Tag Archives: DARPA
European Parliament names Snowden for human rights award
Reading from a statement that she said had come from Mr. Snowden, Jesselyn Radack, a former ethics adviser to the United States Department of Justice and a former government whistle-blower, quoted Mr. Snowden as saying that “the surveillance of whole populations, rather than individuals, threatens to be the greatest human rights challenge of our time.” […]
US drones attacks violating Pakistani sovereignty
A suspected American drone strike killed four people in an attack on a compound in North Waziristan, a volatile tribal region bordering Afghanistan, a Pakistani intelligence official and local journalists said. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/01/world/asia/suspected-drone-strike-kills-4-in-pakistan.html?ref=world The missile strike, which occurred in Datta Khel district, a known sanctuary of local and foreign Islamist militants, was the second in the […]
US nuclear command shake-up foreshadows possible event
Navy Vice Adm Timothy Giardina was removed from duty on 3 September, a US official said on Saturday. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24321395 Admiral Giardina was serving as the deputy in charge of the US Strategic Command, which oversees nuclear assets. He has not been arrested or charged as part of the inquiry, into possible use of counterfeit casino […]
NSA records historical “enrichment” profiles of americans
Since 2010, the National Security Agency has been exploiting its huge collections of data to create sophisticated graphs of some Americans’ social connections that can identify their associates, their locations at certain times, their traveling companions and other personal information, according to newly disclosed documents and interviews with officials. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/29/us/nsa-examines-social-networks-of-us-citizens.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2 The spy agency began allowing […]
Feinstein leads effort to keep NSA spying on US citizens
The Senate Intelligence Committee appears to be moving toward swift passage of a bill that would “change but preserve” the once-secret National Security Agency program that is keeping logs of every American’s phone calls, Senator Dianne Feinstein, the California Democrat who leads the panel, said Thursday. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/27/us/politics/senators-push-to-preserve-nsa-phone-surveillance.html?ref=us Ms. Feinstein, speaking at a rare public hearing […]
FBI spends $3M for domestic drone deployment
US justice authorities are facing calls for new rules on drone surveillance after it was revealed the FBI has been deploying unmanned aircraft since 2006. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24294857 A report by the Department of Justice’s watchdog said the FBI has spent $3m (£1.9m) on drone deployment. The audit is the first time the full extent of drone […]
Documents show NSA conducted illegal spying since the 60’s
The US National Security Agency spied on civil rights leader Martin Luther King and boxer Muhammad Ali during the height of the Vietnam War protests. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24279394 The documents show the NSA also tracked journalists from the New York Times and the Washington Post and two senators. Some NSA officials later described the programme as “disreputable […]
Feds attempt to obfuscate ELF implication of mind control
Aaron Alexis, the shooter who the police say killed 12 people at the navy yard here last week, believed his mind was being controlled by “extremely low frequency” electromagnetic waves. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/26/us/shooter-believed-mind-was-under-attack-official-says.html?ref=us Mr. Alexis, a former Navy reservist and military contractor, said that “ultralow frequency attack is what I’ve been subject to for the last three […]
Military Industrial Complex unveils pilotless warplanes
Boeing has revealed that it has retrofitted retired fighter jets to turn them into drones. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-24231077 It said that one of the Lockheed Martin F-16 made a first flight with an empty cockpit last week. It carried out a series of manoeuvres including a barrel roll and a “split S” – a move in which […]
US DOD allocates over 6 billion for autonomous robots
The US military budget ending Sept. 30 allocated $6.04 billion for autonomous aircraft and just $261 million for unmanned ground vehicles. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/24/science/military-lags-in-push-for-robotic-ground-vehicles.html?ref=us The gap, said John Arquilla, a military strategist at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., a research university operated by the Navy, is “particularly troubling because a large percentage of our casualties […]
Capitol SWAT leader replaced after questioning stand down
Members of a Washington DC Swat team who the BBC has learned were ordered not to respond to Monday’s Navy Yard shootings have yet to be contacted by the authorities. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24163244 The Capitol Police tactical response team was told by a supervisor to leave the scene instead of aiding municipal officers. The department has […]
Despite problems The Experts allowed Alexis to continue
Aaron Alexis called the police in Newport, R.I., to complain that he was hearing voices sent by a “microwave machine,” “Brenda from The Experts Inc. called re: Mr. Alexis in 407,” a Residence Inn employee noted in a log dated Aug. 7. “She explained that he is unstable and the company is bringing him home,” […]
RSA security warns customers of NSA encryption cracking
RSA, the internet security firm, has warned customers not to use one of its own encryption algorithms after fears it can be unlocked by the US National Security Agency (NSA). http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-24173977 In an advisory note to its developer customers, RSA said that a default algorithm in one of its toolkits could contain a “back door” […]
US limits airspace for Maduro’s trip to UN
In a speech in the capital Caracas, Nicholas Maduro also accused the US of refusing to issue a visa to a top official in order to attend a UN meeting next week. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-24173124 US officials have not confirmed or commented on the claims. Venezuela’s relations with the US have been often been strained, both under […]
FISA court says NSA justified and blames tech companies
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court on Tuesday offered its most extensive public explanation for why it has allowed the government to keep records of all Americans’ phone calls, releasing a previously classified opinion in which it said the program was constitutional and did not violate Americans’ privacy rights. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/18/us/opinion-by-secret-court-calls-collection-of-phone-data-legal.html?hp In a 29-page opinion that quoted […]
US DOD behind 3D printed live organ development
Miniature human organs developed with a modified 3D printer are being used to test new vaccines in a lab in the US. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-24125678 The “body on a chip” project replicates human cells to print structures which mimic the functions of the heart, liver, lung and blood vessels. The organs are then placed on a microchip […]
Brazil looks to separate from NSA spy grid
Brazil is considering ways to make local use of the internet less dependent on US-based services, following leaks about Washington’s cyberspy operations. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-24145662 The South American nation has suggested forcing internet firms to open data centres in Brazil, which would be used to store locally generated material. It is also pursuing a plan to build […]
Mysterious circumstances surround Navy Yard shooting
Aaron Alexis, 34, is the alleged lone shooter in the Washington navy yard shooting which happened just after 8am on Monday as many of the 3,000 employees were arriving for work on the base. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/17/washington-naval-yard-shooting-suspect-arrested-guns However, The Washington Post, citing police sources, reported that three shooters, including one in military fatigues, were involved. The attackers […]
Court rules Google breaks law with Wi-Fi snooping
A US judge has ruled that Google did break the law when it scooped up unsecured wi-fi data while collecting images for Streetview. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-24047235 Google had hoped to have the case dismissed, arguing that its “mistaken collection” of the data did not break wire-tapping laws. Privacy experts called it a “landmark decision for internet […]
Computer authentication link to transhumanism
Machines verify the identity of a human being by irises, heartbeats, fingertips and voices. http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/09/10/beyond-passwords-new-tools-to-identify-humans/ Authentication has been a tough nut to crack since the early days of the Web. Now comes a batch of high-tech alternatives, some straight from science fiction, as worries grow about the security risks associated with traditional user name and […]
Dirty Babylon 