[ale] Fwd: Everybody PANIC | EFFector 28.04

Thu Apr 2 12:09:42 EDT 2015

Charles,
    "April Fools is past.  You're the biggest fool at last."

Stephen R. Blevins
stephen.r.blevins at gmail.com

On 04/02/2015 09:15 AM, Charles Shapiro wrote:
> 
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: *EFFector List* <editor at eff.org <mailto:editor at eff.org>>
> Date: Wed, Apr 1, 2015 at 1:20 PM
> Subject: Everybody PANIC | EFFector 28.04
> To: Charles Shapiro <charles.shapiro at tomshiro.org
> <mailto:charles.shapiro at tomshiro.org>>
> 
> 
> View as a web page
> <https://supporters.eff.org/civicrm/mailing/view?reset=1&id=934>
> 
>  
>   	
> EFFector!
> <https://supporters.eff.org/civicrm/mailing/view?reset=1&id=934>
> Electronic Frontier Foundation <https://www.eff.org/>
> 
> 	 
>   	
> 
> In our -65535th issue:
> 
> 
>       Security Experts: PANIC <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> MITRE has announced the PANIC vulnerability, a critical security flaw
> which affects the server administrators and software developers
> underpinning almost every interaction we have with the Internet. PANIC
> is particularly dangerous as it has the potential to interfere with
> administrators' ability to safely patch other vulnerabilities. This
> issue appears to have existed, undiscovered or unreported, since the
> creation of the very first networked computers. It is not yet known if
> PANIC has been exploited in the wild.
> 
> 
>       EFF Wins Court Battle to Have Pig Latin Approved For Civilian Use
>       <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> After more than three years of litigation, EFF has prevailed in Ohencay
> v NSA with a unanimous panel of the Ninth Circuit ruling that the
> federal prohibition on Pig Latin is inconsistent with the First
> Amendment. Fred Mithsay, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice,
> said that the government was disappointed in the decision and was
> considering an appeal to the Supreme Court. "Unrestricted use of Pig
> Latin threatens national security," said Mithsay. "Al-Qaeda could use it
> to organize the latest strike on the homeland or my DOJ coworkers might
> use it to keep me from knowing about the coolest parties."
> 
> 
>       NSA Tells Public To Reduce Use of Passive Voice In Email
>       <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> Both style and national security are impacted by the use of passive
> voice, the NSA said today. Having spent many billions of taxpayer
> dollars to capture all private electronic communication, the agency is
> frustrated that poor writing habits are making this data difficult to
> analyze. "We strongly prefer short declarative sentences where the actor
> is clearly identified," said an NSA spokesperson. "Instead of writing,
> 'The protest will be attended by many activists,' it would be better to
> write, 'Known dissidents Amy Goodman, Laura Poitras, and Glenn Greenwald
> will travel by bus to the protest in Washington Square Park, New York,
> and will arrive at approximately 1:04 p.m. on April 1st, 2015.'" The NSA
> further suggested that instead of composing private email, citizens
> could instead fill out a webform at NSA.gov or travel to Bluffdale, Utah
> and share all of their most private secrets with the NSA in person.
> 
> 
>       Privacy Nihilists Debate Mass Surveillance
>       <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> The tension was palpable at the first ever Privacy Nihilist Debate held
> earlier this week in the gymnatorium of San Francisco's Uli Kunkel High
> School. It started with a strong opening statement: "There is no truth
> to observe, so from a metaphysical and epistemological perspective, mass
> surveillance is meaningless." That was followed by a gripping rejoinder:
> "Merelogically, any perceptor, even myself, will not perceive 'me,' only
> improper misperceptions of supposed parts of me. The truth of my being
> cannot be known even if all observable parts are cataloged. The
> government is capable only of making inherently flawed observations that
> cannot form the basis of correct action." Ultimately, the nihilists
> agreed that no act is inherently right or wrong and concluded the debate
> with a group shrug.
> 
> 
>       Leaked Documents Reveal NSA Once Ran Dangerously Low on Codenames
>       <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> The Intercept has published a PowerPoint slide released by Edward
> Snowden showing that as late as 1999, the NSA was dangerously close to
> depleting all appropriate permutations of English words to serve as
> codenames for its surveillance efforts. One internal projection states
> that before a new reserve of words was added to the supply, the last
> available combination--OBSEQUIOUS MOUSTACHEHORSE--was set to be assigned
> in 2004. The presentation implies, but does not explicitly state, that
> the Agency may have introduced those newly discovered words to the
> general population, and suggests that this is the origin of "blog."
> 
> 
>       Obama Requests "Flash Track" for TPP <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> In a televised address on Tuesday, President Obama defended the secrecy
> of his administration's trade negotiations, and called for the most
> aggressive measures yet. While transparency and civil society advocates
> have previously opposed so-called "Fast Track" bills--which limit
> Congress to a single up-or-down vote after secret negotiations on the
> Trans-Pacific Partnership have concluded--Obama has doubled down with a
> "Flash Track" proposal that gives Congress just 15 minutes to raise
> objections from the moment Obama declares the agreement completed. "I'm
> not going to mince words here," stated Obama. "It will probably be in
> the middle of the night, while everybody's sleeping. But trust me, this
> is what the American public needs."
> 
> 
>       White House Reverses Course on Glass Doors Remodel
>       <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> The White House has turned its back on yet another component in its
> ill-fated campaign to be the Most Transparent Administration in History,
> removing its newly installed sliding glass doors and replacing them with
> traditional wooden models. Transparency advocates have been vocal in
> their disappointment, but a White House spokesperson said the move is
> necessary, as both Bo Obama and Vice President Joe Biden have repeatedly
> run into the closed doors.
> 
> 
>     miniLinks
> 
> Congress To Extend Copyright Terms for All Artistic Works to "Life of
> Mickey Mouse plus 70 years." <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> After several impassioned speeches about the harms of piracy,
> Congressional leaders introduced a bill tying the terms of all
> copyrights to the lifespan of the fictitious rodent Mickey.
> 
> Harris Corporation Demands Non-Disclosure Agreements From Aquarium
> Visitors <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> The maker of the Stingray cell-tracking surveillance equipment is
> notoriously tight-lipped. It's taken that secrecy to a new level in a
> new partnership with the Monterey Bay Aquarium, demanding visitors to
> the stingray tank refrain from discussing what they see there.
> 
> EFF Scores Zero Stars on Inaugural "Who's On Our Backs" Report
> <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> A coalition of tech giants, including Google, Facebook, and Twitter,
> have released a scorecard grading advocacy groups who continue to badger
> them about their privacy practices. The categories included: "Readily
> Appeased," "Easily Misled," and "In Our Pockets." EFF got zero stars.
> 
> Shari Steele Attempts EFF Overthrow <https://www.eff.org/pages/04/01>
> 
> In a sudden reversal, outgoing Executive Director of 15 years Shari
> Steele has announced that she will instead cling to power, changing her
> title to Executive Dictator For Life. EFF staff graciously accepts the
> rule of Shari Steele, long may she reign.
> 
> 
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>     Administrivia
> 
> Editor: Marlowe and Buster, @DigiTerriers
> *editor at eff.org* <mailto:editor at eff.org>
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