
The news just keeps breaking
Posted: July 10, 2007 4:24 pm
Updates to stories previously covered at Homeland Stupidity include spying, spying and more spying.
DHS computer security still sucks
Posted: June 28, 2007 5:06 pm
Government auditors told a Congressional committee last week that computer security at the Department of Homeland Security still needs improvement, even after years of work to remedy the problems.
Supporting the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Posted: June 11, 2007 2:43 pm
When it comes to freedom on the Internet, the Electronic Frontier Foundation is at the forefront of the battle. Whether it’s the national ID card, digital rights management, online privacy or domestic spying, EFF is doing the hard work of defending against those who would abuse the power of government against the people.
That’s why I give them money.
Internet sales tax proposed again
Posted: May 29, 2007 2:02 am
The Internet sales tax is back.
Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) has introduced a bill to require Internet-based businesses to charge state sales taxes on out-of-state purchases.
Audit: FBI critical network still vulnerable
Posted: May 25, 2007 8:21 am
A critical Federal Bureau of Investigation network for sharing law enforcement and investigative information is at risk of being misused or having its services interrupted, according to an audit released this week.
Exceptions to the First Amendment
Posted: May 24, 2007 6:45 am
“Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press . . .”
Unless, of course, it wants to.
Mobile devices to change people’s interactions with government
Posted: May 22, 2007 3:20 am
Technology is changing how people interact with government forever, says a prominent homeland security consultant.
Defense Department blocks YouTube, Myspace, MTV.com
Posted: May 15, 2007 12:26 am
Citing operational security and bandwidth usage concerns, the Department of Defense said Monday that access to 13 popular file and video sharing and social networking Web sites would be blocked from all DoD computers worldwide.
You are the homegrown terrorist threat
Posted: May 13, 2007 11:26 pm
If you’re an American reading this, then under expansive definitions being used by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and several states in their counterterrorism training, you just might be a domestic terrorist.
Army tries to suppress new OPSEC regulation
Posted: May 8, 2007 2:11 am
An officious bureaucrat with the U.S. Army has tried to intimidate the Federation of American Scientists into removing from its Web site a copy of the Army’s recently updated regulation on operational security. And FAS government secrecy project director Steven Aftergood told the bureaucrat in no uncertain terms to get lost.
Astroglide tries to plug 260,000 customer data leak
Posted: April 23, 2007 8:13 pm
Astroglide, which was notified last week of a data breach compromising more than 260,000 records of people who ordered free samples of its products, has taken down its page for ordering the free samples and removed the last of the records from its Web site.
Astroglide data breach exposes customer information
Posted: April 21, 2007 9:41 am
If you’ve ever tried Astroglide, you know it’s some of the slipperiest stuff ever made. I could tell you stories, but that sort of story isn’t appropriate on a site where children might be reading. Instead, I’ll tell you another story, a story about people who use Astroglide.
Astroglide suffered a data breach this week. People who ordered free samples of the company’s products from their Web site from 2003 to the present may have had their names and email and shipping addresses published on the Internet.
If spyware is outlawed, only outlaws will have spyware
Posted: April 19, 2007 8:36 pm
A bill to outlaw certain forms of spyware is making its way through the House of Representatives. But if you think it will actually prevent spyware from getting on your computer, you have a lot to learn about government.
When government has your identity, you aren’t safe
Posted: April 19, 2007 10:49 am
Trust the government with your identity and you just might lose it. Even if the identity thief is already in prison.
Why I won’t buy an iPod
Posted: April 15, 2007 8:12 am
I’m in the market for a new portable media player, since my current one is getting rather old, not to mention full. Naturally, I looked at the current crop of iPods. They’re excellent hardware and work well. But I won’t buy one, not because of the iPod itself, but because of Apple’s no-privacy policy.
Homeland Stupidity Forum
Posted: April 6, 2007 9:22 am
There being some actual demand from regular readers of this site for a forum on the topics covered here, I’ve started one.
Government creatively losing your personal information
Posted: March 28, 2007 12:19 pm
Governments can’t always find new and creative ways to lose your personal information, try as they might. So when they can’t, they resort to the tried and true. Here are three incidents where government displayed at least some creativity while putting you at risk.
Hacker of Indiana state web site targeted other states
Posted: March 24, 2007 8:58 pm
A hacker who broke into an Indiana government web site and compromised the identities of 71,000 health care workers and 5,600 people who purchased government services online has also targeted other state government web sites.
Because, of course, that’s where the money is.
This data breach brought to you by the government
Posted: March 11, 2007 6:01 pm
Why is it that we keep giving information to government agencies, when we know that nothing good can come of it? Several examples from the last week show just how good government is at protecting personal information you provided to them.
Daylight Saving Time begins this weekend
Posted: March 8, 2007 5:32 pm
This year, Daylight Saving Time begins in the United States this weekend. You’re probably ready, now that you know about it, but your computer probably isn’t.
How not to secure your hard drive
Posted: March 2, 2007 5:35 pm
The government can access hard drives which are supposedly protected with common drive locking features offered by many major computer manufacturers. This is not news to many of my readers, but it certainly was news to Michael Alan Crooker.
The government employee identity threat
Posted: February 26, 2007 7:49 pm
When it comes to your personal information, threats are everywhere. But the biggest threat to your personal information might just be from your local government employees.
DHS isn’t protecting your personal information
Posted: February 22, 2007 1:47 pm
The Department of Homeland Security isn’t sufficiently protecting personally identifiable information on its computer systems, though it is making progress, according to an inspector general’s report.
Don’t give the government your identity
Posted: February 17, 2007 10:15 pm
Your most private personal information is not truly safe anywhere except in your own head. Several examples this week show that it’s certainly not safe with the government.
The TSA loves you
Posted: February 14, 2007 2:40 pm
Updated: February 14, 2007 10:00 pm
(Update 2: TSA’s web site was not hacked after all. See below.)
Don’t you just love the men and women at the Transportation Security Administration?
Thieves target government records for identity theft
Posted: February 7, 2007 8:26 am
We learned over the last week that hackers and thieves have made off with thousands of individuals’ most sensitive personal information from government and government-related sources.
Say goodbye to your identity
Posted: January 31, 2007 9:02 am
You still think your personal information is safe in the hands of the government? Think again. Every time they come up with a way to keep your information secure, they also come up with a more creative — or more stupid — way to lose it. And now, the government can lose your personal information even if you never gave it to them.
China to “purify” Internet
Posted: January 26, 2007 4:07 am
In yet another blow to the Chinese people’s online liberty, the PRC’s Paramount Leader Hu Jintao has vowed to “purify” the Internet.
Homeschool For The Holidays
Posted: December 31, 2006 9:40 pm
Yes Virginia, many people do socially beneficial things without taxpayer support! Take homeschoolers. “Please” say those who think homeschools turn children into illiterate religious nuts. As opposed to illiterate godless nuts. No such thing as a godless nut? Think again.
Two years of Homeland Stupidity
Posted: December 21, 2006 3:29 pm
Updated: December 21, 2006 3:54 pm
Homeland Stupidity is a bit over two years old, so as 2006 draws to a close it’s time again to look back at what has passed, and to look forward at what may come.
Some other site I read is doing a “Top 20 posts of 2006″ as a year-end review. But I’ve always been about bringing attention to important things which might otherwise pass unnoticed, so I’m going to do something different: The top stories you probably missed.
Denial of service
Posted: December 16, 2006 7:32 am
Updated: December 18, 2006 2:04 am
Homeland Stupidity was unavailable for six hours Friday night due to a distributed denial of service attack. Steps are being taken to mitigate the effects of future denial of service attacks. All services have been restored as of early Saturday morning.
Mail call
Posted: December 15, 2006 8:44 am
Running a Web site like this, I get a lot of strange e-mail. And I don’t mean the spam, though some of that is pretty strange. I also get a wide assortment of hate mail, though less of it than I’d expect. A couple of things that came in lately, though …
Strike the root of evil
Posted: December 13, 2006 7:09 am
Henry David Thoreau once said something like: “There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root.”
And that’s what we defenders of liberty must begin doing more of: striking at the root of evil.
Is liberty centrist?
Posted: December 9, 2006 1:51 am
As you probably know Homeland Stupidity has been selected as a finalist in the Best Centrist Blog category of the 2006 Weblog Awards, and we need your vote every day from now until voting closes on December 15. I’ve been checking out the competition, and it’s quite stiff.
Homeland Stupidity nominated for Weblog Award
Posted: December 8, 2006 1:49 am
Updated: December 8, 2006 2:11 am
Homeland Stupidity has been nominated for an award in the 2006 Weblog Awards. Vote for Homeland Stupidity today!
Bits of homeland stupidity
Posted: December 4, 2006 1:27 am
Updated: December 4, 2006 2:22 am
Some of the news headlines you might have missed over the last week range from the simply inane to the truly frightening.
Boarding pass creator: Out of frying pan, into fire?
Posted: December 1, 2006 5:25 am
Security researcher Christopher Soghoian, who was raided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation last October after he created a fake boarding pass generator, has gotten his computer equipment back, but remains under investigation by the Transportation Security Administration, which had ordered his Web site shut down.
The order, delivered to Web hosting provider DreamHost, raises questions on whether the government can order a Web site taken offline without a court order.
UK bloggers should be regulated, commission claims
Posted: December 1, 2006 1:04 am
The UK Press Complaints Commission, a regulatory body for the newspaper and magazine industry, has called for a “voluntary code of conduct” for blogs similar to the one adhered to by the mainstream press.
Privacy Is Dead: Get Over It
Posted: November 27, 2006 12:08 am
Federal agents arrested private investigator Steven Rambam on July 22 on trumped-up charges, just before he was scheduled to give a talk on privacy at the HOPE Number Six conference in New York City, and attendees who had hoped to hear him speak about the intersection of commercial and government databases and the resulting loss of privacy left disappointed, confused and more than a bit fearful.
But on November 16, he returned and gave a three-hour presentation to a standing room only audience at the Stevens Institute in Hoboken, N.J.
Homeland Security introduces RSS feeds
Posted: November 18, 2006 9:13 pm
A month ago I leveled a scathing critique of the Department of Homeland Security’s new Web site, citing among other things the lack of redirected URLs resulting in 404 errors and the lack of RSS feeds. DHS almost immediately reacted to the former and put up redirects for the most frequently used areas of the site. And at some point they also very quietly rolled out some RSS feeds.
Big Brother, Big Business
Posted: November 12, 2006 1:12 pm
The Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, places a few restrictions on how the federal government can compile dossiers on Americans. It was passed in response to multiple scandals in which, for instance, former Federal Bureau of Investigation director J. Edgar Hoover would spy on Americans for his own purposes.
But does it go far enough? When the government can’t get the information on you that it wants because of the Privacy Act, it can always turn to a commercial data broker. And they know more about virtually everyone than anyone else, including the government itself.
The cover-up of Homeland Security’s virus infection
Posted: November 7, 2006 4:24 pm
Last August a Windows virus infected over 1,300 computers which Customs and Border Protection uses to screen foreign travelers visiting the U.S. The bureau almost immediately tried to cover up the incident.
In “The Virus That Ate DHS,” Wired reporter and former hacker Kevin Poulsen illustrates that the Department of Homeland Security’s grasp on computer security is tenuous at best.
New immigration Web site sucks
Posted: November 3, 2006 8:17 am
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, that part of the government responsible for preventing people from immigrating to the U.S., rolled out a redesigned Web site Wednesday. And the new site sucks.
Interior Department blocks access to blogs
Posted: October 23, 2006 3:59 am
Updated: October 23, 2006 5:24 am
After an inspector general’s report earlier this month revealed Interior Department employees were wasting time at work on auction, gaming, pornography and online gambling sites, the department hastily implemented blocking — of blogs.
Homeland Security’s new web site sucks
Posted: October 18, 2006 8:18 pm
On Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security rolled out an apparently redesigned Web site, after spending “more than a year of research and planning” and God knows how much money on the department’s incompetent webmaster. Going beneath the surface, it seems little has actually changed. And the new site has already caused significant problems for people trying to find information.
DHS computer security management still needs work
Posted: October 17, 2006 6:16 pm
Despite significant progress made in the last year, the Department of Homeland Security’s information security processes still have not been able to assure the security of the department’s systems, an Inspector General’s report said.
Chinese hackers target Commerce networks
Posted: October 10, 2006 8:10 pm
Chinese hackers have targeted computers at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security, prompting an almost unprecedented move to restrict Internet access across the bureau, officials said.
Government employees gamble, view porn online at work
Posted: October 9, 2006 6:38 pm
Computer users at the U.S. Department of the Interior rack up an estimated 104,221 hours of lost productivity in a year surfing online auction and gaming sites, and even more time spent on gambling and pornography web sites, according to an inspector general’s audit released last week.
NSA surveillance OK pending court appeal
Posted: October 4, 2006 9:52 pm
The U.S. Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday that the National Security Agency can continue eavesdropping on Americans’ overseas telephone calls and e-mail messages pending the outcome of the government’s appeal of a district court decision which had ruled the program illegal.
Investigation of ADVISE data mining program ordered
Posted: October 3, 2006 10:48 pm
A Homeland Security data-mining program which will crawl the Internet looking for potential threats to the country has come under Congressional scrutiny for a lack of privacy protection, cost controls and program guidelines.
Homeland Security not ready for Cyber Storm
Posted: September 18, 2006 6:48 am
A well coordinated attack against multiple critical infrastructure points launched via the Internet could overwhelm the federal government’s ability to respond, according to a report released by the Department of Homeland Security last week on the Cyber Storm exercise conducted in February.
Circumventor: Getting paid to fight censorship
Posted: September 6, 2006 1:57 am
We all know that countries like China, Singapore, North Korea, as well as organizations such as the U.S. military, the State of Kentucky, and various corporations, local school districts and public libraries censor their Internet users’ web surfing. Bennett Haselton of Peacefire has a solution he calls the Circumventor.
And to bring in more Circumventor users, Peacefire is paying $10 per IP address to anyone who installs the anti-censorship software and leaves it running for at least a week.
Up to 21,000 college students’ financial data seen by others
Posted: August 25, 2006 2:09 am
As many as 21,000 students who applied for federal student financial aid may have had their personal data compromised after an error with the U.S. Department of Education’s Financial Student Aid web site showed other users’ personal data to logged in users, the department said.
Bits of homeland stupidity
Posted: August 23, 2006 4:05 am
This short collection of news headlines from the past week bring together some of the dumb things I’ve seen and didn’t have time to explore more fully.
A few are updates to stories previously covered here.
Enjoy the stupidity, and remember, this post is for unofficial use only.
IRS computer security really sucks
Posted: August 11, 2006 5:50 pm
Computer security at the Internal Revenue Service might be most appropriately described as Swiss cheese, according to a Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration report.
The report found that most IRS employees used e-mail inappropriately, putting the organization at risk of computer viruses and other malware, that out of 228 authorized e-mail servers, all that were examined contained security vulnerabilities, and that 4,913 additional unauthorized e-mail servers were found on the IRS internal networks.
Phone numbers stations mystery revealed at DEFCON
Posted: August 5, 2006 2:57 pm
Updated: November 24, 2006 3:15 pm
For three months, mysterious telephone numbers have been appearing on the Craigslist classified ad site which, when called, play recordings which sound much like shortwave numbers stations used by certain governments to communicate with intelligence agents in the field who are unreachable by other means. Now the secret behind these phone numbers stations has been revealed.
Senate ratifies Europe cybercrime convention
Posted: August 4, 2006 3:07 pm
Thanks to a late-night vote in the Senate Thursday night, the U.S. can now spy on your Internet activity at the request of a foreign government — even if you are only doing things completely legal.
Phone numbers station: 806-224-0272
Posted: August 1, 2006 2:57 pm
Updated: August 1, 2006 3:20 pm
Now even I’m thinking this is some sort of game, or challenge, or even an elaborate prank. But I said I would continue following these numbers stations until someone figured them out.
Last Tuesday, a message appeared on Lubbock Craigslist asking “For Mein Fraulein” to “Call me.” You probably know where this is leading by now.
Carnival of Liberty LVI
Posted: August 1, 2006 10:20 am
Welcome to the 56th Carnival of Liberty, celebrating the principles of Life, Liberty and Property, a weekly whirlwind tour of the blogosphere’s best writings on these principles.
Seventh phone numbers station: 414-386-1377
Posted: July 28, 2006 1:51 am
On Thursday at 1:34 p.m., a message appeared on Milwaukee Craigslist asking “For Mein Fraulein” to “Call me.” It is at least the seventh of a long line of such messages, each of which appear in a different city, over the last three months. Only in the last week, the pace has picked up considerably, with the last three messages appearing in the last eight days.
However, one source says that there may be nothing to see here after all.
Pentagon sells excess military gear to anybody
Posted: July 26, 2006 6:58 pm
Would you like to start your own army, or perhaps terrorist organization, but can’t quite get hold of all the materials you need? Looking to build weapons of mass destruction but the parts for your chemical factory are too hard to find? Not to worry, for now you can buy just about everything you need.
From the U.S. Department of Defense.
At pennies on the dollar.
Sixth phone numbers station: 407-956-4114
Posted: July 26, 2006 5:14 pm
On Wednesday, a person unknown posted a mysterious message “For Mein Fraulein” on the popular Craigslist web site, asking “her” to call, and including a telephone number. This message follows five other such messages that, when the telephone number is called, play back a recording of music, followed by groups of numbers, reminiscent of shortwave numbers stations used during the Cold War and even today by governments to communicate with intelligence agents in the field.
Keep HOPE alive
Posted: July 24, 2006 7:29 pm
Hacking is the process of discovery. It’s unrestrained curiosity channeled to self-directed learning. As I prepare to leave New York City after attending my first hacker conference, the thing foremost on my mind is this: Why do so many people consider learning a bad thing?
Free software, the hacker community, and libertarianism?
Posted: July 21, 2006 5:53 pm
Updated: July 30, 2006 6:05 pm
Richard Stallman launched the GNU Project in 1984 to create an operating system and utilities and make it possible for people to use computers in freedom, that is, free from the power and control proprietary software vendors exert over their users.
Stallman spoke Friday at the Hackers On Planet Earth conference in New York City on free software and the hacker community, explaining how free software arose from hacking and how computer users benefit from hackers hacking free software. He also surprised many in the audience with a number of distinctly libertarian statements.
Fifth phone numbers station: 613-686-3106
Posted: July 21, 2006 12:15 pm
The Craigslist spy has struck again.
On Wednesday night, a message appeared on Ottawa Craigslist Missed Connections “For Mein Fraulein,” asking her to call. When one calls the number, a recording plays which is reminiscent of Cold War-era shortwave numbers stations. Only these stations are set up on Voice over Internet Protocol telephone numbers.
The news just keeps breaking
Posted: July 18, 2006 6:14 am
Since I haven’t done this in a while, and a few things are piling up, here are some updates to stories previously covered at Homeland Stupidity.
And what better to start with than Boston’s biggest boondoggle, the Big Dig.
Homeland Security emergency alerts for cell phones — but not yours
Posted: July 12, 2006 6:49 pm
The Department of Homeland Security is revamping a little-used, decades-old system for alerting the public to emergencies so that it can push alerts to Web sites, e-mail boxes and wireless phones, and customize alerts based on location, assuming anything other than “This is a test” gets sent at all.
Chinese hackers hit State Department
Posted: July 12, 2006 2:08 pm
The U.S. State Department said Tuesday that hackers from China and other areas of Southeast Asia broke into the department’s computer network in June and stole files, resulting in the department shutting off Internet connectivity for several days.
FBI proposes new Internet wiretap requirements
Posted: July 10, 2006 1:43 pm
Updated: July 10, 2006 4:38 pm
The Federal Bureau of Investigation wants to expand wiretapping law to cover your Internet connection and force ISPs and other providers to build in back door wiretapping capability into their networks.
Navy posts personal data for 100,000 on its Web site
Posted: July 7, 2006 6:50 pm
The U.S. Navy is launching a probe to determine how the names and social security numbers of 100,000 Navy and Marine Corps aviators and air crew wound up on a public Web site for six months.
While the information had been on the site since December, it was not discovered until Thursday.
Air Force to begin watching blogs
Posted: July 7, 2006 12:02 pm
Updated: July 7, 2006 12:33 pm
The U.S. Air Force, completely bogged down with information overload trying to read every blog in the world, will pay $450,000 to Versatile Information Systems Inc. to have the company develop a means of sorting out the most important new information being posted to weblogs.
Hackers hit Pentagon; NSA struggles to keep up
Posted: July 5, 2006 12:26 pm
Updated: July 5, 2006 1:53 pm
A National Security Agency program to provide advanced cryptography for use by the Department of Defense and other government agencies, begun in 1999, has been delayed to at least 2012, with most of the substantive security improvements being delayed as far as 2018, according to a Baltimore Sun report Sunday.
Fourth phone numbers station: 501-588-1015
Posted: July 3, 2006 1:15 pm
For almost two months, someone has been sending secret messages by a rather unusual method: setting up Voice over IP telephone numbers which, when called, play back a recording of long strings of numbers. The recordings evoke memories of shortwave numbers stations, which have been used for decades by intelligence agencies to communicate with agents under deep cover.
On Monday, a fourth such telephone number and message appeared.
Homeland Security Information Network fails to share information
Posted: June 30, 2006 7:12 am
Updated: June 30, 2006 4:03 pm
The Homeland Security Information Network, created to share information between the Department of Homeland Security and state and local law enforcement and emergency responders, was deployed too quickly and without sufficient training to be effective at its goals, according to a report from the DHS inspector general.
Who restarts the Internet after a cyber Katrina?
Posted: June 28, 2006 1:10 pm
The Department of Homeland Security can barely protect its own computer systems from outside attack. Yet a group of business leaders wants to turn over their responsibility for coordinating with each other after a catastrophic disaster affecting the Internet to the department.
FBI drops request for library computer records
Posted: June 28, 2006 4:14 am
The Federal Bureau of Investigation dropped a demand it made to a Connecticut library system for records relating to a library computer without a warrant, but said that the library system’s non-cooperation “could have increased the danger of terrorists succeeding.”
GAO discloses personal data breach
Posted: June 27, 2006 11:00 am
The U.S. Government Accountability Office has removed from its web site archived records dating from the 1920s to the 1980s which contained names, Social Security numbers and other personal information for less than 1,000 individuals, the agency said Monday.
Personal data for 28,000 Navy personnel found on public Web site
Posted: June 24, 2006 4:26 am
Updated: June 24, 2006 4:51 am
Spreadsheets containing the names, birthdates and Social Security numbers of 28,000 U.S. Navy personnel and family members were found on a civilian Web site, the Office of Naval Personnel said Friday.
Are you sensing a pattern yet?
Kentucky state employees blocked from blogs
Posted: June 23, 2006 1:56 am
The People’s Republic of Kentucky began blocking political blogs Wednesday, one day after an unflattering story on indicted governor Ernie Fletcher appearing in the New York Times quoted a Kentucky political blogger.
26,000 USDA employees warned of personal data theft
Posted: June 22, 2006 11:29 am
Updated: June 22, 2006 11:53 am
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Wednesday that a hacker broke into one of its databases during the first week of June and may have accessed personal records for up to 26,000 Washington, D.C.-based USDA employees, former employees and contractors, about one fourth of the department’s work force.
Off the Hook Contest: 617-848-1172
Posted: June 20, 2006 11:20 pm
Updated: June 22, 2006 2:18 am
The mysterious Craigslist spy, or whoever it is, has returned. On Tuesday, a fourth phone numbers station message appeared on Boston Craigslist.
Another AT&T secret room revealed
Posted: June 20, 2006 10:49 pm
In a nondescript building near the junction of Interstates 70 and 270 near Bridgeton, Mo., just outside of St. Louis, lies what appears to be the heart of AT&T’s secret network surveillance on behalf of the U.S. government, former employees of the company said.
Special interests protest Congressional captcha
Posted: June 20, 2006 4:27 pm
The First Amendment guarantees “the right of the people . . . to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” Among other things, this means you have the right to contact your menbers of Congress and express your views.
This right, however, does not extend to automated computer programs, as much as some special interest lobbying groups would like it to.
Google offers U.S. Government search
Posted: June 16, 2006 1:26 am
Google launched a service on Thursday for consolidated searches of U.S. Government websites. Searches on the site seem to return more results and execute much more quickly than the U.S. Government’s own consolidated search site and portal.
Homeland Security secretary has stopped using e-mail
Posted: June 15, 2006 12:44 am
Updated: June 15, 2006 1:04 am
If you’re like most of us, your e-mail box fills up daily with pure junk. I’m not just talking about spam, though that’s certainly a problem. I’m talking about chain letters, stupid jokes forwarded 384 times, news you don’t need, even wedding invitations.
Homeland Security secretary Michael Chertoff found a solution to his e-mail problem: He no longer uses it.
Stand-down at VA to tighten laptop security
Posted: June 11, 2006 4:38 pm
In a case of closing the barn door after the cows have all gotten out, the Veterans Administration took steps to get its information security in order Friday, a half decade after security alerts were first issued and nearly two months after the largest personal data breach in U.S. history.
D.C. Court of Appeals rules VoIP subject to wiretap law
Posted: June 11, 2006 12:15 pm
The District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 Friday in favor of upholding a Federal Communications Commission policy that treats interconnected VoIP providers and broadband Internet service providers the same as traditional POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) providers with regards to government wiretaps.
National Nuclear Security Agency breach put 1,500 at risk of identity theft
Posted: June 11, 2006 4:42 am
Welcome to another installment of Government Computer Security Sucks!
Today’s lucky government bureaucracy is the National Nuclear Security Agency. The NNSA, part of the Department of Energy, has control of all the nuclear weapons. And 1,500 of its employees may find themselves victims of identity theft after a security incident dating to last September which was only disclosed Friday.
Homeland Security Architect?
Posted: June 8, 2006 2:57 pm
As previously reported, computer security at the Department of Homeland Security sucks. I mean really sucks. (It sucks government-wide, but it’s particularly ironic that it sucks at DHS.) And there’s no end in sight to the sheer stupidity of how DHS’s IT infrastructure is being mismanaged.
