Government

Mon
07
Oct
Dennis Faas's picture

FBI Shuts Down Billion-Dollar Online Drug Market

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has arrested and charged a man accused of running a notorious Internet "underground market" that let users trade illegal drugs and weapons. The "Silk Road" site combined a range of technologies to offer users ... greater secrecy. The site was part of the so-called "dark Internet": the collection of sites that were part of the Internet but were not reachable through ordinary links. Users could only visit the site by using software known as TOR, or The Onion Router. The name came from the way that data sent through the software was redirected through thousands of ... (view more)

Mon
09
Sep
Dennis Faas's picture

NSA Can Read Most Encrypted Emails, Texts: Report

After the National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance scandal broke earlier this year, many Internet users have attempted to protect their private data . In some cases this simply involves deleting temporary Internet files. Others, however, have ... gone a step further by using encryption techniques to protect sensitive information stored in emails and text messages. However, a new report from Britain's The Guardian newspaper and non-profit organization ProPublica reveals that the NSA has tools that allow it to read many encrypted messages. NSA Invests Billions in Decryption Research The report ... (view more)

Tue
03
Sep
Dennis Faas's picture

Microsoft, Google Push Forward with NSA Lawsuit

Microsoft and Google say they really want you to know how much of your personal information they're passing on to the National Security Agency (NSA). In a bid to gain that right, the tech titans are suing the United States government. The lawsuit is ... the result of data collection by the NSA. The agency has been at the center of a media firestorm ever since whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed the extent of the NSA's surveillance programs earlier this year. Negotiations with U.S. Government Break Down Microsoft and Google want consumers to know how much information they're forced to pass on to ... (view more)

Wed
14
Aug
Dennis Faas's picture

NSA Reveals Extent of its Internet Traffic Spying

The secretive National Security Agency (NSA) insists it only studies about 1.6 per cent of all Internet traffic. The agency suggests that means its level of data collection is comparable in scope to a "dime on a basketball court." The NSA was at the ... center of a media firestorm earlier this year when whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed the details about the agency's controversial PRISM surveillance program. Snowden is now hiding out in Russia (where he's been granted asylum) while, back home, U.S. President Barack Obama faces tough questions about the NSA's activity. NSA Studies Tiny ... (view more)

Thu
18
Jul
Dennis Faas's picture

Microsoft Slams US Gov't, NSA Over Security Gag

Microsoft has flatly denied claims that the National Security Agency (NSA) has direct access to Outlook email accounts. The firm is also criticizing the US government for preventing it from discussing NSA snooping with the public. Last week, several ... sources claimed Microsoft had given the National Security Agency help bypassing the encryption meant to keep its webmail services, such as Outlook.com, confidential. The same reports suggested Microsoft had allowed the NSA to intercept Skype conversations and access files stored through the SkyDrive service. (Source: pcworld.com ) Microsoft's ... (view more)

Wed
19
Jun
Dennis Faas's picture

Yahoo, Apple Reveal Links to NSA Snooping Scandal

Yahoo and Apple have revealed how the US government accesses their customers' private information. It's part of an ongoing campaign by tech firms to try to avoid being tainted by the ongoing National Security Agency's PRISM scandal . Until recently ... neither Yahoo nor Apple had discussed their role in the scandal, which involves government surveillance and secretive data requests. However, both firms have now published statistics showing how many times the government demanded information about their customers. Yahoo Hit With 2,000 Data Requests A Month Yahoo says that between the beginning of ... (view more)

Mon
17
Jun
Dennis Faas's picture

NSA Scandal: Google Reveals How It Shares Your Data

Google has revealed extensive details about what it does when the government asks for access to your personal data. It's part of an ongoing attempt by the search giant to distance itself from the National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance scandal . ... Google's explanation is designed to make a clear point: that it delivers the data directly to the government, rather than allowing the government to physically access Google computers. The company wants to make clear it doesn't allow officials the opportunity to access more data than the law requires. (Source: nytimes.com ) Google continues to ... (view more)

Fri
14
Jun
Dennis Faas's picture

NSA Says Spying Helped Thwart Terrorists

The National Security Agency (NSA) has drawn all sorts of anger after a whistleblower revealed that it was using prominent tech programs and services to spy on people. In its defence, the NSA says it has been able to use the PRISM surveillance ... program to prevent terrorists from carrying through with planned attacks. General Keith Alexander, the director of the National Security Agency, recently testified that the part of the Patriot Act giving the NSA permission to snoop on people (Section 215) has resulted in the disruption of "dozens of terrorists plots." Democrats, Republicans Question NSA ... (view more)

Wed
12
Jun
Dennis Faas's picture

Microsoft, Google, Facebook Unite Against NSA

Some of the world's biggest technology companies say they're not happy about revelations involving the National Security Agency (NSA) and data collection. The firms are forming a united front in a quest to create greater transparency around this ... kind of surveillance. Last week whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed the National Security Agency had been using a controversial surveillance program known as PRISM to spy on users of major Internet programs and services. This included users of products provided by Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo, YouTube, Skype, America Online, and Apple. ... (view more)

Mon
10
Jun
Dennis Faas's picture

NSA Snooping on Google, Facebook Users: Report

Leaked documents claim the U.S. government has direct access to user data for some of the web's most popular services. Officials admit the program exists but insist it's only being used to targeting foreigners who may pose a threat to U.S. national ... security. The documents were reportedly leaked from a National Security Agency (NSA) program called PRISM to the British newspaper The Guardian. The documents say the program involves NSA officials gaining direct access to the servers of nine tech companies, including Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook, PalTalk, YouTube, Skype, AOL and Apple. ( ... (view more)

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Government