Fascism

Google, Yahoo, and Facebook Are Scrambling: “We Never Cooperated with the NSA!”

"How can they escape? Snowden’s story confirms James Banford’s story. Bamford revealed all this in 2008. No one cared. Now, without warning, this is a hot story all over the Web. How does a company plausibly deny this? They are all going with a version of this one: 'We never inhaled.' In March, 2012, Wired ran Bamford’s story on the NSA’s huge complex in Utah: 'The NSA Is Building the Country’s Biggest Spy Center (Watch What You Say).' It got some coverage, but there was no follow-through. Congress does not care. Congress funded it." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGoogle, Yahoo, and Facebook Are Scrambling: “We Never Cooperated with the NSA!”

Guardian Reporter Glenn Greenwald: We Have List of NSA Targets

"Glenn Greenwald, the reporter at The Guardian who broke the story about NSA surveillance programs, discusses the information received from whistleblower Edward Snowden, saying the federal government is now trying to 'scare the American people' to justify its 'massive spying program.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGuardian Reporter Glenn Greenwald: We Have List of NSA Targets

Switzerland seeks US response over alleged CIA bank spying

"The Swiss government on Tuesday revealed that it has asked the United States to explain an alleged CIA blackmail operation to spy on Switzerland's banks, exposed by whistleblower Edward Snowden. The Swiss foreign ministry told AFP that it was aware of media reports about the issue and that it had sent the US embassy in the capital Berne a diplomatic note seeking 'clarification'. The ministry also confirmed that Snowden was accredited as a diplomatic attache at the US permanent mission to the United Nations in Geneva from March 2007 to February 2009." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSwitzerland seeks US response over alleged CIA bank spying

Most Americans back NSA, prioritize surveillance over privacy

"A large majority of Americans say the federal government should focus on investigating possible terrorist threats even if personal privacy is compromised, and most support the blanket tracking of telephone records in an effort to uncover terrorist activity, according to a new Washington Post-Pew Research Center poll. Fully 45 percent of all Americans say the government should be able to go further than it is, saying that it should be able to monitor everyone’s online activity if doing so would prevent terrorist attacks. A slender majority, 52 percent, say no such broad-based monitoring should occur." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMost Americans back NSA, prioritize surveillance over privacy

NSA is collecting phone records of millions of Verizon customers under secret court order

"The U.S. National Security Agency is collecting telephone records of millions of Verizon Communications customers, according to a secret court order obtained and published by the Guardian newspaper’s website. The order marked 'Top Secret' and issued by the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court directs Verizon’s Business Network Services Inc and Verizon Business Services units to hand over electronic data including all calling records on an 'ongoing, daily basis' until the order expires. Signed at the request of the FBI, the order covers each phone number dialed by all customers and location and routing data, along with the duration and frequency of the calls." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNSA is collecting phone records of millions of Verizon customers under secret court order

Speed Cameras Tear Apart Ohio Town

"The village of Elmwood Place, Ohio can no longer perform all the functions of local government, thanks to speed cameras. Four of the village's six councilmen have resigned over the way automated ticketing machines are used, and without a quorum village can no longer take any actions it faces a court contempt hearing on Tuesday. The controversy began in September 2012 when the village allowed Optotraffic to begin issuing $105 tickets using a portable speed camera with a 40 percent cut of the revenue going to the private company. Tickets were being issued at a rate that would have generated $2 million per year, or over $1000 per resident." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSpeed Cameras Tear Apart Ohio Town

The deeper agenda behind Japan’s “Abenomics”

"The policy known as 'Abenomics' is a mix of monetary easing, stimulative spending and growth-inducing steps including deregulation in sectors such as energy. Some Abe allies worry that a hasty push for constitutional changes could upset voters who want the focus to stay firmly on the economy - repeating a mistake seen as a key factor in Abe's first failed attempt to govern. 'He wants to achieve what he left undone - to break free of the ‘post-war regime',' said Koichi Hagiuda, a lawmaker and special aide to Abe. 'What is most symbolic of that is the constitution that was drafted in one short week under (U.S. General Douglas) MacArthur's Occupation.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe deeper agenda behind Japan’s “Abenomics”

Pentagon approves iPhones, iPads for military use

"The Defense Department said Friday that it has approved Apple devices for use on its networks, meaning that it can issue its employees iPhones and iPads at the office. With the announcement, Apple joins Samsung and BlackBerry on a short list of commercial smartphone makers that the Pentagon says are secure enough for its workers to use. Apple iPhones and iPads running iOS 6 meet that standard, the Defense Department said in a release. Earlier this month, the Pentagon gave its nod to new phones from Samsung that run a business-focused version of Google’s Android mobile operating system and also approved BlackBerry’s latest phones." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPentagon approves iPhones, iPads for military use

Maryland: Another City Forced To Refund Illegal Photo Tickets

"Hagerstown, Maryland announced Wednesday that it would refund 808 illegally issued speed camera tickets. Brekford Corporation mailed the citations between the end of December and January using three automated ticketing machines that failed to meet the certification requirements of state law. A motorist who intended to fight a photo ticket requested the calibration certificate for use at trial in January, but the city responded with a March 5 letter denying the request, despite the law's requiring calibration documents be kept on file." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMaryland: Another City Forced To Refund Illegal Photo Tickets

Skype with care – Microsoft is reading everything you write

"Back in January, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Reporters without Borders expressed concern that the restructuring resulting from the takeover meant that Skype would have to comply with US laws on eavesdropping and would therefore have to permit government agencies and secret services to access Skype communications. In summary, The H and heise Security believe that, having consented to Microsoft using all data transmitted over the service pretty much however it likes, all Skype users should assume that this will actually happen and that the company is not going to reveal what exactly it gets up to with this data." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSkype with care – Microsoft is reading everything you write