“The NSA’s TAO hacking unit is considered to be the intelligence agency’s top secret weapon. It maintains its own covert network, infiltrates computers around the world and even intercepts shipping deliveries to plant back doors in electronics ordered by those it is targeting.” [TAO – Tailored Access Operations] “TAO specialists have directly accessed the protected networks… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: E-Records
New GAO Reports – HHS National Preparedness, Social Security Death Data, Financial Audit of the SEC
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS – HHS Is Monitoring the Progress of Its Medical Countermeasure Efforts but Has Not Provided Previously Recommended Spending Estimates, GAO-14-90, Dec 27, 2013 SOCIAL SECURITY DEATH DATA – Additional Action Needed to Address Data Errors and Federal Agency Access, GAO-14-46, Nov 27, 2013 FINANCIAL AUDIT – Securities and Exchange Commission’s Fiscal Years 2013 and 2012 Financial Statements [Reissued… Continue Reading
Judge Grants Motion to Dismiss in NSA Surveillance Case
ACLU: “A federal court issued an opinion and order in ACLU v. Clapper [American Civil Liberties Union v. Clapper, 13-cv-03994, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan)], the ACLU’s challenge to the constitutionality of the NSA’s mass call-tracking program, ruling that the government’s bulk collection of phone records is lawful under Section 215 of the Patriot Act and under… Continue Reading
Commentary – Social media: The next generation of archiving
Social media: The next generation of archiving, by John Moore: “Social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube have become commonplace tools for government outreach. Agencies tweet about everything from developments in medical research to public safety information. Federal Facebook pages offer a similar scope of government missives, while YouTube provides a collection of… Continue Reading
DNI Announces the Declassification of the Existence of Collection Activities Authorized by President Bush Shortly After Attacks of September 11, 2001
News release, December 21, 2013: “Yesterday, the Director of National Intelligence (“DNI”) announced the declassification of the existence of collection activities authorized by President George W. Bush shortly after the attacks of September 11, 2001. Starting on October 4, 2001, President Bush authorized the Secretary of Defense to employ the capabilities of the Department of Defense,… Continue Reading
UN Votes for Symbolic Online Privacy Resolution
Reuters: “The UN General Assembly has unanimously called on a curb of supernormal surveillance of communications. The resolution drafted by Brazil and Germany was in response to revelations over the eavesdropping conducted by the US on a global scale. All 193 UN member states agreed “to respect and protect the right to privacy, including in the context… Continue Reading
Experience from Maximizing Enrollment States in Leadership, Culture Change, Coordination and Data
Managing Program Change – Experience from Maximizing Enrollment States in Leadership, Culture Change, Coordination. December 2013. National Academy for State Health Policy by Hensley-Quinn M, and Snyder A. “Report reviews proven methods to improve insurance enrollment in eight states. Since 2009, eight states have pursued unique approaches toward improving health insurance enrollment by giving people faster access to coverage and more options… Continue Reading
Google Transparency Report: Government removal requests continue to rise
“We launched the Transparency Report in 2010 to provide hard evidence of how laws and policies affect access to information online. Today, for the eighth time, we’re releasing new numbers showing requests from governments to remove content from our services. From January to June 2013, we received 3,846 government requests to remove 24,737 pieces of content—a 68 percent increase over the… Continue Reading
New on LLRX – FOIA Frustration
Via LLRX.com – FOIA Frustration: Attorney and FOIA expert Scott A. Hodes discusses how requestors’ experience in obtaining results from the FOIA process can in large measure be mitigated by two key factors – FOIA Offices must have the ability to follow the law, and top agency management must allow the professionals within the agency to do this. Continue Reading
Gallup – Record High in U.S. Say Big Government Greatest Threat
Now 72% say it is greater threat than big business or big labor, by Jeffrey M. Jones: “Seventy-two percent of Americans say big government is a greater threat to the U.S. in the future than is big business or big labor, a record high in the nearly 50-year history of this question. The prior high for… Continue Reading
Forgot Your Password? books / prints 2013
Artist – Aram Bartholl: “In summer 2012 the social network LinkedIn.com got hacked and lost its whole user database. A few months later parts of the decrypted password list surfaced on the Internet. These eight volumes contain 4.7 million LinkedIn clear text user passwords printed in alphabetical order. Visitors are invited to look up their own password. 8… Continue Reading
Agency MBS Transaction Summary
“On September 13, 2012, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) directed the Open Market Trading Desk (the Desk) at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to begin purchasing additional agency MBS at a pace of $40 billion per month. The FOMC also directed the Desk to maintain its existing policy of reinvesting principal payments… Continue Reading
