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Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

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Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#181

Post by 24gttghh »

candiodari wrote: post #154
snovv_crash wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Look at the peaceful transition in South Africa. Do you think that would have happened if the old government thought they could keep hanging on?

People have a funny way to look at how violent a transition and especially leaders are or aren't depending on whether they agree with the outcome. The ANC ... well ... in the words of the Apartheid museum [1] (ie. The South African government's own words): "Demonstrations against the killings followed in many parts of the country and led to the banning of the main African opposition organisations, the African nationa…

Seriously? Comparing Che to Ghandi? What a farce.

Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#182

Post by lerpa »

TallGuyShort wrote: post #172
deadbunny wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Blaming the victims? Really?

Why this stigma against acknowledging that potential victims can (and would be wise to) take steps to protect themselves. Yes, dressing a certain way, drinking a lot of alcohol, and attending a party doesn't begin to excuse rape. But that doesn't mean it was a good idea and is something you should do without considering the possible consequences. If someone calls and says they work for a security firm, offers to conf…

Because it's easier to exonerate ourselves from any responsibility for our own mistakes than having to deal with that.

Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#183

Post by lerpa »

arximboldi wrote: post #174
hunter2_ wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When victims are overtaken by force, coercion, stealth, or a multitude of other reasons, you can't blame them. When a victim in their right mind offers up a secret to someone they didn't authenticate, "victim blaming" as a construct is a stretch.

It is not a stretch. The government must not spy its citizens. Period. They are the only ones to get blame. If I get my bike stolen I am not be blamed if I use a shitty lock. If I get raped I am not to be blamed if I was too drunk to resist. If I get hacked I am not to be blamed if I was susceptible to social engineering. Yes, it is very useful for potential victims to learn how to best protect themselves. But the mo…

Well then I guess now for you it's just a matter of going to live in the ideal world where all of that holds true, and you're golden to live without any care.

Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#184

Post by vidarh »

georgespencer wrote: post #149
vidarh wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> This is the city with police cameras on every block No, it is not. It is a city where tiny portions have police cameras. Somewhat larger areas have council-controlled cameras that it's fairly easy for police to gain access to. The vast majority of CCTV in London - and in the UK - is privately controlled, and most of it is not networked. Police can get access to it if/when something has happened, but most of them al…

> [surveillance vans] are a rare sight I see them often. But equally often I ask myself what the point is. What are the odds of catching a crime? Or do they work in tandem with dispatchers from the police, moving around in areas near reported crimes to try to capture footage?

I only ever see them when I go in towards the centre. I'm assuming they are moving them around known crime hotspots.

Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#185

Post by Joeboy »

dTal wrote: post #122

>The Bindmans LLP law firm, acting on behalf of Jones, contacted six of those listed to verify their passwords (the others could not be traced). In response, five of the six gave passwords that matched those given in the letter, and the sixth was nearly a match. Well jeez no wonder they were hacked if they're that easy to socially engineer. "Verify my password? That's funny, you're the third one this month..."

> one of the 10 activists said “their password may have still been in use as recently as late 2015 or early 2016.”

So these were all abandoned passwords, at the point Bindmans confirmed them correct.

Having said which, the notion that people are generally crap with passwords is obviously correct. Also I wouldn't be at all surprised if the way the article reports the password verification is abridged or at least wildly inaccurate.

Edit: I notice the Guardian article says Jones is represented by Jules Carey, who's a very well known and trusted lawyer among UK environmental activists, not a random person. I don't know if that's who they gave up their old passwords to, but we seem to be generally letting our imaginations run away with us here so let's say it was.

Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#186

Post by halloij »

halloij wrote: post #107
notliketherest wrote: post #2

London? Why does anyone have an anticipation of privacy in the UK? This is the city with police cameras on every block, surveillance vans, and a prime minister who literally called the privacy of encryption evil.

It's scary to hear such ridiculous propaganda. This is just as bad as Trump labeling areas in the UK "no go zones". It's just garbage.

shrug downvote away. It's complete fantasy. It doesn't exist.

Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#187

Post by inetknght »

ionised wrote: post #159
inetknght wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The same civil rights movements that got a bunch of laws put on books barring discrimination? The same laws which have been proven to be ignored time and again by law enforcement?

> The same civil rights movements that got a bunch of laws put on books barring discrimination? The same laws which have been proven to be ignored time and again by law enforcement? You say that like the current situation is no better than what came before the civil rights movement.

You say that like the current situation doesn't still garner a lot of attention.

Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#188

Post by Joeboy »

hunter2_ wrote: post #132
deadbunny wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Blaming the victims? Really?

When victims are overtaken by force, coercion, stealth, or a multitude of other reasons, you can't blame them. When a victim in their right mind offers up a secret to someone they didn't authenticate, "victim blaming" as a construct is a stretch.

There is no reason to think, in this case, that it was a person they "didn't authenticate".

Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#189

Post by cryptarch »

nailer wrote: post #84
cryptarch wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Still an interesting suggestion to look into, init? You might not believe it is fact, but I for one think it's reasonable to give The Guardian the benefit of the doubt here and have a long hard look at these programs, if only because it has a non-zero chance of being true and only costs time to look into.

Definitely, but I think most of us would rather read it directly from The Gaurdian.

Fair enough. Perhaps it'd make sense to have a primary link and a list of alternative sources built into HN.

(By which I mean, posters provide an ordered list of links, and perhaps users could add additional links which are moderated.)

Re: Whistleblower uncovers London police hacking of journalists and protestors

#190

Post by mmjaa »

noir_lord wrote: post #166
mmjaa wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, but I think its a little more serious than Trumps' crotch-grabbing sexism, when such a significant swathe of UK politicians is embroiled in child-sex scandals, that it becomes a frickin' National Security issue to prosecute them. If only the subjects of the UK had a spine, as a people, and the willingness to confront the dire evil that has usurped their political infrastructure .. alas, they don't. A nation of…

> A nation of cowards, really. A nation of sheep perhaps but not a nation of cowards.

Until the people of the UK stand up and do something about the criminal factions that have usurped their government, I remain of the view that it is really a very cowardly society. There is simply no other excuse for the inaction and disregard for these heinous crimes.

Not to mention a significant portion of the society appears to be perfectly aligned with the need for a total surveillance state, due to an endemic national fear that, perhaps, the imperial acts committed in their name will come home to roost..

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