Over the last several months, tensions between the USA and communist country North Korea have escalated. North Korea even sent a satellite that flew over the Super Bowl. And it wasn’t a friendly gesture. Now, someone has come up with a way to deal with the most isolated nation in the world: flash drives!
At the South by Southwest festival, there was a booth called?Flash Drives for Freedom. They had a display where visitors can put a flash drive in a mouth of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. There were hundreds of mouths you could put a flash drive in. This isn’t just some joke or social-political statement. Flash Drives for Freedom collects flash drives, filled them with Korean language, and smuggle them into North Korea. Around 7,500 made it there last year. They’re going for 25,000 this year. These drives contain Western news, e-books, movies, music, and then some. But how do they get past the super strict North Korean border guards? Apparently, all it takes is $50, or some cigarettes and alcohol to bribe them and get the flash drives to the North Korean people. But if you want to get involved, you don’t have to worry about the bribery or smuggling part. You don’t even have to worry about the Korean language part. All you have to do is send flash drives to Flash Drives for Freedom’s headquarters (check the link).
Will this movement work? I hope so. The demand among the North Korean people is there. The black market for anything and everything Western is booming. Many in North Korean society are hungry for a taste of freedom. Maybe that’s why dictator Kim Jong Un and and his cronies are trying to clamp down on freedom more than ever. You have to understand, everything is controlled in North Korea: the media, the food, jobs, money. Every move you make is watched. Even minor offenses can get you killed, forced in a labor camp, and never heard from again. Now do you see the demand for these freedom flash drives?
On the morning of March 22, 2016, terrorists struck Brussels, Belgium. Bombs were exploded in Brussels’ Zaventem Airport, the region’s main international airport and Maalbeck Metro Station, the city’s downtown rail hub. As of this writing, 34 people are confirmed dead and over 250 are injured. Terror group ISIS claimed responsibility.
In the wake of this tragedy, Google announced it will offer free calls made to Belgium and Turkey through programs Hangouts, Hangouts Dialer and Google Voice. Landline calls to Belgium and Turkey will be free through Hangouts via desktop or smartphone app. ?Google is updating Google Now cards to provide information about transportation. When the attack happened, all Brussels based flights and rail operations shut down. It could be days, if not weeks, before airports and train stations get back to normal. If necessary, Google’s Now cards will include direct link with Belgium’s Government Crisis Centre. Communication in Brussels is still very crippled, but Google and other social media sites vowed to keep their lines of communication open. Brussels officials and political leaders are asking citizens to limit smartphone use to a minimum, just enough to let next of kin know they’re okay. For example, Facebook, activated it’s safety check app. This app allows you to connect with loved ones through Facebook if disaster strikes near you. It played a critical role during the attacks in Paris back in November 2015. This was especially true in those first chaotic hours, when many didn’t know if their loved ones were even dead or alive.
I give props to Google and Facebook for stepping up to the plate following this horrific attack. Obviously, our world is more connected than ever before. For some, Google and Facebook may be the only way to contact loved ones, especially in a city of crippled communication. We here at Computer Geeks send our thoughts, prayers and condolences to victims and their loved ones during this trying time. When will the madness and the meanness and monstrosities ever end?
President Barak Obama was the main event speaker at the SXSW South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas this week. President Obama urged the attendants to use technology to make America a better place and to face America’s greatest challenges today.
Such challenges include online terrorism, cyber security and education. He told the 2,000 plus attendees he’s recruiting them to find new ways to solve our greatest challenges. The event was held at Palmer Events Center downtown. This is part of a week long White House initiative to build tech-government relations. Topics included citizen access to government tools, alliances with private tech companies, and other issues, even those not being dominated by headlines. The Apple vs FBI case was brought up…somewhat. President Obama didn’t go in the specifics of the case, but he encouraged middle ground in this debate. But he did talk about finding ways to crack encryption codes to expose terror plots and cyber sociopaths like child predators. ?Obama talked about his meeting with tech leaders and filmmakers to combat the lure of online radical extremism. ?In a Medium article, digital service administrator Mikey Dickerson challenged techies to do more than build apps for food sharing and socializing. He says each of them are needed in government.
If I didn’t know any better, I think there’s a love-hate relationship between tech companies and the US government. Back in 2013, it was thought they were in cahoots in the NSA surveillance scandals.But most tech leaders came out saying they were forced to hand over customer information to the NSA. Last year, elected officials and Silicon Valley execs met to fight terrorism. Now, Apple and the FBI are in an epic battle of safety vs privacy. President Obama wants to end his presidency his relationship with the tech industry on a good note. Depending on who wins the election, do you see tech-government relations getting better or worse in the future?
Ray Tomlinson passed away ?Saturday at age 74. Some of you may have never heard of this man or his accomplishments. That needs to change.
Ray Tomlinson invented the email. He was the first to choose the @ symbol for electronic messaging. He accomplished this before many of us were even born. In 1971, he was the first to use a direct electronic message, at a time when messages were conducted only on limited networks. Decades later, Tomlinson recalled the first message between two machines. The first message was QWERTYUIOP, the first letter row on a keyboard. When he saw the message got through to the other machine, he messaged his colleagues explaining how to send them over the network. At the same time, Tomlinson invented the user@host email standard. ?The email concept was born. Even in the early ’70s, he envisioned the email being used around the world by all people. His vision didn’t really come true until the 1990s, when the Internet exploded globally, first used for a US government network. Tomlinson’s innovations won him a spot in the Internet Hall of Fame in 2012. Tributes are pouring out from former employers and Twitter feeds. He’s being remembered as a technology pioneer. More importantly, Tomlinson is being remembered as being humble, kind and generous.
Ray Tomilson’s cause of death is unknown. We at Computer Geeks sent our condolences to Ray Tomlinson’s family, friends and other loved ones. We thank Mr. Tomilson’s for his innovations and contributions to the tech world. Just about everybody uses emails today. That wouldn’t have happened if not for Ray Tomlinson. It’s amazing how one man’s invention changed the course of the world forever, though it took over 25 years to change it. We should not only remember Ray Tomlinson, but other tech heroes whose names aren’t known about. I think of people calling Tomilson humble and kind. Those adjectives are hard to come by in the tech world today. So let’s pay honor to all tech heroes, preferably while they’re still alive. Who is a tech innovator whose story needs to be told?
Last night was the last Republican debate before the critical Super Tuesday elections. As you could expect, the five remaining candidates could hardly agreed on anything. But they all agreed to side with the FBI over Apple.
The case of Apple vs FBI was brought up at the debate. Here’s an explanation of that case. When the moderator asked would he initiate a forced Apple compliance, Rubio replied, “Absolutely…their brand is not superior to the national security of the United States of America.” Ted Cruz used his legal knowledge to assure this won’t compromise Fourth Amendment rights. But Cruz believes the FBI order should be enforced when it comes to terrorists like the San Bernadino shooters. John Kasich criticized President Obama for not getting Apple and FBI together and reaching a compromise that would protect the people and ensure our rights aren’t compromised. Dr. Ben Carson fears Apple’s refusal to comply with the order could allow terrorist to think they can get away with things in America. Donald Trump has been the most outspoken of all against Apple. During an interview a week earlier, Trump replied “Who do they think they are?” He said Apple has to open the phone up. So let’s keep GOP score: FBI 5, Apple 0.
It’s not just the GOP that’s siding with Apple. A survey said the majority of the American people side with the FBI as well. Not even Democratic candidates Hilary Clinton and Bernie Sanders completely side with Apple. They both call for middle ground. So what does Tim Cook need to do to convince people he’s doing the right thing? Remember when people were so outraged when Edward Snowden’s NSA revelations came out in 2013? What happened to that? It sounds like we’ve almost gotten used to our new world. Should Tim Cook just buy some air time to explain his side of the story?
Terrorist group ISIS, or Islamic State, makes direct threats at Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. These social media outlets are fighting to silence the terrorist group’s propaganda of murder and jihad.
The Islamic State made the threats in a 25 minute propaganda video. They don’t stop with threats to Zuckerberg and Dorsey. The deep, obviously disguised voice brags about how Islamic State hacked 10,000 Facebook accounts, 5,000 Twitter profiles and 150 Facebook groups. They claim after they were hacked, the accounts were given to Islamic State supporters. The video admits this is in retaliation of Facebook and Twitter’s campaigns to suspend accounts created by the terrorist groups. Twitter has suspended 125,000 profiles linked to ISIS. The video threatened to create one for every ten Twitter profiles removed. At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Zuckerberg declared, “If we have opportunities to basically work with governments and folks to make sure that there aren’t terrorist attacks then we’re going to take these opportunities…”. There’s been pressure on other Internet companies to crack down on ISIS, especially after last fall’s terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernadino. Nobody at Facebook nor Twitter has yet to comment on this recent video.
But ISIS often uses social media for propaganda and recruitment. They’ve shown You Tube videos of them serving ice cream to kids. They’ve sent messages to lonely and venerable women promising them the world if they leave everything behind and join them in Syria, even paying for their one-way plane ticket. So Zuckerberg and Dorsey are doing what any businessman, and any concerned upstanding citizen would do. They’re protecting their businesses and customers from a serious threat by any means necessary. ?It must be working. The Islamic State wouldn’t be threatening them if it had no effect. If I saw Dorsey and Zuckerberg, I would encourage them to keep the fight up. I’d say intensify it. Don’t give in. Don’t give up. Social media should NEVER be used to recruit others for murder, war, jihad, or other acts of such demonic evil. Shouldn’t other online companies and leaders follow Dorsey and Zuckerberg’s example?
