civil-liberties

BC cops get ‘directed acoustic device’

“What makes the LRAD product unique is its ability to transmit your message with exceptional voice intelligibility and tonal clarity in a highly directional beam, even with significant ambient noise,” says the text accompanying the pic on the right. It goes on: “The directionality of the LRAD device reduces the risk of exposing nearby personnel or peripheral bystanders to harmful audio levels.” LRAD is short for long-range hailing and warning, directed acoustic device. Clearly, “reduces the risk” of exposure to “to harmful audio levels” means the risk does exist.

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Saturday, November 14th, 2009 P2P News No Comments

Scanning IDs in BC bars

Advertising firm Google isn’t the only entity being criticised for scooping up private and personal information. “Despite a ruling by British Columbia’s Privacy Commissioner telling them not to, some bars are still collecting your personal information as part of the Bar Watch program,” said CTV , going on, “The bars insist that they are not defying the commissioner – just that their patrons’ safety has to come first.” The Victoria Bar and Cabaret Association, “initially said members would continue scanning IDs” because an earlier ruling applied only to the Vancouver nightclub where the complaint originated, says the Victoria Times Colonist . But Friday, “the association acceded to the privacy watchdog’s insistence the ruling applied to bars across the province,” it says, adding: “The nine bars in Victoria that installed the EnterSafe computer system to scan people’s IDs and take their photos before entering the establishment were not scanning IDs Friday night,” according to the bar association’s spokesman Scott Gurney.

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Monday, July 27th, 2009 P2P News 1 Comment

Internet Villain Mulls 3 Strikes For Australian Pirates

When it comes to Internet issues in Australia, Senator Stephen Conroy is becoming increasingly unpopular. Best known for his plans to filter the Internet, Conroy has managed to annoy an increasing number of prominent industry figures – the very people he absolutely needs onside if any of his plans are to come to fruition. Last year the chief of ISP iiNet Michael Malone labeled Conroy as “the worst Communications Minister we’ve had in the 15 years since the [Internet] industry has existed,” and this year the ISP pulled out of filtering trials, saying the filter would not work.

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Wednesday, July 15th, 2009 P2P News No Comments

Obama Cybersecurity Report Addresses Critical Infrastructure and Privacy Issues

A cybersecurity report published by the White House on Friday provides a list of wide-ranging guidelines advising President Barack Obama on how the government should proceed in its national plan to secure cyberspace. It touches on everything from establishing communication networks for emergency response teams to the role government should play in the protection of critical infrastructure networks and whether or not entities that experience a breach should have to notify governments and law enforcement agencies. Privacy and civil liberties concerns receive a repeated nod, with privacy being mentioned in the report more than five dozen times.

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Friday, May 29th, 2009 P2P News No Comments

Obama to name Cyber Czar

p2pnet news view Security | P2P:- The pic on the right is a clip from Ellen Nakashima’s photo to her Washington Post story on the impending appointment of a US ‘cyber czar’. It features “ defense analyst’ Daniel Ragoza as he, “investigates intrusions into military and contractors’ networks”. Would someone such as Daniel have fingered Gary McKinnon , the UK hacker who, looking for material on UFOs, penetrated US systems, and who’s now fighting extradition to America?

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Wednesday, May 27th, 2009 P2P News No Comments