dhs to gain 'autonomy' under obama cybersecurity plan

dhs merges with dod/nsa under obama's cyber threat plan
from kurt nimmo: Obama has proposed legislation that will give the Department of Homeland Security more “autonomy” in its effort to protect civilian computer networks from ostensible cyber attack, according to Information Week. White House officials testified Monday before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs about the comprehensive plan presented by the administration two weeks ago to create legislation to protect critical infrastructure and networks. It will merge operations with the Pentagon.

“One key aspect of the plan is to put the DHS’s mission to protect U.S. federal civilian networks on par with the DOD’s mission to protect U.S. military networks, giving the DHS more autonomy to act against cyberthreats on behalf of the government than before,” writes Elizabeth Montalbano for the technology publication.

DHS has also sought to merge the effort with the NSA and various civilian operations.

Last October, the Obama administration adopted new procedures for using the Defense Department’s vast array of cyberwarfare capabilities in case of an attack on vital computer networks inside the United States, “delicately navigating historic rules that restrict military action on American soil,” according to the New York Times.

According to the Times, a team of military networking experts would be assigned to the operations center at the Homeland Security Department. The new approach will begin with a Department of Homeland Security team deploying to Fort Meade, Maryland, home to both the National Security Agency, which specializes in electronic espionage, and the military’s new Cyber Command.

At the time, government officials said the new rules contain “a rapid response to a cyberthreat while balancing concerns that civil liberties might be at risk should the military take over such domestic operations,” in other words the government announced effort to protect against the hyped threat of cyber terrorism would require a sacrifice of liberty.

The DHS plan announced on Monday will give “the DHS – recognizing our similar role to DOD with regard to federal civilian networks – similar authority with regard to personnel so we can bring them on board rapidly,” Philip R. Reitinger, deputy undersecretary for the DHS National Protection and Programs Directorate, told Congress.

The plan also gives DHS “much clearer authority and responsibility to work in a voluntary way” with the private sector, something it already has been doing, Reitinger added.

In 2009, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman sidestepped answering if the Pentagon’s cyber command would be capable of offensive operations as well as protecting the Department of Defense. “This command is going to focus on the protection and operation of DoD’s networks,” he said. “This command is going to do what is necessary to be able to do that.”

In 2006, a Pentagon document entitled the Information Operation Roadmap was released to the public after a Freedom of Information Request by the National Security Archive at George Washington University. It states that the Pentagon has developed a “robust offensive suite of capabilities to include full-range electronic and computer network attack… We Must Fight the Net.”

related updates:
facebook & google join forces to oppose privacy bill*
18 places censored by google maps:
from aberdeen proving grounds in maryland to... north korea*
nsa collects as much data as is stored in the entire library of congress every 6hrs?*
video: nsa whistleblower tom drake talks espionage act, 9/11 & intel with '60 minutes'*

endeavour launch set; giffords returns for husband's flight

from usa today: The space shuttle Endeavour stood poised for its final launch Sunday on Kennedy Space Center's launch pad 39A. Endeavour, with a crew of six astronauts, is scheduled to blast off this morning at 8:56 on NASA's next-to-last shuttle mission. NASA officials said Sunday that conditions — from weather to technical issues - couldn't look much better. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., the critically wounded wife of mission commander Mark Kelly, arrived Sunday at Kennedy Space Center, her staff reported... Her staff says she will not make any public appearances. Her launch viewing location has not been disclosed. The staff plans to hold a press conference after the launch. President Obama, who came for the initial launch try, will not attend. He will be in Memphis visiting residents flooded out of their homes.

Joining Kelly on the 16-day trip to the International Space Station are pilot Greg Johnson and mission specialists Greg Chamitoff, Drew Feustel, Mike Fincke and Roberto Vittori of the European Space Agency. Endeavour's grand finale is a 16-day mission to deliver a $2 billion cosmic ray detector to the space station. Also flying in the shuttle's expansive cargo bay: a pallet of large spare parts that will help keep the outpost operating through at least 2020. The flight is Endeavour's 25th since a maiden voyage 19 years ago this month. The youngest shuttle orbiter was built after Challenger and its crew were lost in 1986. The Endeavour mission faces schedule challenges as a result of the two-week slip. The delay knocked the work schedules of the shuttle and station crews out of sync.

video updates: endeavour rockets into orbit on its final flight*
NASA astronauts use robot to inspect shuttle*

5/12 defcon: secret service, globalhell, expendables

cyberwarfare rules included in defense bill*
white house to unveil cyber security proposal*
US secret service takes to twitter*
after approving nbc buyout, fcc commish becomes comcast lobbyist;
fcc chairman applauds colleague departing to become fcc lobbyist*
obama meets with giffords, husband (and his identical astro-twin) in florida*
giffords aims to return for shuttle launch*
veteran of 90’s cyber gang 'globalhell' charged in swatting conspiracy*
find out if you're a target in biggest US bittorrent lawsuit ever*
comcast says they're not blocking pirate bay -
problem appears to be impacting several isp's*
broadband leads to drug abuse, say US boffins*
under look and key: pc iris scanner security device set to go on the market in months*

updates: google's blogger finally limps back into action after over 20+hrs of downtime (the media monarchy kingdom has recovered, but others are apparently not so lucky...)*
playstation network hack launched from amazon ec2*
dropbox lied to users about data security, complaint to ftc alleges*
netflix: metered broadband a pure cash grab -
company not pulling punches in per byte debate*
mo mercy for gary mckinnon: as obama prepares for uk visit, holder insists US will not bend on extradition*
vigilant guard '11: responders train for cyber attack on madison power grid*
video: california students jam out with musical robots*

4/28 defcon: guilt trips down the surveillance highway

obama on manning: 'he broke the law' - so much for fair trial*
video: 'pentagon papers' whistleblower daniel ellsberg says bradley manning can't get fair trial after obama's comment*
some fbi cyber agents lack adequate skills, report finds*
tomtom apologies for giving customer driving data to cops*
android data tied to users? some say yes*
facebook looks to cash in on user data*
apple says they 'must have' comprehensive user location data on you - and you will comply*
sony says credit card data at risk in playstation hack*
sony unveils ipad rival tablets*
'a vast, global online network of homeless people'*
miniature drone to drop tracking dust onto people*
cryptogon.com on 'the future where soda cans have screens'*
limewire facing billion-dollar damages trial*
video: ice uses seized domains for 'best anti-piracy video ever'*
spacex aims to put man on mars in 10-20yrs*
seti institute to shut down alien-seeking radio dishes*
alpha magnetic spectrometer to go on endeavour shuttle*
gabrielle giffords can attend husband's shuttle launch*
endeavor shuttle launch: time, where to watch*

4/21 defcon: manning up & tracking you down

manning under mental evaluation, being moved to kansas*
protesters interrupt obama to sing support for wikileaks suspect*
neo-nazi freed, online speech protected*
president obama's 4/20 facebook townhall*
facebook installs solar panels at new data center*
poker today, alternative news tomorrow?:
video: US shuttering online gambling sites*
video: white house authoring new cybersecurity bill granting expanded powers to dhs*
obama pushes chinese-style internet id system*
iphone keeps record of everywhere you go*
researcher says iphone location data already used by cops*
oak ridge, top federal lab, hacked in phishing attack*
nasa awards $270m in spaceship contracts*
video: april 29 set for shuttle launch*

obama moves forward with internet id plan

from cnet: The Obama administration said today that it's moving ahead with a plan for broad adoption of Internet IDs despite concerns about identity centralization, and hopes to fund pilot projects next year.

At an event hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C., administration officials downplayed privacy and civil liberties concerns about their proposal, which they said would be led by the private sector and not be required for Americans who use the Internet.

There's "no reliable way to verify identity online" at the moment, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said, citing the rising tide of security threats including malware and identity theft that have grown increasingly prevalent over the last few years. "Passwords just won't cut it here."

A 55-page document (PDF) released by the White House today adds a few more details to the proposal, which still remains mostly hazy and inchoate.

It offers examples of what the White House views as an "identity ecosystem," including obtaining a digital ID from an Internet service provider that could be used to view your personal health information, or obtaining an ID linked to your cell phone that would let you log into IRS.gov to view payments and file taxes. The idea is to have multiple identity providers that are part of the same system.

Administration officials plan to convene a series of workshops between June and September of this year that would bring together companies and advocacy groups and move closer to an actual specification for what's being called the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace, or NSTIC.

Left unsaid was that the series of workshops, which will be open to the public, will give the proposal's backers a chance to downplay concerns that it could become the virtual equivalent of a national ID card.

During his speech, Locke lashed out at the "conspiracy theory set" who have criticized the proposal. A column in NetworkWorld.com, for instance, called NSTIC a "great example of rampant, over-reaching, ignorant, and ill-conceived political foolishness."

flashback: obama wants 'identity ecosystem' for online users

white house wants new copyright law crackdown

from cnet: The White House today proposed sweeping revisions to U.S. copyright law, including making "illegal streaming" of audio or video a federal felony and allowing FBI agents to wiretap suspected infringers. In a 20-page white paper (PDF), the Obama administration called on the U.S. Congress to fix "deficiencies that could hinder enforcement" of intellectual property laws... In October 2008, President Bush signed into law the so-called Pro IP ACT, which created Espinel's position and increased penalties for infringement, after expressing its opposition to an earlier version. Unless legislative proposals--like one nearly a decade ago implanting strict copy controls in digital devices--go too far, digital copyright tends not to be a particularly partisan topic. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act, near-universally disliked by programmers and engineers for its anti-circumvention section, was approved unanimously in the U.S. Senate. At the same time, Democratic politicians tend to be a bit more enthusiastic about the topic. Biden was a close Senate allypicked top copyright industry lawyers for Justice Department posts of copyright holders, and President Obama. Last year, Biden warned that "piracy is theft." No less than 78 percent of political contributions from Hollywood went to Democrats in 2008, which is broadly consistent with the trend for the last two decades, according to OpenSecrets.org.

related: dem rep intros bill to give dhs larger cybersecurity role

3/3 defcon: fascism, fake friends, foia

obama joins critics of nonprofit group that oversees internet;

or, obama & china agree: fascist dictators should control the net*
army of fake social media friends to promote propaganda*
centcom says spy bloggers not 'friending' US targets*
bradley manning charged with 22 new counts, including capital offense*
when westboro won't take no for an answer, anonymous hacks - live!*
chaos as anonymous attacks toilet paper, sweden, itself*
scotus says at&t not exempt from foia*
if watson can win jeopardy, can ibm make cities smarter?*
'minority report'-style shopping? billboard profiles, shows ads tailored to your tastes*

2/17 defcon: cyber-coup, backdoor & track more

cyber-attack hits canadian government computers*
report: egypt shut down net with big switch, not phone calls*
voice of america uses social media to aid foreign dissent*
surveillance footage & code clues indicate stuxnet hit iran*
cia head panetta warns of possible cyber-pearl harbor*
lynn urges partnership against cyber threat*
dod talks up plans to deploy cybercommandos 3.0*
video: hillary announces expanded US cyber-coup campaign*
US intelligence officials concerned about cyber attack*
'kill switch' internet bill alarms privacy experts*
cyberwar issues likely to be addressed only after a catastrophe*
fema loses official lesson reports on katrina, floods, fires*
feds seize 18 more domains in piracy crackdown*
fbi to announce significant new wiretap push:
backdoors galore in everything from skype to bittorrent*
online 'do not track' bill introduced in congress*
internet searches beginning to be used as evidence in trials*
obama/holder case against assange dribbles away*
jobs, schmidt & zuckerberg meet with obama in san francisco*
reminder: facebook & google are cia fronts*

phobos mystery

Why does Martian Moon Phobos generate intense interest? In 1959, Russian Samuilovich Shklovsky, an astronomer, suggested Phobos may be artificial, since he concluded the moon's orbit was decaying and could only be due to a very low density, possibly, even hollow. Buzz Aldrin, former astronaut, touted Phobos to President Obama as key to permanent space settlement. Aldrin also stirred interest with comments about the Phobos monolith. Richard C. Hoagland declares Phobos an artificial satellite that orbits three times a day around Mars just 4,000 miles above the surface. The orbit of Phobos is lower than any other moon in the solar system. Hoagland views grooves detected on Phobos as an object coming apart at the seams due to the pull of gravity.

The fate of the Russian Phobos 2 satellite probe is most astonishing, "the last transmission from Phobos 2 was a photograph of a gigantic cylindrical spaceship -- a huge, approx. 20km long, 1.5km diameter cigar-shaped 'mothership', that was photographed on 25 March 1989 hanging or parked next to the Martian moon Phobos by the Soviet unmanned sonde Phobos 2. After that last frame was radio-transmitted back to Earth, the probe mysteriously disappeared; according to the Russians it was destroyed - possibly knocked out with an energy pulse beam." A You Tube video covers the story of Phobos 1 and 2 here.

killswitch: obama admin fears egypt-style revolt in US

from paul joseph watson: The Obama administration is busy attempting to pass legislation that would give the President a kill switch for the Internet in the United States while at the same time decrying Egyptian authorities for shutting down the Internet in a bid to deflate the unfolding revolution against Hosni Mubarak. The reason is simple – the government fears an Egypt-style revolt occurring in the U.S. and wants to block access to the world wide web if and when it happens... While Obama criticizes Egyptian authorities for shutting down web access to disrupt protesters, his own administration prepares to launch a fresh attempt at instituting the exact same powers in America, which as recent history clearly demonstrates, represent tools for tyrannical regimes who wish to silence legitimate political opposition.

related: dhs' new terror alert system to use facebook, twitter

11/25 defcon: sick, switch, risks

US launches giant eavesdropping satellite*
govt focusing on cyber warfare, armed forces chief reveals*
study says wifi makes trees sick*
3rd eye: nyu artist gets camera implanted in head*
should obama's 'internet kill switch' power be curbed?*
cyber shopping poses fraud risks*
wikileaks diplomatic cable dump reportedly imminent*

10/14 defcon: settlements, citizenship & commercial gain

school district pays $610k to settle webcam spying lawsuits*
dhs scoured social media sites during obama inauguration for 'items of interest'*
applying for citizenship? US citizenship & immigration wants to be your 'friend'*
iranian, chinese computers also hacked dc internet voting system*
comcast pushes bot alert program nationwide*
facebook is 'killing privacy for commercial gain'*
update: superbombs & secret jails:
what to look for in wikileaks' upcoming iraq docs*

10/7 defcon: spooks, satnav & sightings

pentagon says 'the global cyberwar is just beginning'*
military spooks step up war on leakers*
obama pressures isp's to censor websites*
microsoft wants govt licensing net access*
aol says infowars 'whipping the internet into a frenzy of anxiety'*
iran say it has captured 'western spies' involved in nuclear cyberattack*
researchers using rat-robot hybrid to design better brain machine interfaces*
uk man dies after satnav sends him into a reservoir*
ufo forces airport closure in china*
best image yet of comet closing in on earth*

9/30 defcon: total domination & digital infringement

obama's internet wiretap move:
just one small facet of total domination project*
video: obama working on plan to wiretap skype, facebook, blackberrys & more*
wiretapped phones, now internet?*
100k+ germans ask google to blur their homes*
feds' requests for google data rise 20%*
net censorship takes center stage in 'online infringement' bill*
the leaked list & the digital economy act*
unpublished iraq war logs trigger internal wikikeaks revolt*
cia accused of using pirated software for drone assassination attacks*
fmr stasi cryptographers now develop technology for nato*

appeals court guts landmark computer-privacy ruling

from threat level: Bowing to the Obama administration, a federal appeals court Monday gutted its own decision that had dramatically narrowed the government’s search-and-seizure powers in the digital age.

The 9-2 ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals nullifies Miranda-style guidelines the court promulgated last year that were designed to protect Fourth Amendment privacy rights during court-authorized computer searches. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, as solicitor general last year, had urged the court to reverse itself amid complaints that federal prosecutions were being complicated, and computer searches were grinding to a halt, because of the detailed guidelines.

The original ruling required the government to cull specific data described in the search warrant, rather than copy entire hard drives. When that’s not possible, the feds were advised to use an independent third party under the court’s supervision, whose job it would be to comb through the files for the specific information, and provide it, and nothing else, to the government. The ruling said judges should “deny the warrant altogether” if the government does not consent to such a plan in data-search cases...

Monday’s 58-page ruling (.pdf) in a rehearing of the case still excludes the evidence, and reiterates that law enforcement cannot use seized materials in a computer search that are beyond the scope of the warrant. But the ruling omits the detailed guidance to which the Obama administration had objected.

defcon 8/5: gold mines & greatest threats

the web's new gold mine: your secrets*
obama wants fbi to access browsing history without warrant*
google & verizon near deal on pay tiers for web*
biometric & other locks fail to foil hackers at defcon*
now aiming to seize control, hackers target power plants as US, industry scramble to respond*
'greatest threat': dhs battles hackers head on*

defcon 7/22: bleaker for bloggers

false flag cyber attack could takedown the internet*
obama joins un to dictate acceptable behavior on the net*
feds ignore 1st amendment, shut down 1000s of blogs*
google launches coverup of 'google spies' story*
google's china changes in line with law*
wikileaks reopens for leakers*

defcon 7/15: tracked, traced & databased

10 ways we are being tracked, traced & databased*
consumer group sniffs congresswoman's open wi-fi*
this is what it sounds like when the internet cries*
white house plan to safeguard cyberspace*
cybersecurity consensus: 'we haven't done enough'*
nasa space shuttle firm to cut 1,000 jobs*
hacking the electric grid? you and what army?*
fmr nsa exec thomas a. drake may pay high price for media leak*
nsa executive leaked after official reporting process failed*
mobile phones 'causing memory loss'*
US scientists create cloth that can listen, produce sound*
1000s of laptops stolen during 9hr heist*
video: teens using digital drugs to get high*

defcon 7/1: fight the net, biomet & int'l sex station

the secret state's mad scheme to control the net*
comprehensive cyber legislation approved*
windows 8 features, like biometrics, revealed in leaked microsoft documents*
white hat uses foursquare privacy hole to capture 875k check-ins*
impediments to a post-scarcity future*
obama space plan under continuous assault*
nasa commander says sex banned aboard international space station*