Mon, 18 Mar 2024 22:09:51 -0700WeeblySun, 12 Oct 2014 18:01:03 GMThttp://activistrevolution.weebly.com/news/google-chief-on-nsa-speaks-outThe integrity of the Internet could be at risk if Congress does not act to rein in the National Security Agency, Google head Eric Schmidt warned on Wednesday.

Speaking alongside other tech executives and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) at a Silicon Valley event, Schmidt said the revelations about U.S. surveillance could prompt countries to wall off their networks.

ADVERTISEMENT“The simplest outcome: We’re going to end up breaking the Internet,” Schmidt said, “because what’s going to happen is governments will do bad laws of one kind or another, and eventually what’s going to happen is: ‘We’re going to have our own Internet in our own country, and we’re going to do it our way.’ ”“It is fundamentally about breaking the Internet,” echoed Facebook General Counsel Colin Stretch. “The Internet is a medium without borders, and the notion that you would have to place data and data centers and the data itself [in a particular location] ... is fundamentally at odds with the way the Internet is architectured.”

In response to former NSA contractor Edward Snowden’s leaks — which showed that the NSA was spying on foreigners’ emails, chats and other communications through services like Google and Facebook — consumers and governments around the globe have taken steps to enact new limits on American companies.

Technology & Cybersecurity Best Sellers:No Place to Hide: Edward Snowden, the NS…Glenn Greenwald$17.95Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the …Kevin Mitnick$21.9512>Privacy Some countries, including Russia, have taken steps to require that companies keep data centers within their geographic borders — a potentially prohibitive cost for start-ups and small companies.

Others have enacted protectionist measures, which Schmidt called “trade barriers,” that give preference to homegrown companies over American ones.

According to analysis firm Forrester Research, the losses for the tech industry from the NSA backlash could amount to as much as $180 billion over the next two years.

“I was surprised, because I thought that these disclosures would come out, people would adapt, but something more fundamental occurred,” Schmidt said, “and what occurred was a loss of trust between America and other companies.”

Wyden, who is the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, has been a vocal critic of the NSA and has pushed for major reforms to U.S. intelligence. 

“Friends, this is going to cost America jobs — good paying American jobs — when wage growth is one of the premier economic issues of our time,” he said.

“It is time to end the digital dragnet, which is harming America’s liberty and our economy without making America safer.”

Executives from Microsoft, Dropbox and the venture capital firm Greylock Partners attended Wednesday’s event in Palo Alto, Calif.

Lawmakers trying to reform the NSA have a steep hill to climb.

Legislators in the Senate are pushing the USA Freedom Act, which would end the spy agency’s bulk collection of Americans’ phone records and allow companies to report more details about the kinds of information they have to hand over to the government.

The effort has received opposition from some critics on the Senate Intelligence Committee, however, and Senate leaders have not committed to making any progress in the narrow lame duck window before the end of the year.

“Today, the conventional wisdom inside the Beltway is that Congress will come back, and it will not act,” Microsoft General Counsel Brad Smith acknowledged.

“Yet, I think we need to look the world’s dangers in the face and we need to resolve that we will not allow the dangers of the world to freeze this country in its tracks."

]]>Sun, 12 Oct 2014 17:09:13 GMThttp://activistrevolution.weebly.com/news/sergeant-found-with-dead-mans-watchDetroit police say a homicide sergeant has been suspended after officials found him with a watch that had been worn by a slain man.Chief James Craig tells The Detroit News that the sergeant was in charge of the investigation into the man's death several months ago, but when detectives decided to look at evidence this week they found the watch had been replaced by a less-expensive one.

Craig says detectives informed police officials about the discrepancy and an internal investigation began. He says the FBI helped police recover the watch, which was being worn by the sergeant at an out-of-state training session. No charges have been filed.

Craig says prosecutors will be asked to review the matter. The homicide case is open and the victim hasn't been identified.

]]>Sun, 12 Oct 2014 16:43:33 GMThttp://activistrevolution.weebly.com/news/twitter-is-suing-the-feds Twitter announced  that it's suing the federal government for the right to tell its users just how often the NSA and other security agencies force it to disclose their data, alleging that the government has been squashing its First Amendment rights with its overly restrictive rules. 

It's one of the more shocking and annoying paradoxes of the government's PRISM spying program: Tech companies were forced to hand over users' data, but couldn't, even in broad terms, legally tell them that this was happening.

That changed back in January, when the US Department of Justice sent a letter to Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, and Yahoo, telling the corporations the exact parameters under which it could disclose information about national security. Notably absent from the list? Twitter.

So, if you're looking for an answer to the question posed in the headline up there, well, that's it: Facebook, Google, and the other tech giants have already made their deal with the government and, let's face it, it's kind of useless.

So, Twitter is suing, and it's asking for much more than the other companies settled for earlier this year. 

The Letter is not a lawful means by which the government can seek to enforce their unconstitutional speech restrictions "By sitting out of the settlement last January, Twitter stuck up for the little guys—those companies receiving very few national security requests," Peter Micek, senior policy counsel at Access, a digital rights group, told me. "We hope today's announcement is a clarion call to all tech firms, big and small, to redouble their efforts to fight against mass surveillance."

The move is the latest in what has become an antagonistic relationship between the company and the government. It's often been a thorn in the government's side—refusing to participate in the  PRISM surveillance program detailed by Edward Snowden and negotiating with the FBI on terms that would allow it to have greater transparency with its users about surveillance—but this is the first time that a major tech company has actually sued over the issue.

If you're playing catchup, earlier this year, the government said that tech companies could tell its customers—every six months—how many times the company received a National Security Letter or a FISA Court order. The catch is, companies can only report those numbers in increments of 1,000, for example between 0-999, between 1,000-1,999, etc.— which means the actual numbers aren't all that transparent. 

Beyond that, companies can't say if they received exactly zero requests—they have to say that they received between zero and a thousand. Twitter's request specifically asks for the right to disclose whether or not the government asked for user data at all.

We hope today's announcement is a clarion call to all tech firms, big and small Though Twitter wasn't involved in the January letter, the government has told most tech companies (including Twitter) that they're bound to the terms of that letter. So, after failing to negotiate better terms with the government, it's going to court:

"Twitter is entitled under the First Amendment to respond to its users’ concerns and to the statements of US government officials by providing more complete information about the limited scope of US government surveillance of Twitter user accounts,"  the company wrote in the lawsuit, filed in US District Court in San Francisco. "The DAG Letter is not a lawful means by which Defendants can seek to enforce their unconstitutional speech restrictions." 

Twitter users arguably have the least private data subject to government information requests: The only thing that's really private on Twitter are direct messages. Google, on the other hand, is responsible for people's entire email accounts (among lots of other things).  

But still, the company is one of the only major tech giants actively fighting the government on this issue: Other  companies have been content to lobby for or support overall National Security Administration reform that would require greater transparency, Twitter is fighting for it in court.

"We applaud Twitter for going to bat for more transparency," Greg Nojeim, senior counsel at the Center for Democracy and Technology told me. "There is little doubt that more granularity in permitted company disclosures about intelligence surveillance would not compromise national security."

He's right, there: The government has long said that disclosing this sort of thing would be a major national security risk. But we've seen now that it's willing to be slightly flexible on the issue (January's letter being one example of this), with no indication that we're any less safe because of it.

The question, now, is will any other tech companies follow suit? I've reached out to spokespeople with Microsoft, Google, LinkedIn, and Yahoo—none of the companies have immediately responded; I'll update this post if they do.

Update: Here is a comment Facebook's sent me: 

"We believe that while governments have an important responsibility to keep people safe, it is possible to do so while also being transparent. In January, after months of advocating for more transparency both publicly and through the courts, the U.S. government agreed to relax its limitations on what we are allowed to disclose. While this marked a significant step forward, we’ll continue to encourage Congress to take additional steps to address all of the reforms we believe are needed."

]]>Sun, 12 Oct 2014 16:19:20 GMThttp://activistrevolution.weebly.com/news/leaked-documents-reveal-nsas-computer-network-attack-systemThe National Security Agency (NSA) has been infiltrating foreign networks to acquire sensitive data using a system code-named SENTRY EAGLE, The Intercept reported Saturday. “The facts contained in this program [SENTRY EAGLE] constitute a combination of the greatest number of highly sensitive facts related to the NSA/CSS’s [Central Security Service] overall cryptologic mission,” one of the leaked documents obtained by The Intercept stated.

“Individuals briefed into the SENTRY EAGLE may not share information regarding this program with those not read into this program, or foreign nationals, including those with whom NSA/CSS has a Second and Third Party relationships,” the document also stated warning that revealing any of the “core secrets” would jeopardize the national security of the US.

According to Intercept, the NSA has also had agents in China, Germany, South Korea and in American firms, possibly impersonating employees or businessmen.

One of the programs in SENTRY EAGLE called the HUMINI, a human intelligence asset, has the ability to intercept communications and electronic signals. The programs can also weaken encryption systems.

The documents were leaked by the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden and do not contain identity numbers or name of government officials who would know about the classified programs.

The Snowden archives indicate that the NSA’s activities have been ongoing as recently as 2012 despite the document being dated 2004. The sensitive information acquired follows an NSA/CSS framework from information released to the public colored green to information only released to selected government individuals marked in black.

]]>Sun, 12 Oct 2014 14:53:19 GMThttp://activistrevolution.weebly.com/news/nobel-prize-winner-malala-told-obama-us-drone-attacks-fuel-terrorismhe teenager who became the youngest person to win the Nobel Peace Prize Friday told President Barack Obama at a White House meeting last year that she worried about the effect of U.S. drone strikes. The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Malala Yousafzai of Pakistan, as well as Kailash Satyarthi of India, for pushing for young people's rights, including the right to education.

Malala, now 17, made international headlines after being shot in the head by the Taliban on a school bus two years ago for promoting education for girls in Pakistan. After recovering, she took her campaign for children’s education across the world, writing a book and even speaking at the United Nations last year.

After she found out she won, Malala delivered a statement after classes ended Friday at her school in Birmingham, England. She thanked her parents, especially her father, for “not clipping my wings.”

“A girl is not supposed to be the slave...A girl has the power to go forward in her life,” she said on CNN. “She’s not only a mother, she’s not only a sister, she’s not only a wife...She should have an identity. She should be recognized and she has equal rights as a boy.”

She said she found out she won from a teacher while she was in chemistry class Friday morning at about 10:15 a.m.

“I felt very honored. I felt more powerful and more courageous,” she said. “This is really an encouragement me to go forward.”

In October 2013, Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama met with her in the Oval Office “to thank her for her inspiring and passionate work on behalf of girls education in Pakistan.”

But in a statement released after the meeting, Malala said she was honored to have met with Obama, but that she told him she's worried about the effect of U.S. drone strikes. (The White House statement didn't mention that part.)

"I thanked President Obama for the United States' work in supporting education in Pakistan and Afghanistan and for Syrian refugees," she said in the statement. "I also expressed my concerns that drone attacks are fueling terrorism. Innocent victims are killed in these acts, and they lead to resentment among the Pakistani people. If we refocus efforts on education it will make a big impact."

At the time, the White House said the United States "joins with the Pakistani people and so many around the world to celebrate Malala’s courage and her determination to promote the right of all girls to attend school and realize their dreams."

On Friday afternoon, Obama issued a statement congratulating the two winners of Nobel Peace Prize.

“At just 17 years old, Malala Yousafzai has inspired people around the world with her passion and determination to make sure girls everywhere can get an education,” he said. “When the Taliban tried to silence her, Malala answered their brutality with strength and resolve. Michelle and I were proud to welcome this remarkable young woman to the Oval Office last year. We were awe-struck by her courage and filled with hope knowing this is only the beginning of her extraordinary efforts to make the world a better place.”

Obama said the two receipients “have faced down threats and intimidation, risking their own lives to save others and build a better world for future generations.”

“They come from different countries, religious backgrounds, and generations—a Muslim and a Hindu, a Pakistani and an Indian – but they share an unyielding commitment to justice and an unshakeable belief in the basic dignity of every girl and boy,” he said.

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also congratulated Malala in a statement Friday, according to several published reports.

"She is (the) pride of Pakistan, she has made her countrymen proud,” he said. “Her achievement is unparalleled and unequaled. Girls and boys of the world should take lead from her struggle and commitment."


Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2014/10/10/242968_nobel-prize-winner-malala-told.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy]]>