Silicon Valley Sleuth: August 2009 Archives

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DHS updates border search rules

Last year the Department of Homeland Security made a bit of a stink when news surfaced of its border search and seizure policy regarding notebooks. The short of it was that the DHS was ruled to have the clearance to take possession of, and search, the notebook computer of anyone entering the country.

Apparently they figured that terrorists would be carrying detailed plans for their latest attack in PowerPoint presentations or something.

Regardless, the issue died down a bit as the recession hit and the presidential elections came around. Now, the Obama administration is issuing its take on the policy. Those of you expecting a sweeping overhaul or outright abolishment of the policy will be disappointed, though there are some changes. Owners will be allowed to be present when the search is conducted, and all searches must be performed in front of a supervisor and carefully logged.

Perhaps the most discouraging excerpt, however, is the following:

Searches of electronic media, permitted by law and carried out at borders and ports of entry, are vital to detecting information that poses serious harm to the United States, including terrorist plans, or constitutes criminal activity--such as possession of child pornography and trademark or copyright infringement.

Okay, I think we all can agree that those engaging in terrorism and child pornography should definitely be sought out and prosecuted, but why in the world would anyone equate those with copyright infringement? Is it really okay for the police to stop you at the airport, crack open your computer and bust you for a bit-torrent of Zoolander? And since the police can stop anyone suspected of a crime, how do you spot a "suspect" of copyright infringement?

Posted by Shaun Nichols on August 28, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Carly Fiorina confirms Senate bid

Well, it's now official. Former HP chief Carly Fiorina has filed the paperwork to run for one of two US Senate seats in California.

Fiorina will first run for the Republican Party nomination, then if she wins the party nod she will take on incumbent senator Barbara Boxer, who will be seeking her fourth term in office. The early speculation is that Fiorina is a heavy favourite to win the nomination, but unseating Boxer would be a tougher task.

As one of the first women to win a prominent role in Silicon Valley, Fiorina could again become a trailblazer by becoming the first former tech executive to win a Senate seat in California.

We're guessing Fiorina doesn't want voters to base their decisions to heavily on her past business performance, however. Her time at HP was tumultuous, to say the least.

Highlighted by the messy Compaq acquisition, Fiorina also planted the seeds for a boardroom leak investigation that would later turn into the disastrous "pretexting" scandal that cost Patricia Dunn so dearly. After leaving the business world, she climbed on board Arizona senator John McCain's 2008 Presidential campaign, and we all know how that turned out.

Posted by Shaun Nichols on August 19, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (8)

Comcast fires back at the FCC

Comcast has filed a countersuit against the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), almost a year after the body found Comcast had illegally throttled its customers' peer to peer (P2P) traffic.

The internet service provider (ISP) announced nearly a year ago that it would sue and has now laid out its case in the opening brief. In essence it is arguing that the FCC has no powers in the matter under the current legal framework.

When the FCC ruled against Comcast it turned down an opportunity to rule on the regulations themselves in favor of ordering the company to stop throttling, the statement explains.

"At the time Free Press made its filings, no provision of federal law - whether a statute, agency rule, or agency precedent - governed the network management practices of ISPs," it says.

"There was simply no federal law to interpret, enforce, or apply against Comcast. The Commission nonetheless pressed ahead, refusing to dismiss the filings in favor of a rulemaking."

The case is going to be watched with interest by ISPs. Some have already pressed ahead with throttling and many more are eager to start hacking away at P2P traffic.

If Adam Smith has his way then some ISPs will proclaim they are not throttling and so win custom, but the short term savings of cutting off the bulk of P2P traffic may be too tempting.

Posted by Iain Thomson on August 18, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Head of US-CERT quits

Mischel Kwon, director of the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (CERT), has announced she is quitting her role - the third senior cybersecurity figure to step down since President Obama took office.

Her move comes after Rod Beckstrom quit as director of the Department of Homeland Security's National Cybersecurity Center and White House acting senior director for cyberspace Melissa Hathaway resigned. In all three cases the managers unofficially cited a lack of support as a factor in their decisions.

The news is bad news for President Obama. He had been very strong on cybersecurity in the campaign but so far no-one has been appointed to the role of 'US Cybersecurity Czar' and it's becoming clear that filling the role will be much harder than previously thought.

At the Black Hat conference a fortnight ago many were questioning the lack of movement on cybersecurity as a key failing of the administration and some were even suggesting that there was no need for the role.

The pressure is now on to get the post filled but with government salaries so low and the mountain of work faced by any appointee so high one wonders if there will be action any time soon.

Posted by Iain Thomson on August 11, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)

The electric car gets speedy

One of the joys of living in this state is getting to see some new toys before they hit the market, in this case by accident.

I was on my way to the local pub on Saturday night when I saw a car parked and plugged in that was completely new to me. It's a two-seater, but with one seat behind the other, making the whole car very slim indeed.

As I was checking it out a man came up, introduced himself and said the car was his, or rather was on loan for a while. It's a new concept car, the Tango, and has some very interesting features indeed.

First off the car is fast - fast enough to outburn a Porsche at the lights, not that anyone would do such a thing. It can get from 0-60mph in just under four seconds and can hit a top speed of over 130mph.

But the other killer app behind the car was its width. The entire car is less than a metre wide and the designer envisages it being perfect for congested city streets. Not only is parking a lot easier but on clogged freeways the car can fit into half a lane.

These things are being made now, albeit in kit form, and if electric cars are your thing I'd recommend taking a look.

Posted by Iain Thomson on August 10, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)

IT grad sues over lack of job

A legal case has been causing some amusement in the office. A recent IT graduate has sued her college because despite getting a degree she can't find a job.

Trina Thompson graduated from Munroe College in New York with a degree in IT in April. She got a 2.7 grade point average (the top is 4.0, so in UK terms it's about the equivalent of a good 2:2) and a good attendance record but says she has received little support from the college about finding a job afterwards and so is suing for $70,000 to cover her tuition fees.

People often talk about a culture of entitlement in this country and this case seems a pretty strong case in point. The US is currently in the midst of its worst recession since the 1930s and it's not unusual for graduates to have to wait a while to get into the jobs market.

Secondly an IT qualification isn't the guarantee of a job that it once was, particularly if it's not a particularly good one. Ten or twenty years ago perhaps, but today the market is flooded.

The college has said the case is without merit and has confirmed it will fight the case. It'll have to, if it pays out on this the future bills from disgruntled graduates will be huge.

As for Ms Thompson she really has shot herself in the foot on this one. No employer is going to touch her with a barge pole now. No-one wants an employee who will sue at the drop of a hat. Maybe she should reconsider her options and try for a career in the law.

Posted by Iain Thomson on August 5, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Craigslist thief gets six years

Last year a cunning thief used Craigslist to establish an escape route. Today he was found to be not so cunning when his troubles saw him sent down for six years.

In October last year an advert appeared on Craigslist offering work for experienced landscapers. Applicants were to meet outside a branch of Bank of America branch wearing a yellow vest, safety goggles, a respirator mask and a blue shirt at a specific time. What they didn't know was that there was no job, and in fact they were unwitting accomplices to a bank robbery.

Curcio, 28, a local high-school football hero turned alcoholic and painkiller addict, had spent six months planning the robbery, which involved taking $400,000 from an armoured car while wearing the same clothes as the job applicants.

He was successful in that the crowd of Craigslist applicants confused police, allowing him to escape downriver to his getaway car by floating on an inner tube.

The prosecutor said the plan "stands out for its boldness, level of planning and its ingenuity".

"But for his two mistakes, he almost succeeded in planning the perfect crime," assistant US attorney Bruce Miyake wrote in court papers.

He was caught after a local homeless man found his equipment before the robbery and copied his license plate number, and by DNA evidence linking him to the crime.

The case highlights the increasing use of Craigslist by criminals, and police. There have been a spate of robberies lately of people meeting to buy of sell items via Craigslist and getting robbed. Also police are using it to entrap robbers.

This is causing an increasing problem for the site, which has come to dominate the online classified market in the US and elsewhere.

Posted by Iain Thomson on August 4, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)

DHS updates border search rules

Carly Fiorina confirms Senate bid

Comcast fires back at the FCC

Head of US-CERT quits

The electric car gets speedy

IT grad sues over lack of job

Craigslist thief gets six years

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