In February 2014, Sochi, Russia, a resort city on the Black Sea, will host the Winter Olympics. Expect lots of things: pageantry, athletic competition, and surveillance. They can expect lots and lots of surveillance.
During these next Olympic games, athletes and fans in Sochi can expect every move and every conversation to be watched. That’s because the Russian government is ensuring no action or communication goes unseen. According to documents given to British newspaper The Guardian, the FSB (NSA of Russia) and Russian owned communication technology companies are in cahoots to install phone and Internet services that track everything the person is saying. They even plan to track and intersect..ahem…sensitive words, phrases and comments on social media. One article gives this example: if you were to type in or talk about one of President Vladimir Putin’s political opponents, the FSB would see it and you we be watched even more carefully.
Though I am shocked and saddened by such revelations, I can’t say that I’m surprised. When you look at what the NSA has been accused of doing over here, and Russia’s history, it was only a matter of time before the Olympics would get this treatment. I don’t condone it by any means. Yes, I know safety and security must be a priority, especially in the new dangerous world we’re in. But remember what founding father Benjamin Franklin taught us, “Those who are willing to give up liberty for security deserve neither.” But I don’t think it’s about security here. Note that if you mention a political opponent, you’re subject to more scrutiny. The NSA doesn’t even go that far, I don’t think. What’s the real reason behind this Winter Olympic surveillance?
In the last few days, we’ve learned more about the National Security Agency. And believe me, it’s more than any of us want to know, yet it’s what we need to know.
According to certain news articles, they’ve put together a sophisticated graphing system that can identify who our friends are, where we’re traveling, who we’re traveling with, and other personal information. They use phone calls and emails to graph where the person and going and who they’re associating with in the name of foreign intelligence. They can get the info from social media sites, banking systems, GPS systems, even from voter registration rolls. Of course, The NSA declined to comment on how many Americans were spied on with this system. They didn’t say if anybody doing wrong was ever caught because of this graphing system.? Here’s something else I learned: as early as 1979, the US Supreme Court ruled Americans shouldn’t expect privacy when it came to phone calls and numbers.
But just when you think you have the right answers, the questions change again. If rulings against privacy were around in the ’70s, it makes me wonder how long this has been going on? Or did the current NSA see this ruling and take advantage of it? Are you aware due to RFID technology, you can be tracked anywhere? Remember the new passports that started being issued in the mid 2000s? Those passports have RFID tracking devices in them. That’s right! When you go overseas, they can find out where you are with a flip of a computer. I wish I could be naive and say, “They’re only doing this to the bad guys”. But when you think about what we’ve learned so far this year, can we really say that?
Over the past week, the United Nations had a huge assembly. One of the big issues was US/Iran tensions. Well, this revelation might put a small cramp in easing these tensions.
U.S. officials said Iran hacked into Navy computers. The most recent of these allegations came around September 15. Officials said the hacking was done by Iranian leaders or by rouge Iranian groups with the leaders’ approval. It’s believed nothing big was stolen, but just the mere fact they can and are hacking is concerning enough to the US. Also concerning is the aggression and rhetoric of Iran in recent years, now add their cyber abilities. The Pentagon hasn’t confirmed it and Tehran has denied it. But a former State Dept. official calls Iran ‘very active’ in the cyber hacking game. So I don’t expect this to go away anytime soon.
Now Iran has a new president named Hasan Rouhani. He’s said to be more moderate than the Iran’s last president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. This past week, Rouhani and President Obama talked about negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program. Over the past years, Iran insists it’s for peaceful purposes, but many say the program has sinister intentions. Some say Rouhani isn’t as moderate as he appears. So I wonder what he says, if he says anything, about these hacking allegations. Both sides seem to be keeping hush, but I wonder what’s being said behind closed doors. But the two sides looked pretty good when addressing each other. What are these hacking allegations going to do to US/Iranian relations?
Sometimes the phrase “I told you so” just doesn’t do justice. All those millions of people who ran to purchase the iPhone 5S, I speak for every critic when I tell you, ‘We told you so!’
Surely one of the big selling points of this new iPhone was the fingerprint system. Instead of a password, you set up your own fingerprint to log into your system. Well, not only did German hackers break into that system, they did so with ease! A German hacker named Starbug was surprised at how easy it was. He criticized Apple for building this program that’s eventually going to get hacked into. Starbug even tells us we can hack into Apple’s fingerprint system. All we need is an image scanner, laser printer and a PCB etching kit. Though he considers Touch ID valuable, it’s valuable for convenience, not security. In other words, you can save a few seconds with a fingerprint. But it won’t keep you any safer than a password can.
So there you have it. If Touch ID is the only reason you bought the latest Apple, I’m sorry. I don’t want to say you wasted time and money, but…? It makes me think how easy it is for anything or anyone to be hacked. I’ll never forget the story of how hackers can break into a car and disrupt the system.? So I’m not surprised this was broken into. I ask the question: Is there any such thing as a hack-free system?
Back in 2009, due to an uprising, Iran’s government blocked and censored social media sites in an attempt to slow down protests and demonstrations. They found software to hook up to networks outside the country to show their struggle to the world.
Isn’t that supposed to teach Iranian leaders about censorship? Apparently not. Their Facebook and Twitter rights have been taken away after some found they could get around the gov’t blockage they set up back in 2009. Iran has a new president, Hassan Rouhani. He’s considered a moderate by many people. He promises to reduce censorship. Some of Rouhani’s cabinet members even have Facebook and Twitter accounts. It’s believed many anti-censorship groups have tasseled with censors over blocked Web sites. And for a while, the anti-censorship groups opened glitches to expose Facebook and Twitter. But the Iranian censors took back Web control and the blocking went back on.
You know, with all the problems our nation has, we should consider ourselves blessed. We are fortunate to live in a country where we can log on social media sites without blockage or censorship. That’s why I’m so weay about the NSA surveillance scandals because I worry about what it could lead to. But yes, we should all be thankful our leaders will never have the power Iran does pull this injustice. I’d encourage those in Iran who are fighting censorship to keep fighting the good fight. They did back in 2009, and opened all our eyes to what goes on in that land. Now I’m nobody to tell people how to run their country. But I believe all should have an opportunity to have access through social media. Shouldn’t every peace loving peace loving person have that right?
On Sept. 20, Apple will release it’s iPhone 5S. I don’t see much difference between this Phone and other iPhones, but there is one. Apple iPhone 5S has a piece of security technology unavailable to all other devices.
That difference is an ID scanning system. Instead of typing in a password, you can scan your finger on the home button to unlock this newest member of the iPhone family. It’s called ID Touch. Millions will probably want to at least test this technology out. For Touch ID, customers launch the app, set up a single fingerprint, the fingerprint goes on the home button. It will tell you that you successfully set up the app. To re-open the iPhone 5S, put your finger on the home button. If successful, you go into your phone. If not, a red fingerprint icon will appear.
I appreciate what they’re doing and why they’re doing it. I’m sure most of you know how difficult it can be to keep up with passwords every account and device. There is the temptation to give everything the same password, but that can lead to serious trouble. So fingerprints might be the answer. I must admit, it’s unique and borderline revolutionary. Those always sale. But there’s the down side. Critics, including myself, have pretty much come to a far gone conclusion this new device is doomed to disappointment. Apple stocks back that up. Plus, hackers are getting smarter and smarter. I read one article where hackers can break into your car and tamper with the brakes, gas, steering wheel or any part of the motor vehicle they choose. Surely if someone is determined enough, they can crack a finger code. So will this fingerprint technology work, security wise or sales wise?
