blog.benschumacher.com

It looks like the Gub’ment is finally starting to listen to the Americans who don’t want their privacy invaded under the guise of homeland security. Check it out

The US House of Representatives passed a measure curtailing the federal government’s access to library and book shop records by a 238-187 vote on Wednesday.

US Representative Bernie Sanders (Independent, Vermont) sponsored an amendment to the House Justice Subcommittee appropriations bill. The amendment prevents the US Department of Justice (DoJ) from using appropriated funds to obtain library patrons’ and book shoppers’ records without a search warrant, a practice previously allowed under Section 215 of the so-called “Patriot” Act.

That makes me proud to be an American.

Normally I tend to ignore the silliness that pops up on April Fool’s Day, but I thought this bit from the EFF was just too good to let pass. Check it out:

Alpharetta, GA - Diebold Election Systems and Choicepoint, Inc., today announced a joint venture that could revolutionize the voting market. The concept is simple: combine Diebold’s demonstrated expertise in voting systems with Choicepoint’s superior data-mining techniques to produce PredictaVote™ – the first 100 percent voter-free, predictive voting system.

“The beauty of this approach is that it is self-correcting,” explained Choicepoint CEO Derrick Sithe. “If someone wants to increase the chances that his or her vote will be counted correctly, the voter simply needs to open up more of his or her life to our data-collection methods. Apply for more credit cards. Register for more grocery loyalty cards. Purchase more subscriptions. Fill out more warranty cards. Compare that to today’s paperless e-voting machines, where voters have no way to determine whether votes are accurately counted. There’s really no comparison.”

There’s more here. (I figured you’d appreciate this one, Jon.)

I just read an article on News.com about a number of Windows-based ATMs, manufactured by Diebold, were hit by the Welchia (or Nachi) worm, and shutdown. Check out this quote:

Computer security experts predicted more problems to come as Windows migrates to critical systems consumers rely on.

An unknown number of ATMs running Windows XP Embedded were shut down during the spread of the so-called Nachi worm, said executives at Diebold, which made the ATMs and refused to name the customers affected.

...

"It's a harbinger of things to come," said Bruce Schneier, chief technical officer of network monitoring company Counterpane Internet Security.

"Specific-purpose machines, like microwave ovens and until now ATM machines, never got viruses," said Schneier, author of "Beyond Fear: Thinking Sensibly About Security in an Uncertain World." "Now that they are using a general purpose operating system, Diebold should expect a lot more of this in the future," he said.

John Pescatore, an analyst at Gartner, agreed.

"It's a horrendous security mistake," he said of specific-purpose machines like ATMs running Windows, which is written for general-purpose computers and for which Microsoft releases security fixes on a regular basis. "I'm a lot more worried about my money than I was before this."

from Worm hits Windows-based ATMs

Why is this important? Well... aside from the obvious concern we should have for our money in banks, we should also be concerned with our ability to vote. In addition to ATMs, Diebold makes voting machines, based on Windows and already known to have a number of security problems, which could be vulnerable to viruses, as well. Chilling, eh?

PCWorld.com has an article about a "Jane Doe" that is fighting back against the RIAA. Here's the blurb:

The case represents the first challenge by an individual to the efforts of the Recording Industry Association of America to thwart online piracy by filing hundreds of subpoenas with ISPs across the United States, requesting information on individual file traders whom the group believes may be guilty of copyright infringement.

Glenn Peterson and Dan Ballard, lawyers with the Sacramento-based law firm of McDonough, Holland & Allen, which is representing the "Jane Doe," said in a statement that the RIAA's subpoena campaign has far-reaching implications in terms of consumer rights and privacy.

"The recent efforts of the music industry to root out piracy have addressed a uniquely contemporary problem with draconian methods--good old-fashioned intimidation combined with access to personal information that would make George Orwell blush," Peterson said in the statement.

from Computer User Challenges RIAA

It'll be interesting to see how this one turns out. The decision will, no doubt, have a tremendous impact on both file sharing networks, and privacy rights for internet users in the United States.