Showing posts with label Spy Center. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spy Center. Show all posts

US just launched secret next-gen spy satellite, April, 16, 2014

Source: RT.com



The US's National Reconnaissance Office just shot a rocket into space with a secret satellite payload on it that they refuse to tell anyone about. They used a very fancy rocket to launch it, had some very cryptic logos made for it, and pointed it due East from Florida. No one knows for sure what the payload is, but many experts and amateurs alike have some good guesses. The Resident discusses.

The Eyeopener Report | NSA Spying: False Hope vs. Real Solutions, June 11, 2013

Source: boilingfrogspost.com, corbettreport.com



In this special edition of The Boiling Frogs Post Eyeopener report, James introduces new members of the irate minority to the problem, as well as the false hopes (and real solutions) that are available to address that problem.

Links:
Information on the abuses of the NSA
Information on CALEA
Information on pirate internet
For a Google alternative
For a Gmail alternative

US Spy Device Tested on Public in Other Countries, May 27, 2013

Source: The New Zealand Herald

By David Fisher | The New Zealand Herald

A high-tech United States surveillance tool which sweeps up all communications without a warrant was sent to New Zealand for testing on the public, according to an espionage expert.

The tool was called ThinThread and it worked by automatically intercepting phone, email and internet information.

ThinThread was highly valued by those who created it because it could handle massive amounts of intercepted information. It then used snippets of data to automatically build a detailed picture of targets, their contacts and their habits for the spy organisation using it.

Those organisations were likely to include the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) after Washington, DC-based author Tim Shorrock revealed ThinThread was sent to New Zealand for testing in 2000-2001.

Mr Shorrock, who has written on intelligence issues for 35 years, said the revolutionary ThinThread surveillance tool was sent to New Zealand by the US National Security Agency. The GCSB is the US agency’s intelligence partner - currently under pressure for potentially illegal wide-spread spying on the public.

The claim ThinThread was sent to New Zealand has brought fresh calls for the bureau to explain what it does.

A spokesman said the bureau was currently reviewing how much it did tell the public - but it would not be making comment on the ThinThread test. He said the intelligence agency "won’t confirm or deny" the claim because it was an "operational" matter.

A spokeswoman for Prime Minister John Key also refused to comment saying it was an operational matter.

The claim emerged in an article by Mr Shorrock which ran in a magazine last month and featured whistleblower William Binney - a former high-ranking NSA official who designed ThinThread.
Mr Shorrock said the "ThinThread prototype" was installed at two NSA listening posts in late 2000 and at Fort Meade where the NSA is based.

"In addition, several allied foreign intelligence agencies were given the program to conduct lawful surveillance in their own corners of the world. Those recipients included Canada, Germany, Britain, Australia and New Zealand."

The "lawful" aspect was due to the software’s ability to mask the identities of those whose information was being intercepted - a technical work around of the legal barrier which prohibits New Zealand and the US from spying on its own citizens.

Mr Shorrock said ThinThread operated in three phases. It began by intercepting call, email and internet traffic on a network and automatically assessing it for interest. The scale of the traffic was such that it narrowed down targets of interest by focusing on patterns of information rather than the content of the information.

Secondly, ThinThread automatically anonymised the collected data so the identities stayed hidden "until there was sufficient evidence to obtain a warrant".

The magic was in the back end of the system which used the raw data "to create graphs showing relationships and patterns that could tell analysts which targets they should look at and which calls should be listened to" using "metadata" - the same type of "information about information" which featured in about 60 of the 88 potentially illegal spying cases identified in the GCSB review.

The Greens and Labour both said it showed the need for an inquiry into the GCSB - an investigation which both have repeatedly demanded. Greens’ co-leader Russel Norman said the Prime Minister and GCSB needed to explain to the public whether it was spied on by ThinThread.

"It reinforces why there is a different set of rules for the GCSB - they are integrated into this global spy network," he said.

Article from: nzherald.co.nz 

FBI To Internet Providers: Spy For Us Or Face A $25,000 Fine, May 8, 2013

Source: popsci.com

Existing wiretap law is almost 20 years old and doesn't capture the nuances of modern internet use. Here's how the FBI plans to get around it.
By Kelsey D. Atherton

Existing wiretap law is almost 20 years old and doesn't capture the nuances of modern internet use. The Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act was first authorized in 1994, and it ordered "telecommunications carriers" to comply with court orders to assist in intercepting communication. Since then, communication online has taken off, while the landscape of what we know has telecommunications carriers has drastically changed. In 2006, the FCC expanded the act to include Internet access providers, but there's a tricky caveat: court orders under existing law only instruct internet communications providers to offer technical assistance to law enforcement. That gives the tech companies some leeway if they're uncomfortable handing over information; they can just say they were unable to make the technology work the way the FBI wants.

Under the new proposal, that wiggle room disappears. FBI officials can notify a company (with a wiretap order, say) that they need the tech to be surveillance-ready in 30 days. If not? Fines, starting at $25,000/day that the capability isn't there. Of course, complying isn't exactly free, either. Over at Lawfare, >Susan Landau writes:

The FBI plan is really about cost shifting. When wiretapping was about alligator clips, law enforcement paid the full costs of a tap. With CALEA, the government reimbursed the service providers $500 million for retrofitting old switches to be CALEA compliant, but the companies had to pay the costs of doing so for new infrastructure (law enforcement does pay for the work involved in executing a particular tap, but not the cost of creating the infrastructure). What the FBI wants to do now is have communications services wiretap compliant with private industry footing the bill.

The plan allows the FBI to adapt quickly as new media emerge, and more and more private information is in the hands of internet-based tech companies. But it's still a far cry from law. Right now, the Obama administration is considering the proposal. If White House officials choose to push it forward, it would still need to pass in Congress.

29th Chaos Communication Congress Panel | Jesselyn Radack, Thomas Drake, William Binney on Whistleblowing and Surveillance, December 27, 2012

Source: events.ccc.de



Enemies of the State: What Happens When Telling the Truth about Secret US Government Power Becomes a Crime Blowing the Whistle on Spying, Lying & Illegalities in the Digital Era.

Panel presented at 29C3 (29th Chaos Communication Congress), 27 December 2012. Speakers are Jesselyn Radack, Thomas Drake, and William Binney. Q&A afterward is not included in this video.

NSA Whistle-Blower Tells All - Op-Docs: The Program

Source: nytimes.com



The filmmaker Laura Poitras profiles William Binney, a 32-year veteran of the National Security Agency who helped design a top-secret program he says is broadly collecting Americans' personal data.

Related Article: nytimes.com

Craig B. Hulet Reports | NSA Illegally Spying on Everyone, June 5, 2012

Source: prisonplanet.tv, kcandassociates.org



Noted radio and television host John B. Wells guest hosts the Alex Jones Show today, Tuesday, June 5. Wells is heard on radio and television stations throughout the United States, Europe, Asia, South Africa, Australia, and South America, and is one of the world's most recognized voice artists. Craig B Hulet, an expert on government policy, international relations, and terrorism. He talks with Mr. Hulet who will talk about the NDAA, Congress treasonous acts and the 9/11 connection to the house of saud.

US 'intelligence war' triggers 'Occupy spy base' in UK, April 22, 2012

Source: rt.com



Menwith Hill, the largest intelligence gathering and surveillance center outside the US, in the heart of the UK's Yorkshire Dales, is surrounded by protesters demonstrating against America's planned missile defense system. The local residents, often camping outside, have been joined by members of the global Occupy movement, supporting ongoing local efforts. To keep up with new types of warfare, billions of dollars has been invested in Menwith Hill over the last decade. It has enabled the base to remain a vital component of the global US surveillance network.

NSA Building the World's Biggest Spy Center Ever

Source: tercermilenio, James Bamford Wired article

Recently, the investigative journalist James Bamford wrote a report for Wired magazine about a spy center that is being built in America. This is a project of the National Security Agency and it's goal is the protection and safety of American citizens. All media and citizen in the world will be monitored. Is that security worth the loss of freedom?

 Related: NSA Building A $2 Billion Quantum Computer Artificial Intelligence Spy Center, March 18, 2012
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