DOJ's Pre-Ass-Handing Capitulation
In its February 16 application for an All Writs Act to force Apple to help crack Syed Rizwan Farook's phone, DOJ asserted,
Apple has the exclusive technical means which would assist the government in completing its search, but has declined…
Tuesday Morning: Été Frappé
Whatever I was going to write today has been beaten into submission by current events.
Woke up to news about alleged terror attacks in Belgium -- social media was a mess, a deluge of information with little organization. Best I can tell from…
Are the Authorities Confusing a PRISM Problem with an Encryption Problem?
CNN has its own version of updated reporting from the Paris attack. It provides a completely predictable detail inexplicably not included in the weekend's big NYT story: that the one phone with any content on it -- as distinct from a pure burner…
The Blind Spots Brennan Center's EO 12333 Report
The Brennan Center released a report on EO 12333 Thursday that aims to spark a debate about the privacy impacts of (just) NSA's surveillance overseas, in part by describing the privacy impacts of EO 12333.
In contrast, there has been relatively…
SWIFT and the Bangladeshi Bank Heist
I've been following the story of how what are described to be criminal hackers tried to steal $1 billion from Bangladesh's national bank, in part because of the tie to SWIFT, the financial transfer company (as of now, $81 million are still missing,…
Monday Morning: Synthesized Brain
When you need a break this hectic Monday morning, take five minutes and watch ANA from Factory Fifteen. I'm intrigued by the props and set -- how much is CGI, and how much is actual production line? What company allowed this production company…
For Counterterrorism Experts, Absence of Evidence Equals Encryption
The NYT has a fascinating story based on shared criminal files and attack review, describing what authorities currently know about how ISIS pulled off the Paris attack. It describes continued problems with transliteration (though it's not clear…
The Problem of the Liberal Elites Part 3 on Trade
Paul Krugman has been walking back his nearly unbridled support of trade treaties lately. In this blog post, he says “I think I’ve never assumed away the income distribution effects.” Those distributional effects are, he says, predicted…
Coming Soon to Apple vs FBI: Live Witnesses and Dead Terrorists
Apple today revealed that the FBI intends to call two witnesses in the March 22 hearing regarding the All Writs Act order to help crack Syed Rizwan Farook's phone: what I understand to be Privacy Manager Erik Neuenschwander and its Law Enforcement…
Friday Morning: F for Free and Favorite
Congratulations! You made it to another Friday! The end of the week means jazz here, until I run out of genres. This Friday I'm not covering a genre, though. I'm pointing you to one of the most surprising and utterly awesome gifts jazz lovers…
US Secretly Acting Like China Does in Public
As this ZDNet article notes, some of the Snowden disclosures revealed that NSA had asked for the source code of various tech companies (though it links to a Jake Appelbaum article that I believe to be sourced to someone else). What is new in…
#FlintWaterCrisis: I Don't Think That Report Said What You Think It Said, Gov
Today's House Oversight Committee hearing into the Flint Water Crisis was a joke. It was partisan -- more so than the previous two hearings -- because Republicans finally clued in that a Republican state governor's crisis doesn't make them look…
Connecting the Dots on the Hillary Emails
I maintain my belief that it is unlikely Hillary will be implicated in the investigation into her email practices, though it is quite possible that top aides like Jake Sullivan or Huma Abedin would be.
That said, I want to put three pieces…
Thursday Morning: A Little Green Around The Gills
Happy St. Patrick's Day to those of you who observe this opportunity to drink beer (tinted green or otherwise) and eat boiled dinner and wear green! We'll know the hardcore among you tomorrow by your hangovers.
Folks overseas don't understand…
"Noteworthy" Ron Wyden Interview on Apple vs FBI: Ask NSA, Ask NSA, Ask NSA
This interview Ron Wyden did with Oregon Public Radio includes a lot of what you might expect from him, including an argument that weakening encryption makes us less safe, including possibly exposing kids (because their location gets identified)…
The Problem of Liberal Elites Part 2 On Trade
Paul Krugman begins his 1993 defense of NAFTA by insulting its opponents gratuitously and wrongly. Then he offers the readers of Foreign Policy the defense of trade treaties they love.
The truth about NAFTA may be summarized in five…
The OPM Hack Is One Big Reason Apple Couldn't Guarantee Its Ability to Keep FBiOS Safe
Underlying the legal debate about whether the government can demand that Apple write an operating system that will make it easier to brute force Syed Rizwan Farook's phone is another debate, about whether the famously secretive tech company…
Wednesday Morning: Place Your Bets
About 11:00 a.m. EST today President Obama will announce his nominee to the Supreme Court to fill Antonin Scalia's seat on the bench.
Apart from Sri Srinivasan, widely mentioned as the likely nominee, who is a possible candidate? Share your…
If Trump’s Protestors Didn’t Exist He Would Have to Invent Them
Since last Friday’s canceled Trump rally in Chicago, there has been quite a bit of discussion about protestors at Trump rallies — both the propriety of disrupting his events and some scolding about what a bad tactical move it was for protestors…
Tuesday Morning: #FlintWaterCrisis Hearing Today
This is a semi-special morning roundup edition due to this morning's Congressional hearing on #FlintWaterCrisis. Details:
Tuesday 15-MAR -- 10:00 AM -- Hearing on Flint, Michigan Water Contamination (est 3 hours, on C-SPAN3)
Former Flint,…