Propaganda and the Weakening of Trust in Government

Posted on By infossl
academicpapers, disinformation, essays, fraud, propaganda, Security technology, trust, voting

On November 4, 2016, the hacker “Guccifer 2.0,: a front for Russia’s military intelligence service, claimed in a blogpost that the Democrats were likely to use vulnerabilities to hack the presidential elections. On November 9, 2018, President Donald Trump started tweeting about the senatorial elections in Florida and Arizona. Without any evidence whatsoever, he said … Read More “Propaganda and the Weakening of Trust in Government” »

How Surveillance Inhibits Freedom of Expression

Posted on By infossl
censorship, china, privacy, Security technology, socialmedia, surveillance

In my book Data and Goliath, I write about the value of privacy. I talk about how it is essential for political liberty and justice, and for commercial fairness and equality. I talk about how it increases personal freedom and individual autonomy, and how the lack of it makes us all less secure. But this … Read More “How Surveillance Inhibits Freedom of Expression” »

Using Machine Learning to Create Fake Fingerprints

Posted on By infossl
academicpapers, authentication, biometrics, fingerprints, machinelearning, Security technology

Researchers are able to create fake fingerprints that result in a 20% false-positive rate. The problem is that these sensors obtain only partial images of users’ fingerprints — at the points where they make contact with the scanner. The paper noted that since partial prints are not as distinctive as complete prints, the chances of … Read More “Using Machine Learning to Create Fake Fingerprints” »

Information Attacks against Democracies

Posted on By infossl
academicpapers, essays, Security technology

Democracy is an information system. That’s the starting place of our new paper: “Common-Knowledge Attacks on Democracy.” In it, we look at democracy through the lens of information security, trying to understand the current waves of Internet disinformation attacks. Specifically, we wanted to explain why the same disinformation campaigns that act as a stabilizing influence … Read More “Information Attacks against Democracies” »

The PCLOB Needs a Director

Posted on By infossl
nsa, privacy, Security technology, surveillance

The US Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board is looking for a director. Among other things, this board has some oversight role over the NSA. More precisely, it can examine what any executive-branch agency is doing about counterterrorism. So it can examine the program of TSA watchlists, NSA anti-terrorism surveillance, and FBI counterterrorism activities. The … Read More “The PCLOB Needs a Director” »

What Happened to Cyber 9/11?

Posted on By infossl
bombs, cyberattack, cyberterrorism, fear, riskassessment, Security technology, terrorism

A recent article in the Atlantic asks why we haven’t seen a”cyber 9/11″ in the past fifteen or so years. (I, too, remember the increasingly frantic and fearful warnings of a “cyber Peal Harbor,” “cyber Katrina” — when that was a thing — or “cyber 9/11.” I made fun of those warnings back then.) The … Read More “What Happened to Cyber 9/11?” »

Worst-Case Thinking Breeds Fear and Irrationality

Posted on By infossl
baserate, children, kidnapping, Security technology, warontheunexpected

Here’s a crazy story from the UK. Basically, someone sees a man and a little girl leaving a shopping center. Instead of thinking “it must be a father and daughter, which happens millions of times a day and is perfectly normal,” he thinks “this is obviously a case of child abduction and I must alert … Read More “Worst-Case Thinking Breeds Fear and Irrationality” »

Israeli Surveillance Gear

Posted on By infossl
israel, Security technology, surveillance

The Israeli Defense Force mounted a botched raid in Gaza. They were attempting to install surveillance gear, which they ended up leaving behind. (There are photos — scroll past the video.) Israeli media is claiming that the capture of this gear by Hamas causes major damage to Israeli electronic surveillance capabilities. The Israelis themselves destroyed … Read More “Israeli Surveillance Gear” »