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N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

nytimes.com

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Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#131

Post by kmfrk »

melling wrote: post #24
tcdent wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who's to say that American intelligence gathering is on the right 'side'? Why should members of 'foreign' countries be held to a different standard?

Can we get a Politics tab on the HN bar so we can filter the endless political debates? This should make everyone happy?

Install this [https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/hackernew/lgoghlnd...] and filter your least-favourite topics.

I recommend filtering the entries about bitcoin and from Wikipedia.

Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#132

Post by ds9 »

todayiamme wrote: post #5

I do understand that it is now the status quo to disavow everything the NSA is, but foreign intelligence gathering is their mission and releasing these details simply doesn't help the cause of fixing the NSA's less savoury incursions. While arguably any foreign intelligence agency of note isn't going to be caught off guard by these leaks, leaking these details does offer political ammunition to the very people who st…

"releasing these details simply doesn't help the cause of fixing the NSA's less savoury incursions" -- of course it doesn't. Why would anyone expect that? At least, I'm not convinced there is any realistic prospect of NSA's programmes, or other similar abuses being "fixed" in the forseeable future.

Meanwhile, everyone, US and others alike, needs and is rightfully entitled to secure communications (in a moral sense, not to be confused with the laws of particular states). Unless there is some guarantee that the methods exposed could never be used improperly, exposing them is a vital public service.

Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#133

Post by yincrash »

vonnik wrote: post #15

The only thing that's more disappointing than the NSA spying is the NYT sitting on this scoop for more than a year, and letting Der Spiegel break it. Only slightly less amazing is that Der Spiegel and Jacob Applebaum were talking about this more than two weeks ago, and the NYT diddled until now. Incredible. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vILAlhwUgIU

Yup. Here's the article version: http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/nsa-secret-toolbox...

Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#134

Post by BWStearns »

vdaniuk wrote: post #109
BWStearns wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As the Snowden leaks get further away from "they're spying on Americans" and more into "they're doing their job" I'm getting less and less sympathetic. This is just a way to exfiltrate data, if that way was on steroids and a bigger budget, but still very much within the scope of the legally declared mission of the agency. Why is anyone upset that a technical spy agency is spying using technical means?

As a foreigner, comments like yours make me question my assumption that regular Americans are not responsible for the atrocities committed by USG. Why is anyone upset? I don't know, people don't want to be spied on? Hmm, yes, that may be the case here.

As a rational person on planet earth I can safely assume that if your country is not too broke to afford a spy service then it has probably attempted to spy/spied on the US at some point. That's what countries do when they don't know something that someone else is unwilling to tell them.

Do you really think that the US is unique in spying? or that the scale is even unique? Pro tip: if you do you're wrong.

Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#135

Post by asveikau »

JetSpiegel wrote: post #130
asveikau wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not sure I get the analogy. Are you saying you don't understand C? Wouldn't that be your problem, not someone else's?

I meant it's the foundation for most things, only understood by a small number of people. Can be obfuscated. It was a weak analogy anyway.

Just seems odd. Along the lines of complaining about a foreign language because you don't speak it. The fact that you don't speak it does not mean it's gibberish.

Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#136

Post by vonnik »

supersystem wrote: post #86
vonnik wrote: post #15

The only thing that's more disappointing than the NSA spying is the NYT sitting on this scoop for more than a year, and letting Der Spiegel break it. Only slightly less amazing is that Der Spiegel and Jacob Applebaum were talking about this more than two weeks ago, and the NYT diddled until now. Incredible. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vILAlhwUgIU

I'm more disappointed that very few on HN seemes to have been paying attention.

I agree. It was also really bad timing. No news organization should break anything major between X-mas and New Years. People are offline...

Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#137

Post by ds9 »

unclebucknasty wrote: post #124
eru wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Laws are not going to protect people from the NSA. Especially laws that only apply to a miniscule fraction of the population (ie the fraction of the population that lives in the USA). Spy agencies are a global menace.

Of course laws will protect us. They are actually our only real hope. With the right laws, Snowden is a whistleblower with due protection. There is no debate as to whether he is a "traitor" or who broke the law, and the entire dynamic is changed here. Either we are a nation of laws or we are not. Laws are what constrain our government and what confer and protect all of our rights. Why should this be any different? Wh…

Better laws, and official respect for them, would be the better solution if we had that option. But how do we get there? Has such a scenario ever effectively protected citizens from government in the real world? And what are we supposed to do in the meantime?

"We cannot even duly protect ourselves from zero-day exploits" - well that's definitional, isn't it? It's hardly a reason to give up on trying to protect communications from "big brother".

Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#138

Post by ds9 »

codex wrote: post #37

This is another example of how Snowden has compromised national security by leaking secret information that has nothing to do with American metadata and everything to do with the NSA's charter and legal mission.

So according to you, the USG not being able to spy on everyone, everywhere, all the time compromises "national security"? By that logic, you're threatening your neighbors by not having surveillance cams in your bedroom and bathroom, because you might be doing something nefarious there.

I have a better idea: the US should stop interfering in other countries and violating people's rights - then it wouldn't have enemies.

Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#139

Post by snowwrestler »

baddox wrote: post #80
snowwrestler wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Comments like this make me think that maybe all the "acting naive about foreign affairs, diplomacy, and statecraft" is not actually acting. In the entire human history of diplomatic relations, nations have always attempted to spy on one another. Diplomatic relations are not based on trust, they are based on shared beliefs, interests, and goals.

> In the entire human history of diplomatic relations, nations have always attempted to spy on one another. Yes, and it's all bad. I don't see what's naive, or even controversial, about this.

Sometimes nations lie to one another--even allies--in order to further their own self-interest. A diplomatic program that does not take that into account will find itself surprised in negative ways. Spying is one of several tools for managing that problem.

Re: N.S.A. Devises Radio Pathway Into Computers

#140

Post by TempleOSV2 »

Stoopit nigger. He's making so people don't know God. LOL This probably does not make God happy. Stoopit nigger.

God says... you're_no_fun no_way_dude Give_me_praise Japan bizarre I_give_up ROFLMAO atheist depressing by_the_way don't_have_a_cow oops glam I_hate_when_that_happens I_don't_care you_don't_say awful services sing after_a_break I_give_up climate end fight

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