The U.S. government quietly gained expansive new surveillance abilities after a last-ditch effort to stop changes to the federal code of criminal procedure died on the Senate floor.
Senator Ron Wyden tried three times on Wednesday to stall the rule changes, which let judges give federal agents the authority to hack multiple computers in any jurisdiction at once, including those belonging to innocent malware victims.
“By sitting here and doing nothing, the Senate has given consent to this expansion of government hacking and surveillance,” said Wyden on Wednesday. “Law-abiding Americans are going to ask ‘what were you guys thinking?’ when the FBI starts hacking victims of a botnet hack. Or when a mass hack goes awry and breaks their device, or an entire hospital system and puts lives at risk.”
Under the old version of “Rule 41,” agencies like the FBI needed to apply for a warrant in the right jurisdiction to hack a computer, presenting difficulties when investigating crimes involving suspects who had anonymized their locations or machines in multiple places. Under the new version, a federal judge can approve a single search warrant covering multiple computers even if their owners are innocent or their locations are unknown. continued…
first published week of: 12/12/2016
The massive DDoS attack on domain name service provider Dyn on Oct. 21 that crippled Internet service across much of the United States "will very likely continue," the FBI told private industry recently.
The open availability of malware source codes targeting IoT devices, coupled with insufficient IoT device security, sets the stage for more attacks, according to the FBI's Oct. 26 private industry notification.
The Oct. 21 attack on Dyn, and at least 80 other websites, came in two waves through the Mirai botnet that hijacked control of vulnerable internet of things devices. Dyn said up to 100,000 endpoints were directed against it during the assault. continued…
first published week of: 11/07/2016
FTC seeks to reverse AT&T ruling that may gut consumer protection authority
The Federal Trade Commission is worried that it may no longer be able to regulate companies such as Comcast, Google, and Verizon unless a recent court ruling is overturned.
The FTC on Thursday petitioned the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals for a rehearing in a case involving AT&T’s throttling of unlimited data plans. A 9th Circuit panel previously ruled that the FTC cannot punish AT&T, and the decision raises questions about the FTC’s ability to regulate any company that operates a common carrier business such as telephone or Internet service.
While the FTC's charter from Congress prohibits it from regulating common carriers, the agency has previously exercised authority to regulate these companies when they offer non-common carrier services. But the recent court ruling said that AT&T is immune from FTC oversight entirely, even when it’s not acting as a common carrier. continued…
first published week of: 10/24/2016
In places like Cobb County, Ga., and Forsyth County, N.C., officials have implemented GIS applications to give the public easy access to polling-station wait time information, along with other relevant election data.
Early voting has become an increasingly popular option across the electorate. Between absentee ballots, mail-in and early voting at the polls, more than 46 million voters — almost 36 percent of the total — cast nontraditional ballots in 2012, according to a Pew Research Center analysis. This year is on target for the same or greater.
This puts the pressure on election officials to do all they can to ensure early voting goes smoothly and easily. In some jurisdictions, authorities are looking to geographic information systems (GIS) to help grease the skids.
Because so much election information already has a geographic component, maps and voting make a natural pairing. Voting districts, precincts and polling places — all can be tied to maps. In places like Cobb County, Ga., and Forsyth County, N.C., officials are leveraging this geographic angle. Specifically they have implemented GIS applications to give the public easy access to polling-station wait time information, along with other relevant election data. continued…
first published week of: 11/14/2016
The experiences of one Virginia county demonstrate how the technology can improve decision-making and help guide smart growth.
When Washington Dulles International Airport opened in 1962 in Loudoun County, Va., the county was mostly rural. It was only after local industry expanded to accommodate the needs of this major global travel hub that Loudoun started becoming the dynamic community it is today.
GIS has proven to be a comprehensive tool for managing the county's growth. What started in 1986 to automate and house the county's various maps has evolved into a system that maintains and stores a vast array of up-to-date spatial data that is readily accessible to the public and is integrated with the county's other information systems. Over these past 30 years, we have learned a few best practices in evolving to what we think is a model for smart communities everywhere.
More than serving just a limited capacity, GIS has been the linchpin for multiple applications in Loudoun. By 1986, wide-scale access to geospatial data -- not just photogrammetric basemaps -- was needed. With population growth bringing in new land development, it was crucial to be able to quickly assess factors such as soil, watersheds and floodplains. Shortly after digitizing and automating our mapping system, our GIS model saved Loudoun approximately $700,000 in the site selection of a new landfill, according to a U.S. Geological Survey study. We used GIS to analyze the landfill's proximity to population centers and protect water resources. continued…
first published week of: 08/15/2016
WhatsApp apparently faced the most restrictions.
Over the past year, authorities from different parts of the globe have been routinely imposing restrictions on messaging apps, according to Freedom House. Based on the non-government org's internet freedom report for 2016, governments have been blocking chat apps and calling platforms recently in an effort to silence protesters and further censor the internet. Freedom House says they're being targeted mostly for their ability to encrypt messages that make them difficult to intercept, as well as for their calling functions that eat into the profit margins of traditional telecoms.
Among all the messaging apps out there, WhatsApp was targeted the most. It was blocked either fully or partially in 12 out of the 65 countries Freedom House looked into. In Brazil, for instance, the government blocked the service a few times for refusing to hand over encrypted chat data related to a drug investigation. continued…
first published week of: 11/14/2016
What does a mobile mapping app, ATV ordinance and 900,000 acres of land have in common? They're all ways your St. Louis County government is making it easier for hunters to better enjoy their time in the woods and on the lakes.
From the various small game seasons that opened last weekend, to deer season coming in November, hunting is a big deal in this area. For many of our residents, it's a family tradition. The same can be said for hunters from other parts of the state and country who are drawn to our vast expanses of undeveloped land, and that's good for the businesses in the county.
The county's Land and Minerals Department is responsible for managing nearly 900,000 acres of tax-forfeited rural land. Much of this land is wooded and ideal for wildlife habitat. In most cases we keep these lands open for public use. Hunters, of course, need a valid hunting license issued by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources but beyond that, no special permit is needed to hunt on these public lands.
… In recent years, thanks to our growing use of Geographic Information System (GIS) technology, we've made it easier than ever for hunters to scout and select hunting locations and to figure out the best way to access them. The County Land Explorer first launched in 2013 and continues to be one of the most popular features on the County's website. The Land Explorer is an interactive online map that gives users the ability to search land records by address, township, range and other methods. Visit stlouiscountymn.gov/explorer if you'd like to check it out. continued…
first published week of: 09/26/2016
Having options is a good thing. At least, that’s what Eric Drenckpohl, enterprise geographic information systems manager for the Port of Seattle, was thinking he decided to give the open-source Boundless GIS a try.
“There is something to be said for having as many different tools in the toolbelt running both proprietary and nonproprietary code,” Drenckpohl said. So when he decided it was time to develop a new version of Port Explorer -- an internal, web-based GIS application that includes most of the datasets used by the port’s various departments -- he turned to Boundless GIS, an open-source offering.
Drenckpohl said he’d been following open-source GIS for some time, and when the security agencies in the government finally “sort of blessed it,” he decided it was time to give it a try. continued…
first published week of: 11/21/2016
Kazakhstan is planning to create a national geographical information system, which will automate a number of public services related to spatial data, such as cartographic materials, topographic and aerial photographs. Until recently, all this information existed in paper and slowed down the timing of public services in the field of architecture, construction and land allocation. Due to this new mechanism, the information will be transferred to an electronic form. Thus, Kazakhstan residents will be able to receive this kind of public service from home.
This electronic map will be printed with a space image. So, it will able to see where you are located. This is not a Google Map, these maps contain detailed information on all communication lines, grids, all the date related to the buildings, land and etc. Cadastral maps will be available in electronic form. continued…
first published week of: 08/01/2016
A detailed map shows that agencies across the United States are paying substantial fees to third-party applications to learn more about the populations they are sworn to protect.
Brennan Center For Justice
In a world that is becoming increasingly communicative — where people often receive their news, share news, state their opinions and post pictures with their whereabouts via social media — the lines are perhaps a bit more blurry about how such information can be used.
Last month, the Brennan Center for Justice, a nonpartisan law and policy institute, released a map that details specific cities, counties and law enforcement agencies across the United States that have spent at least $10,000 on social media monitoring software.
All of the data — which comes from public reports, information from the government procurement database SmartProcure, public records requests via the ACLU of Northern California and the investigative news site MuckRock — found that nationwide, at least 151 police departments, cities and counties spent millions of dollars collectively on social media monitoring software. continued…
first published week of: 12/12/2016