From the Trenches World Report
Enforce our Bill of Rights
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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. Continue reading “The NSA is gathering your social-networking connections, what about the FBI?”
A Florida police officer who forced a young woman to lift her shirt and shake out her bra during a routine traffic stop has been suspended without pay for one day.
The punishment was handed down to Lakeland Police Officer Dustin Fetz Wednesday after video of the May 21 traffic stop of Zoe Brugger sparked outrage in Lakeland and across the country. Continue reading “Officer who made woman shake out her bra during routine traffic stop is suspended for ONE DAY”
U.S. journalists should be able to enter the country without fear of detention or intimidation.
But government authorities have been stopping journalists, whistleblowers and many other travelers on a regular basis, seizing their electronic devices and examining them without search warrants. Continue reading “Demand That Attorney General Holder Stop the Harassment of Journalists”
The US Department of Justice spent millions of dollars purchasing small unarmed drones for domestic use over the last decade, but the department lacks a comprehensive policy for the unmanned aircraft — despite growing concern about their use.
In a report released Thursday, the DOJ’s inspector general, Michael E. Horowitz, said the department’s agencies had an “uncoordinated approach” to their use of drones. Continue reading “US Department of Justice spent millions on domestic drones”
Huffington Post – by Paige Lavender
National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander said the NSA wants to collect more phone records, even after being the subject of recent public unease.
Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.) asked Alexander if the NSA wants “the phone records of all Americans” during a congressional hearing Thursday. Continue reading “Keith Alexander: In Best Interest Of U.S. To ‘Put All The Phone Records’ Into A Searchable ‘Lockbox’”
Article first appeared in the ACLU blog:
The Vera Institute of Justice study “Coming of Age with Stop and Frisk: Experiences, Self-Perceptions, and Public Safety Implications” examines the experiences of those growing up in the neighborhoods in New York City where people are most likely to be stopped. The study surveyed over 500 young adults and conducted in-depth interviews nearly 50 more, and paints a rich picture of what actually happens during stops, and why this matters for the safety of the most heavily policed communities. Continue reading “‘Stop & Frisk’ was ruled unconstitutional so why is it expanding to police dept’s. across the U.S.?”
A well-known and highly respected Yemeni anti-drone activist was detained yesterday by UK officials under that country’s “anti-terrorism” law at Gatwick Airport, where he had traveled to speak at an event. Baraa Shiban, the project co-ordinator for the London-based legal charity Reprieve, was held for an hour and a half and repeatedly questioned about his anti-drone work and political views regarding human rights abuses in Yemen. Continue reading “NSA document considers anyone speaking out against the drone program to be “adversaries,” “threats” and “propagandists””
Sacramento, CA — Paparazzi and others who harass the children of public figures will face tougher penalties under legislation that California Gov. Jerry Brown signed Tuesday.
The bill from state Sen. Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, will boost penalties for actions that include taking photos and video of a child without consent and in a harassing manner. Continue reading “WTF? California governor signs bill to jail or fine photographers”
Much of the data Twitter collects about you doesn’t actually come from Twitter. Consider the little “tweet” buttons embedded on websites all over the net. Those can also function as tracking devices. Any website with a “tweet” button—from Mother Jones to Playboy—automatically informs Twitter that you’ve arrived. Last year, Twitter announced that it would start using its knowledge of your internet browsing habits to better recommend people to follow on Twitter. That’s a step beyond the approach of Facebook, which claims its “like” buttons are never used for tracking. And it’s not a big leap from there to using the same information to serve you targeted ads on all sorts of mobile platforms. Continue reading “Twitter’s MoPub can track everything you do on any device”
http://cryptome.org/2013/09/fbi-ngi-2013.pdf
FBI “Next Generation Identification” (NGI) 2012
http://cryptome.org/2013/09/fbi-ngi-2012.pdf
Federal practices for spying on social media:
http://cryptome.org/2013/09/fed-spy-social-media.pdf
600 law enforcement agencies use some form of social media: Continue reading “The FBI’s “Next Generation Identification” (NGI) 2013″
The AP states that the review panel is lodged in offices provided by the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). Even more, the DNI is running its media strategy, vetting requests through its own press office. Any whiff of independence that the group might have hoped to engender is now certainly gone. Continue reading “The NSA Review Panel Is An Even Bigger Joke Than We Previously Thought”
Electronic Frontier Foundation – by HANNI FAKHOURY
As the highest court in Massachusetts considers whether cell-site data is private in the context of the Fourth Amendment, we filed an amicus brief arguing that when the police want to be able to recreate your every step—figuring out your patterns of movement, where you’ve been and with whom—they must obtain a search warrant. Continue reading “New Amicus Brief Urges Massachusetts to Require Warrants for Cell Tracking”
Last month came word that Ohio’s sneaky Attorney General Mike DeWine had quietly integrated facial recognition software into the Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway, a state database that includes driver’s license photos. Caught, the AG promised to create a commission to develop protocols for using the technology, tacitly admitting that no safeguards were in place on a system that turned every Ohio driver into a participant in a police line-up—if the system were used as intended—and a potential stalking target by any whack job with a badge. Now comes news that the ranks of potential whack jobs with access to the database are larg, indeed—larger than in any other state, at least. Continue reading “30,000 Cops Can Access Ohio’s Facial Recognition Database Without Oversight, Says Report”
MIT Technology Review- by Tom Simonite
Facebook is set to get an even better understanding of the 700 million people who share details of their personal lives using the social network each day.
A new research group within the company is working on an emerging and powerful approach to artificial intelligence known as deep learning, which uses simulated networks of brain cells to process data. Applying this method to data shared on Facebook could allow for novel features, and perhaps boost the company’s ad targeting. Continue reading “Facebook Launches Advanced AI Effort to Find Meaning in Your Posts”
IntelliHub – by Andrew Pontbriand
The FBI is once again circulating documents to local police departments about Potential Terrorist behaviors. Such infamous documents include ones like the MIAC Report, and the Modern Militia Movement. These documents are called circulars, and the FBI is using them to federalize State, City, and Local Police Departments. Continue reading “FBI: 9/11 Truth is Terrorism”
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Tech Crunch – by Alex Wilhelm 
Reason – by J.D. Tuccille