lawenforcement – SSL and internet security news

BlackBerry Phone Cracked

August 3, 2020 infossl

australia, blackberry, cracking, crime, drugtrade, encryption, lawenforcement, phones, Security technology

Australia is reporting that a BlackBerry device has been cracked after five years: An encrypted BlackBerry device that was cracked five years after it was first seized by police is poised to be the key piece of evidence in one of the state’s longest-running drug importation investigations. In April, new technology “capabilities” allowed authorities to … Read More “BlackBerry Phone Cracked” »

Hacked by Police

July 3, 2020 infossl

crime, cybersecurity, france, hacking, lawenforcement, phones, Security technology, securityengineering

French police hacked EncroChat secure phones, which are widely used by criminals: Encrochat’s phones are essentially modified Android devices, with some models using the “BQ Aquaris X2,” an Android handset released in 2018 by a Spanish electronics company, according to the leaked documents. Encrochat took the base unit, installed its own encrypted messaging programs which … Read More “Hacked by Police” »

Criminals and the Normalization of Masks

May 20, 2020 infossl

concealment, covid19, crime, lawenforcement, Security technology

I was wondering about this: Masks that have made criminals stand apart long before bandanna-wearing robbers knocked over stagecoaches in the Old West and ski-masked bandits held up banks now allow them to blend in like concerned accountants, nurses and store clerks trying to avoid a deadly virus. “Criminals, they’re smart and this is a … Read More “Criminals and the Normalization of Masks” »

Privacy vs. Surveillance in the Age of COVID-19

March 30, 2020 infossl

covid19, lawenforcement, medicine, privacy, Security technology, surveillance, tracking

The trade-offs are changing: As countries around the world race to contain the pandemic, many are deploying digital surveillance tools as a means to exert social control, even turning security agency technologies on their own civilians. Health and law enforcement authorities are understandably eager to employ every tool at their disposal to try to hinder … Read More “Privacy vs. Surveillance in the Age of COVID-19” »

Google Receives Geofence Warrants

January 28, 2020 infossl

geolocation, google, lawenforcement, nsa, privacy, Security technology, surveillance, tracking

Sometimes it’s hard to tell the corporate surveillance operations from the government ones: Google reportedly has a database called Sensorvault in which it stores location data for millions of devices going back almost a decade. The article is about geofence warrants, where the police go to companies like Google and ask for information about every … Read More “Google Receives Geofence Warrants” »

Modern Mass Surveillance: Identify, Correlate, Discriminate

January 27, 2020 infossl

cameras, essays, facerecognition, identification, lawenforcement, laws, privacy, Security technology, smartphones, surveillance

Communities across the United States are starting to ban facial recognition technologies. In May of last year, San Francisco banned facial recognition; the neighboring city of Oakland soon followed, as did Somerville and Brookline in Massachusetts (a statewide ban may follow). In December, San Diego suspended a facial recognition program in advance of a new … Read More “Modern Mass Surveillance: Identify, Correlate, Discriminate” »

Clearview AI and Facial Recognition

January 20, 2020 infossl

artificialintelligence, facerecognition, lawenforcement, police, privacy, Security technology, surveillance

The New York Times has a long story about Clearview AI, a small company that scrapes identified photos of people from pretty much everywhere, and then uses unstated magical AI technology to identify people in other photos. His tiny company, Clearview AI, devised a groundbreaking facial recognition app. You take a picture of a person, … Read More “Clearview AI and Facial Recognition” »

Police Surveillance Tools from Special Services Group

January 10, 2020 infossl

cameras, eavesdropping, espionage, foia, lawenforcement, police, privacy, Security technology, surveillance

Special Services Group, a company that sells surveillance tools to the FBI, DEA, ICE, and other US government agencies, has had its secret sales brochure published. Motherboard received the brochure as part of a FOIA request to the Irvine Police Department in California. “The Tombstone Cam is our newest video concealment offering the ability to … Read More “Police Surveillance Tools from Special Services Group” »

Scaring People into Supporting Backdoors

December 12, 2019 infossl

childpornography, crime, cryptowars, eavesdropping, encryption, fear, lawenforcement, nationalsecuritypolicy, Security technology

Back in 1998, Tim May warned us of the “Four Horsemen of the Infocalypse”: “terrorists, pedophiles, drug dealers, and money launderers.” I tended to cast it slightly differently. This is me from 2005: Beware the Four Horsemen of the Information Apocalypse: terrorists, drug dealers, kidnappers, and child pornographers. Seems like you can scare any public … Read More “Scaring People into Supporting Backdoors” »

Former FBI General Counsel Jim Baker Chooses Encryption Over Backdoors

October 28, 2019 infossl

backdoors, cryptography, cryptowars, cybersecurity, encryption, fbi, lawenforcement, nationalsecuritypolicy, nsa, Security technology

In an extraordinary essay, the former FBI general counsel Jim Baker makes the case for strong encryption over government-mandated backdoors: In the face of congressional inaction, and in light of the magnitude of the threat, it is time for governmental authorities — including law enforcement — to embrace encryption because it is one of the … Read More “Former FBI General Counsel Jim Baker Chooses Encryption Over Backdoors” »