America's online law enforcement shaping up to be pretty much like the war on drugs.
In other words, useless?
And expensive
And with lots of innocent casualties
And corrupt
And supported by morons
FBI seizes riseup.net server
41–50 of 111 posts
Re: FBI seizes riseup.net server
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
When was the last time a bomb threat was followed up with an actual bomb in the US? Maybe it's time to stop blindly evacuating buildings in response to anonymous messages.
1993 World trade center And today is the anniversary of the 1995 Oklahoma city bombing. However I am uncertain if a "threat" was ever called in for either. This is evidence that a called in thread will likely never be real - real attacks aren't called in with warnings.
Just because those didn't come with threats doesn't mean all attacks come without threats. Also it doesn't prove that all threats won't be followed by an attack.
The unibomber is one example. He would send mail bombs if newspapers didn't heed his threats and publish his ramblings.
Re: FBI seizes riseup.net server
#43The American version of SOPA already passed in 2008. It's called the Pro IP Act. That's how they are able to seize "local" domains like .com and .net, and I think .org, too.
Re: FBI seizes riseup.net server
#44The building I work in and practically live in as student was evacuated two hours ago due to a bomb threat, and as of today 11 bomb threats have been made across campus. The total of bomb threats made is now 126. It is ridiculous. I do not agree with the FBI confiscating servers to figure out where the anonymous bomb threats have been coming from, but I'm kind of glad they are and feel bad for that.
When was the last time a bomb threat was followed up with an actual bomb in the US? Maybe it's time to stop blindly evacuating buildings in response to anonymous messages.
Traditionally don't people that bomb things like it to be a surprise?
Re: FBI seizes riseup.net server
#45I do not understand the sledgehammer approach the FBI 'cybercrimes' division deals with things with. The FBI are not police, are not detectives, and are not competent in these matters. I'm sorry but covert monitoring of a server is going to be vastly more beneficial for an operation than taking the server and is going to net more targets and more evidence. I remember stories of the FBI sitting on a known front for or…
> I do not understand the sledgehammer approach the FBI 'cybercrimes' division deals with things with. ... I'm sorry but covert monitoring of a server is going to be vastly more beneficial for an operation than taking the server and is going to net more targets and more evidence.
I wonder if they'll auction off the server?
Fun fact. The federal government makes ~$3 billion a year off asset seizures. They don't have to charge people with a crime to seize property - the trial is actually conducted against the property itself.) The law enforcement agencies responsible get to keep 50-80% of the proceeds.
http://reason.com/archives/2010/01/26/the-forfeiture-racket/... (disclaimer - source does not pretend to be unbiased ;)
Re: FBI seizes riseup.net server
#46This is a testament to why you would want to use AWS virtual instances and never have "a server" - point your domain at a new instance should one machine get ordered off by the FBI.
Good idea. "The cloud" worked real wonders for Wikileaks.
Re: FBI seizes riseup.net server
#47Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm sorry, but what are you referring to?
The FBI raided the offices of Steve Jackson Games because Loyd Blankenship, the author of GURPS Cyberpunk , was the subject of a crackdown for disseminating a (largely non-technical) document about the E911 system on his BBS. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Jackson_Games,_Inc._v._U...
Check the external links here for free versions of The Hacker Crackdown, a non-fiction account of the whole situation by Bruce Sterling.
Re: FBI seizes riseup.net server
#48The building I work in and practically live in as student was evacuated two hours ago due to a bomb threat, and as of today 11 bomb threats have been made across campus. The total of bomb threats made is now 126. It is ridiculous. I do not agree with the FBI confiscating servers to figure out where the anonymous bomb threats have been coming from, but I'm kind of glad they are and feel bad for that.
When did these bomb threats happen? At the end of term or beginning? During exam week? When a famous politican is visiting? 126 is alot. I bet if you were to investigate the timing of these threats you might find some interesting correlations...
The bomb threats began to really start picking up this month, but started after spring break. I also just got the notification of two more bomb threats made.
Here is a spread sheet about the bomb threats (not made by me): https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AlvhxmKEu6UpdGZ...
Re: FBI seizes riseup.net server
#49This is a testament to why you would want to use AWS virtual instances and never have "a server" - point your domain at a new instance should one machine get ordered off by the FBI.
Flouting law enforcement does not strike me as a good design goal. If the law wants you to stop doing something, they will make sure you stop.
Re: FBI seizes riseup.net server
#50The building I work in and practically live in as student was evacuated two hours ago due to a bomb threat, and as of today 11 bomb threats have been made across campus. The total of bomb threats made is now 126. It is ridiculous. I do not agree with the FBI confiscating servers to figure out where the anonymous bomb threats have been coming from, but I'm kind of glad they are and feel bad for that.
When was the last time a bomb threat was followed up with an actual bomb in the US? Maybe it's time to stop blindly evacuating buildings in response to anonymous messages.
Most people don't believe a bomb will actually blow up or something on campus. I think what freaks people out is notion that the person(s) making the bomb threats are trying to observe the patterns and behaviors of how people react during an evacuation.
Pitt has the tallest educational building in the US (Cathedral of Learning - which has had 14 bomb threats), plus many other buildings on campus are rather tall too. I cannot begin to imagine how exhausting these bomb threats have been to the police. Many people don't want to evacuate the buildings either. But what if some lunatic takes advantage of how desensitized and relax people are becoming to go a shooting spree... that is the more scary thought.