Nobody tells government employees what to do

from here and here

It's not every day the solution to a problem is staring you in the face. Maybe the 130 people who used the password ChangeItN0w! would have been better able to see the solution if the password box wasn't masked.

Transparency Theatre

from here and here

There are so many allegations made in this whistleblower complaint that subverting transparency reporting is really just the tip of the iceberg, but it certainly seems novel to me.

You don't really think they're going to give those up, do you?

from here and here

The government is no more likely to hand over vulnerabilities for fixing than they are to lay down their arms, even though that makes us all less secure as a result. Don't count on their help to make software more secure when they have vested interest in it remaining vulnerable. 

Are there any privacy settings for that?

from here and here

Ever have one of those dreams where you're naked in school? I think being caught attending a parliamentary session from the comfort of the commode beats that hands down, especially since it's not a dream. Unfortunately I don't think there's any way for the software to protect you from making that kind of lapse in judgement.

They'll take your privacy and security. Seriously.

from here

It seems that when it comes to privacy and security, the government's position seems to be that, instead of it being a right, we have to EARN IT. Of course we never actually will earn it in their eyes, so there's little reason for us to go along with them on this. 

No wonder they got banned

from here and here

I don't think NSO could reasonably claim to not know their products got misused, but I guess they should have been more proactive about dealing with it.

How protective instincts get used against us

from here and here

In news that's sure to surprise exactly no one, European governments already had plans to misuse the CSAM scanning technology Apple was going to release. Somehow, I think that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I Support Government Approved Encryption shirt

Product Page

 

Product Page

If the government had their way, even the Ceasar Cipher wouldn't be allowed (it was military grade encryption a few millenia ago). They want something they can easily access so it probably wouldn't be much different than simply writing things backwards as shown above.

The sun went down on the going dark problem

from here

I always knew the government had it in them to gather evidence of criminal activity in spite of encrypted communications. They just had to put in the work instead of asking the tech industry for an Easy Button. Now that they've shown they can sell their own backdoored phones to criminals all over the world, read tens of millions of encrypted messages, and make nearly a thousand arrests (with more coming), they better realize they can't leverage their perceived helplessness in negotiations with tech companies any longer. Everyone knows what they're capable of and arguably their approach is better than anything the tech industry can do because it's much more targeted.

Never let them pressure you into unblocking again

from here and here

If ad-blocking is good advice for government agencies, it's good advice for everyone else too. Don't let anyone tell you different. 

I hope the ad industry has fun trying to block agencies like the NSA with their ad-block-blockers.

Maybe phones should resist interrogation more politely

found on The Very Near Future

Modern phones are already capable of resisting interrogation by authorities by using encryption, but the feds don't like that. Maybe if the phones apologized it would smooth over investigators hurt feelings.

A backdoor for one is a backdoor for all

from here

Y'know what's better than telling the government what will happen to the backdoors they're asking for? Reminding them of what's already happened to the ones they had. 

Money talks, privacy walks

from here

It's not technically wrong for companies to eagerly hand over your data to the government in return for money, but it certainly seems like it should be ethically/morally wrong.

Technician, pwn thyself

from here

They keep telling defenders that they need to think like attackers, but apparently some attackers need to think more like defenders.

It's the debate that never ends...

from here and here

... 'Cause it goes on and on my friends.

Backdoor legislation is back again. It's going to be disastrous and harm us all but they don't care and won't listen. They seem to think now, while the country is gripped in the throes of anti-police-brutality protests, is the right time to give law enforcement extra help at all of our expense. I wonder how that will work out for them when they're up for re-election.

Ransomware run amok

from here

After so many local governments have been hit, and especially 23 in one shot, the rest of them better start making backups or they're just being negligent. The trend seems pretty unmistakable. Local governments are targets. They need to prepare.