May 10th, 2006 
etdot 
Comments Off on NSA tells DOJ to take a hike The Department of Justice has decided to give up it’s investigation into the illegal wiretapping by the NSA. My guess is that it went something like this:
DOJ: Bad NSA, you’ve been wiretapping without warrants.
NSA: Yea, um, it’s for, um, the war on terrorists… yea, that’s it.
DOJ: Mmmmmmkay, we need to see some records then.
NSA: Sure, but you need security clearance.
DOJ: Ok, so, uh, we come to you for security clearance, right? So, we need clearance.
NSA: ‘Tuff.
May 9th, 2006 etdot Comments Off on The RFID Hacking Underground They can steal your smartcard, lift your passport, jack your car, even clone the chip in your arm. And you won’t feel a thing. 5 tales from the RFID-hacking underground.
By Annalee Newitz
James Van Bokkelen is about to be robbed. A wealthy software entrepreneur, Van Bokkelen will be the latest victim of some punk with a laptop. But this won’t be an email scam or bank account hack. A skinny 23-year-old named Jonathan Westhues plans to use a cheap, homemade USB device to swipe the office key out of Van Bokkelen’s back pocket.
“I just need to bump into James and get my hand within a few inches of him,” Westhues says. We’re shivering in the early spring air outside the offices of Sandstorm, the Internet security company Van Bokkelen runs north of Boston. As Van Bokkelen approaches from the parking lot, Westhues brushes past him. A coil of copper wire flashes briefly in Westhues’ palm, then disappears.
April 1st, 2006 etdot Comments Off on Judgement Day just got closer LiveSience is reporting that scientists have developed "neuro-chips" by combining living computer circuits and brain cells. The next project, T-1000.
March 29th, 2006 etdot Comments Off on Missing Link Found CNN reported on March 25 that Scientists have discovered the missing link… at least that’s what they think. I guess they aren’t sure yet.
"Scientists in northeastern Ethiopia said Saturday that they have discovered the skull of a small human ancestor that could be a missing link between the extinct Homo erectus and modern man."
March 21st, 2006 etdot Comments Off on The week in review Last week was pretty busy. There was the Senate Bill that may restrict freedom of the press:
"The bill would make it a crime to tell the American people that the president is breaking the law, and the bill could make it a crime for the newspapers to publish that fact," said Martin, a civil liberties advocate.
There was also an example of what this senate bill may be trying to avoid, as the Chicago Tribune discovered the identities of 2600+ CIA employees (some were even covert operatives), 17 aircraft, a couple dozen facilities’ locations, and of course phone numbers. How did they find out this juicy information, you ask? The Internet, of course. (Use Bugmenot.com for registration info.)
"At a minimum, the CIA’s seeming inability to keep its own secrets invites questions about whether the Bush administration is doing enough to shield its covert CIA operations from public scrutiny…"
And of course the US is in danger of edging towards dictatorship…
