The obliteration of privacy. After Edward Snowden released some of the most significant national
security leaks ever, we've been fed a constant stream of sickening
revelations. Snowden's message has mostly been listened to, and the
year culminated with him even getting a spot on prime time TV to tell us that “a child born today ... MORE
published in Russia Today. A Drone Survival Guide with hints and tips on how to thwart the
“robotic birds” has been published on the internet. With over 30,000
drones expected to be flying over the US by 2030, the Guide urges
readers to familiarize themselves with the craft. In light of the growing number of drones, the Guide advises a ... MORE
"The mission is already accomplished." In a message broadcast Wednesday on British television, Edward J. Snowden, the former US security contractor, urged an end to mass surveillance, arguing that the electronic monitoring he has exposed surpasses anything imagined by George Orwell in "1984," a dystopian vision of an ... MORE
Strike back against intrusive revenue generators. Banished by voters in Houston, facing legal challenges in Missouri and working undercover in New York City, traffic-monitoring cameras, promoted as accident-reducing tools by safety advocates and decried as intrusive revenue-generators by opponents, are nothing if not ... MORE
Privacy invasion bad for business. The National Security Agency spying scandal could cost the top U.S.
tech companies billions of dollars over the next several years,
according to industry experts. In addition to consumer Internet
companies, hardware and cloud-storage giants like IBM, Hewlett-Packard,
and Oracle could suffer ... MORE
by Ed Morrissey. Does the latest NSA revelation
show the agency creating newer and more humane efforts to defuse
potential terrorist situations through discrediting their leaders — or a
dangerous new direction for government snooping? Perhaps this might be a
little bit of both. The NSA collected data on six potential targets
about ... MORE
Little Brother is in your business too. Local law enforcement is getting the kind of technological boost that used to be limited to three-letter agencies, thanks to Web-based software services that mine social media for intelligence. At last month's International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) conference in Philadelphia, LexisNexis showed ... MORE
by Hal Hodson. The biggest drug marketplace on the internet has been busted. The illicit empire of the Silk Road came
crashing down on Wednesday after its founder Ross Ulbricht, aka Dread
Pirate Roberts , was arrested and charged with narcotics trafficking,
money laundering, computer-hacking and attempted murder. He was caught ... MORE
by Elizabeth Harrington. The Kentucky Obamacare marketplace has no “expectation of privacy,”
warning its prospective customers that their information can be
monitored and shared with government bureaucrats. When clicking “let’s get started” on the state-run health insurance marketplace “kynect,” the user is quickly prompted ... MORE
by Gene Healy. Bad news for pandaphiles: The National Zoo's “PandaCam” will go
dark during a government shutdown. However, the federal government’s power to keep an eye on the
American people will continue to grow — it’s an “essential
service,” apparently. Sunday brought yet another revelation from former National
Security Agency ... MORE
Government eyes will be your constant companion. I don’t know what’s more threatening to liberty and privacy – the National Security Agency’s monstrous eavesdropping efforts and satellite surveillance on American citizens or the plans for massive expansion by local, state and federal governments of spying on us from ... MORE
Surf in a "Cocoon." Powerful privacy tools you can use to curtail how big tech companies — and sometimes the federal government — track your every step on the Internet have been available for years. Thanks to whistle-blower Edward Snowden these privacy tools have emerged from the fringes of the Internet into the limelight. "It's not just the ... MORE
by Michael Snyder. Were you under the impression that your credit card transactions are private? If so, I am sorry to burst your bubble. As you will see below, there are actually multiple government agencies that are gathering and storing records of your credit card transactions. And in turn, those government agencies share that information with ... MORE
The extent of government lawlessness is massive. The Associated Press dropped a bombshell report yesterday that claims the NSA's secret Internet spy program Prism is just a small part of a much more "expansive and intrusive" digital spying effort. According to the AP, the NSA copies ALL INTERNET traffic in and out of the United ... MORE
by Michael Winter. The revelations about government surveillance have introduced a new generation of readers to Nineteen Eighty-Four, as sales of George Orwell's dystopian classic soar. Sales of the "centennial edition" on Amazon.com had skyrocketed more than 5,800% as of Tuesday night. The novel that introduced the world to the all-seeing, ... MORE
"It can't happen here" just did. As a Senate candidate in 2003, Barack Obama called the PATRIOT Act "shoddy and dangerous." Once safely in power, Obama started demonstrating his remarkable capacity for "growing in office" -- expanding federal powers while piously moralizing about their potential abuse. As a senator, he voted to ... MORE
Are they spying on themselves? The news is replete with headlines about our government snooping and spying on Americans. We’re all being watched in some way or another. It kind of reminds me of that Simon and Garfunkel song “America,” where he sings, “The man in the gabardine suit is a spy. I said, ‘Be careful; his bowtie is really a camera.’” ... MORE