Free Republic

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) is slamming messaging platform WhatsApp for turning on end-to-end encryption for all of its users.... WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook and is particularly popular outside the United States, said on Tuesday that it would start offering encryption for its users as the default setting. That will apply to the different types of messages on the service, which include video and voice. "Every day we see stories about sensitive records being improperly accessed or stolen," WhatsApp founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton said in a post announcing the change. "And if nothing is done, more of...

The crowdsourced driving app, owned by Google, already offers up the best routes to your destination by gathering data from fellow users on accidents, traffic jams, road closures and other hazards. Now, at least in some countries, it will also let you know when you're pushing the speed limit. If you're driving too fast, a visual warning will pop up on the app's screen showing your speed. The warning stays there until you slow down to below the speed limit. You can customize the app to warn you if you reach the speed limit or if you shoot past it...

First, the legislators came for encrypted phones, because terrorists were apparently using encryption. (Except they weren't.) Now, they're coming for prepaid phones. Sure, customers will still be able to buy prepaid phones. They'll just have to "register" with their local retailer in order to do so. A bill proposed in congress this week would require that all users provide identification and register prepaid ‘burner’ phones upon purchase.... Even if this passes, it will do little to allow law enforcement agencies to follow up on burners recovered after attacks. Criminals and terrorists won't be presenting identification -- at least not theirs...

..."The paper has said Johnson changed the headline after a previous one was approved for publication, going around normal procedures."

Three years ago, reeling from Edward J. Snowden's disclosure of the government's vast surveillance programs and uncertain how to respond, President Obama said he welcomed a vigorous public debate about the wrenching trade-offs between safeguarding personal privacy and tracking down potential terrorists. "It's healthy for our democracy," he told reporters at the time. "I think it's a sign of maturity." But the national debate touched off this winter by the confrontation between the Justice Department and Apple over smartphone security is not exactly the one Mr. Obama had in mind. Mr. Snowden's revelations produced modest changes and a heightened suspicion...

The Pentagon has deployed drones several times over U.S. territory on non-military spy missions, but the flights have been rare and lawful, according to a Defense Department report obtained by USA Today under the Freedom of Information Act.

(Apr 24, 2012) The Pentagon is launching drones and spy planes from at least 63 locations within the United States. The Federal Aviation Administration released the data following a Freedom of Information Act request by the Electronic Frontier Foundation. But this information is bound to ruffle the feathers of privacy activists, who are concerned that unmanned aerial drones could be used to spy over residential areas.

Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump on Friday vowed to "open up" libel laws in order to sue media outlets that write "purposely negative" and "horrible" articles about him. "I’m gonna open up our libel laws, so when they write purposely negative and horrible, false articles, we can sue them and win lots of money," Trump said at a rally in Fort Worth, Texas. "We’re going to open up those libels laws," he added. "So that when The New York Times writes a hit piece, which is a total disgrace, or when The Washington Post, which is there for other reasons,...

There's no legal restriction preventing him from releasing his tax returns, even if he's being audited...

Germany's Federal government has announced it's new "trojan horse" computer software which will allow it to spy on citizens computers and smartphones. The German Interior Ministry has formally announced that they have created a new "Bundestrojaner" or government trojan horse software to enable them to track the communications of anyone that downloads it according to the German press, in addition to purchasing an "off the shelf" tool from a company which is said to help authoritarian regimes track their citizens. Trojan horse software is malicious software (often called malware) that is disguised as something innocent like a free screen saver...

The federal government would get more bang for their buck if U.S. drivers were charged directly for their use of highways through tolls or mileage fees, a new study from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) says.The report from Congress's budgetary scorekeepers says current "spending on highways does not correspond very well with how the roads are used and valued." The CBO said mechanisms like tolling, mileage fees or congestion pricing could be considered to fund transportation projects in lieu of relying mostly on gas tax revenue."Almost all federal spending for highways occurs through formula grants to state and local governments,...

Trump is Owned by EVERY Bank on Wall St. (Except Citi, Who He Stiffed for $300M)...

Is there anybody more "all over the map" on healthcare than Donald Trump?...

Harvard's Mossavar Rahmani Center for Business and Government, which I am privileged to direct, has just issued an important paper by senior fellow Peter Sands and a group of student collaborators. The paper makes a compelling case for stopping the issuance of high denomination notes like the 500 euro note and $100 bill or even withdrawing them from circulation. I remember that when the euro was being designed in the late 1990s, I argued with my European G7 colleagues that skirmishing over seigniorage by issuing a 500 euro note was highly irresponsible and mostly would be a boon to corruption...

Online source code repository and team collaboration service GitHub has been under fire after an anti-white agenda was revealed within the company’s “Social Impact Team.” According to Tech Insider’s reveal on GitHub’s current situation, CEO Chris Wanstrath is radically changing the company. The former flat structure that eliminated substantial hierarchy has been replaced with supervisors and middle managers, and the ability for employees to work remotely has been cut back in favour of mandatory office working environments. These changes have prompted many long-term employees to leave, with some reportedly being ousted if they cannot meet the new requirements. GitHub’s Social...

Obama establishes Federal Privacy Council as part of massive cyber effort https://iapp.org/news/a/obama-establishes-federal-privacy-council-as-part-of-massive-cyber-effort/ Obama establishes Federal Privacy Council as part of massive cyber effort Sam Pfeifle The Privacy Advisor | Feb 9, 2016 Obama establishes Federal Privacy Council as part of massive cyber effort As part of his 2017 budget proposal for the United States, President Barack Obama is including $19 billion for cybersecurity efforts, a 35-percent increase over fiscal year 2016. The funds will go toward a Cybersecurity National Action Plan, which includes the hiring of a chief information security officer, a $3.1 billion fund for IT modernization at the...

Windows 10 Worst Secret Spins Out Of Control - Forbes http://www.forbes.com/sites/gordonkelly/2016/02/09/windows-10-data-tracking-spying-levels/?utm_campaign=yahootix&partner=yahootix#1b42bfac7aa9 Back in November Microsoft confirmed Windows 10’s worst kept secret: its extensive telemetry (or ‘spying’ as it has been labelled) cannot be stopped. What no-one realised until now, however, is just how staggering the extent of this tracking really is…  Blowing the lid on it this week is Voat user CheesusCrust whose extensive investigation found  *Windows 10 contacts Microsoft to report data thousands of times per day.  And the kicker?  *This happens after choosing a custom Windows 10 installation and disabling all three pages of tracking options which are...

"Like many of you, I am concerned about the telemetry, spying and other surveillance features, known or unknown, of Windows 10. It has concerned me enough to push me to Linux Mint as my main operating system. Even so, I wanted to better understand Windows 10, but internet search results for a decent windows 10 traffic analysis leave a lot to be desired. As such, I decided to do my own investigating on what, exactly, Windows 10 is doing traffic-wise, and post the results. For this analysis, I wanted to simply analyse the network traffic of Windows 10 on a...

On Wednesday, President Obama, who has become the executive branch equivalent of a professional Salon.com commenter troll, took his traveling roadshow of perverse failure to the Islamic Society of Baltimore.

Last Friday, a new regulation was proposed by the Obama administration that will make it harder and more expensive for employers to hire and promote white males, enrich class action lawyers, and do absolutely nothing to accomplish the ostensible goal of raising the pay of women relative to men.