Alternative News

Microsoft Gave NSA Backdoor Access To Skype, Outlook, and SkyDrive (Default In Windows 8.1)

"The company has reportedly helped the NSA 'understand' certain alias and encryption features in its software, allowed it to intercept chats passing through the Outlook.com servers, and been so helpful that the NSA has described working with the company as a 'team sport.' Access to SkyDrive files is handled via PRISM and NSA documents praise Microsoft for simplifying this process over the past 12 months. This is particularly pertinent given that in Windows 8.1, SkyDrive is a default storage location for files and created documents. Now we know that the NSA has carte blanche to peer into Microsoft's servers virtually at will." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMicrosoft Gave NSA Backdoor Access To Skype, Outlook, and SkyDrive (Default In Windows 8.1)

First Major Success in Lawsuit Challenging New Colorado Gun Control Laws

"The Independence Institute’s David Kopel is representing 55 elected Sheriffs and one retired police officer in lawsuit against the new anti-gun laws signed by Governor Hickenlooper last March. Tuesday night, on the eve of a federal court hearing, the plaintiffs and the Colorado Attorney General agreed on proposal to fix two problems with the magazine ban. The successful resolution of these issues was achieved by voluntary agreement with the Attorney General. With these two issues now resolved, we are beginning preparation for a full trial on the merits. The trial will be our challenge to the entirety of the unconstitutional anti-gun laws." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFirst Major Success in Lawsuit Challenging New Colorado Gun Control Laws

China’s gold imports still at unprecedented highs

"China will certainly become the world’s No. 1 gold consumer this year – if indeed it was not already. So far net imports through Hong Kong for the first five months of the year have totalled over 413 tonnes – double those of a year earlier when China imported just over 830 tonnes in the full year. China’s own gold production from its mines and as a byproduct from its smelting and refining sector exceeded 400 tonnes last year and is heading to between 420-450 tonnes by 2015 according to official estimates. This suggests Chinese gold imports plus its domestic production will, this year, account for comfortably over 50% of global new mined gold output." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingChina’s gold imports still at unprecedented highs

Central bank decree now runs Vietnam Gold sector

"Vietnam central bank has warned that gold businesses cannot launch programs to accept gold deposits from customers without permission from the central bank. The central bank said these illegal businesses can be inspected and penalized. It also ordered that commercial banks must now have SBV permission to run storage services. There is a very important clause in the decree, which stipulates that all activities other than trading gold by the businesses should be licensed by the central bank and the government, in order not to negatively affect the market." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCentral bank decree now runs Vietnam Gold sector

Nepal police seize smuggled gold bound for India

"Nepal police seized 35 kilograms of gold on Wednesday, smuggled over the border from China and bound for India, where demand for the precious metal was soaring, officers said. The shipment, worth two million dollars on the black market, was the biggest ever seized by police in Nepal in what is an increasingly lucrative cross-border smuggling racket, the officers said. The gold was discovered in a truck in the capital Kathmandu after police trailed the vehicle following a tip off, superintendent Uttam Kumar Karkee told AFP. He said that smugglers have been using land routes after authorities stepped up customs inspections at airports." Continue reading →

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Smuggled Gold worth $5 billion to hit India this year

"India's efforts to curb gold imports are backfiring as the country already started to suffer from illegal gold transactions. Reports said old style gold smuggling is back in the country as series of restrictions by the government makes it difficult for the importers to buy from abroad while smugglers are offering much lower prices. Analysts said smuggling became a lucrative affair after the rise in customs duty on gold imports and people risking their necks to smuggle in gold. They added that smugglers got an opportunity after being sidelined for nearly 15 years due to liberalized policies of the government on gold imports." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSmuggled Gold worth $5 billion to hit India this year

Metal detector knows how much cash is in your wallet

"It has long been an urban legend that the security strips found in US banknotes let shadowy government agencies use metal detectors to track how much cash you are carrying. Now it seems the conspiracy theory may have been half right: it is possible to both detect and count concealed banknotes printed with magnetic inks. Physicists Christopher Fuller and Antao Chen at the University of Washington in Seattle realised that large bundles of notes would contain enough magnetic material to be detected at a distance, potentially allowing police to catch people attempting to smuggle cash over the border." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMetal detector knows how much cash is in your wallet

Bitfinex: Bitcoin Margin Trading

"The idea behind margin trading is simple. If you have an account at a traditional Bitcoin exchange like BitStamp of MtGox, you have two balances: a BTC balance and a USD balance. Apart from depositing and withdrawing, the only operation available to you is trading one currency for another. If you are participating in the exchange as a trader, your goal is to convert to BTC before the exchange rate goes up, and convert to USD before the exchange rate goes down, slowly increasing the net worth of your account over time. Margin trading services add only one feature to this model: the ability to have one of your balances go negative." Continue reading →

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Small Utah ISP firm stands up to ‘surveillance state’ as corporations cower

"Xmission, an independent company based out of one office in Salt Lake City, Utah, has spent nearly two decades protecting its customers’ privacy as the National Security Agency, Department of Justice, and prosecutors have ramped up pressure on internet service providers (ISPs). Owner Pete Ashdown told RT that every data collection request stops at his desk, since he is the sole proprietor of Xmission. At a larger company, a panel of stockholders would bow to government pressure, he added. 'It’s pretty basic for me. Most of their requests are not constitutional. They’re not proper warrants so I turn them back,' he said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSmall Utah ISP firm stands up to ‘surveillance state’ as corporations cower

Germany’s Bitcoin.de and Fidor Bank AG form partnership

"German bitcoin marketplace bitcoin.de and Fidor Bank AG have formed a large-scale partnership, with the online bank agreeing to provide a ‘liability umbrella’ to the marketplace operator Bitcoin Deutschland GmbH. This means the marketplace can prove it is officially following financial market regulations, such as anti-money laundering legislation. bitcoin.de hopes to lead the way as an EU-regulated trading platform with an EU deposit guarantee (up to 100,000 EUR per customer)." Continue reading →

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