Privacy

The NSA Loves the USA

July 17, 2014 — Leave a comment

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Under some other circumstances, this title could have been used as a nice slogan or children’s song for the 4th of July. However, when you read what is to follow, you are very likely to spoil your good mood about this story. As always, Edward Snowden is to blame for your privacy worst nightmares.

It seems that the NSA has always nine of its ten eyes and all the time for the US citizens. Only one eye left is being used for the international terrorist threats. How is that possible? For what is worth, if you are an American citizen, who for some reason communicate with foreigners.

If for the purpose of this communication you use a foreign language, you qualify immediately for the NSA favorite target of the month. Sad but true, the NSA “cares” more about the potential domestic threats than the international ones. And, this is how we got to the privacy dead-end street.

It may seem as a huge contradiction, but the terrorists all over the world provide such a nice alibi and justification for the NSA’s activities on the home ground. This the trouble with the curve, which is not likely to be solved quickly or easily in the NSA case. Edward Snowden is not the person you should blame, that is for sure.

Emergency Surveillance Laws. Invisible Claws.

July 14, 2014 — Leave a comment

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Is not this a crazy world we live in? In the USA the Supreme Court orders the police to keep their hands away from your smartphone. On the other side of the ocean, the UK lawmakers are busy little bees. In a blink of an eye, they have passed some important data surveillance laws.

The bloody attacks in London were the very trigger for the UK security plans. It has not been an easy thing to make telecommunication companies and Internet providers to keep a record of data for as long as it may be necessary for the police. And, now you have it the main boxing event privacy vs security.

Security and police officers in the UK can access your phone data and Internet records more easily. And, there is not too much you can do about it. To make things even worse this story is the stubbornness of both parties. Both privacy and security protectors feel strong about their causes.

And yes, they want more authority. What does it mean? A little bit of less warranty requirements can improve our security. We all know where this one leads, don’t we? There has to be some compromising solution, but it seems we cannot find it for the time being. Until then, stay safe and eyes open all the time.

Are You Talking To My Smartphone?

July 12, 2014 — Leave a comment

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This is how it should be done. No warrant – no smartphone. According to the Supreme Court’s decision police will not longer be able to examine the very content of your smartphone without a proper warrant. Well, it is about time. This news is much more serious than you might have thought.

Here is a name of case, which started an entire avalanche in this story, Riley v. California. The person from this case with a name Riley got himself convicted for a murder based on the evidences found by the police in his smartphone. The Supreme Court Judges were prety much determined about this one.

For them modern smartphones were much more than one additional gadget at our disposal. They have a greater legal potential in terms of evidences compared to your wallet or purse, for instance. No one can enter your home without a warrant, and no one can examine your smartphone without a warrant.

This is quite an unexpected, but extremely important recognition, which will definitely shake things a little bit. Police will from now on think twice once they get their hands on your smartphone this way or another. We have just won a battle in an endless war for our privacy.

Public Enemy No.1

July 12, 2014 — Leave a comment

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It is official. iPhone is the Chinese public enemy No. 1. Why? Well, for Chinese its tracking and location feature is extremely problematic, and as it seems unacceptable. Frequent Locations is the name of this feature, and the national security is the primary concern in this matter.

The Chinese are worried that this tracking option can reveal some serious and sensitive information of the greatest priority for their national security, including the entire national economy?! To successfully track one billion people in China?! How many of them can afford an iPhone in the first place?

Or, maybe the Chinese are emotionally compromised in this matter. It is not a secret that the NSA-phobia is more than present in China. On the other side, there are constant complaints about the quality of technical support for Apple’s products in China. How to comment and interpret all of these.

Perhaps, the Chinese should find some better way to send a message that Apple is definitely not welcome there. Really confusing and tense, indeed. It is left to be seen what will be Apple’s official reaction about this one. It is hard to say to the biggest market on the planet: you are wrong.

E-mail Untold

July 2, 2014 — Leave a comment

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There are so many things your e-mail can tell about you, which are beyond your control or influence. The very first thing is your location. Your e-mail comes with your IP address. Almost anyone can learn more about your location with the use of the following link: http://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/visual-tracert/. And, that is not all.

People, who have received your email, can easily run it through various social networks. This is a simple way to determine for which apps your e-mail has been used for registration purposes. All they have to do is to identify your Facebook profile with the help of your e-mail. What possibly more they could have asked for?

Here is one extremely useful site, which can be used to list all networks and websites your e-mail has gone through for the registration purposes: knowem.com. Here is an appropriate word of advice in this matter. Create two e-mails. One for communication and the other for registration purposes. Even a couple of them, if necessary.

Some people have even found a way to make money out of these situations. On http://www.spokeo.com for a few bucks per month you can get a detailed report about an e-mail of your greatest interest. What is the moral of this educational story? The worst enemy, when it comes to your IT security, are you yourself. Think about it.

The Hacker Wars

June 30, 2014 — Leave a comment

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It is really a breathtaking experience. We strongly encourage you to visit the Norse’s websites, which is a company that specializes in Internet security. Choose an option to see a map of hacker’s attacks all over the world in the real time. It is just like you are watching a movie. The difference in this case is that the casualties of these wars are real people and companies.

To be more precise, while watching this map you have a feeling that you are witnessing the WW3 scenario. There is this striking resemblance to the lines left by the nuclear missiles, which are flying from one corner of the world to the other one. You can rest assured that the impact and consequences can be compared to the atomic explosion and immense damages in the cyber world.

Our recommendation is to use Chrome for this live follow-up of an unprecedented cyber war. You do not have to wait too long to see for yourself how the USA is being used mostly as the punching bag for the restless cyber-attacks from the East. Although, it is impossible to present the entire web in one web page, this one can be quite indicative about what is really going on.

If you have not considered the IT security protection and anti-hacking measures, after seeing this “movie” you will definitely change your mind. Our word of advice is to run a security check of your IT infrastructure as soon as possible. The last thing you need is to see your country or your town on this map. Not to mention your company. That is definitely too much for your health.

Watch Out! Godzilla Is On The Road!

June 10, 2014 — Leave a comment

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Here is something you do not hear about it every day, not even in San Francisco. Well, the electronic notification system for drivers in California had a couple of quite unusual announcements for its users. One of them, warned drivers about the Godzilla menace on the road. Some of the drivers accepted this prank quite well by ignoring it. What happened with the others?

Well, for what is worth, we saw some panic on the roads. Do not get us wrong. We are far away from any serious comparison with the notorious radio prank show, which included legendary Orson Welles and “The War of the Worlds”. However, the hackers responsible for these actions have proven themselves of being capable to influence this extremely important system.

Not so long ago, we got one more funny looking notice. This time about the zombies walking around. You do not have to be a rocket scientist to figure out yourself what can happen, if these hackers decide to become more serious for a change. They can easily collapse the entire notification system for drivers. Because things are so serious the government had to interfere, as well.

So, what is the moral of this story? Listen carefully to all notifications you get this way or another while on the road. No matter how strange they may seem at the first glance, but above all, trust only your own eyes and ears, including a reasonable logic. We sure hope there are some hackers out there with enough moral and empathy to know their limits.