How everyone is being spied on here in the US

[Jagos]

How the Stratfor emails are the gift that keep on giving (http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/08/trapwire-strafor-biz/all/)

Ever since WikiLeaks began releasing a series of documents about the surveillance system Trapwire, there’s been a panicked outcry over this supposedly all-seeing, revolutionary spy network. In fact, there are any number of companies that say they comb through video feeds or suspicious activity reports in largely the same way that Trapwire claims to do. What’s truly extraordinary about Trapwire was how it was marketed by the private intelligence firm Stratfor, whose internal e-mails WikiLeaks exposed.

So Remember Stratfor? Remember how it was hacked? Well, Wikileaks has shown how the US is being spied upon by a number of different private corporations. Trapwire is being used similar to the UK's CCTV to spy on all Americans for dissent purposes.

I don't doubt that the FBI is using cameras to their advantage given how the NYPD utilize a similar system.

So wherever you go, whatever you do, corporate government knows.

Wonder why Assange is being persecuted? Maybe it's because what we thought was a democracy in the US, isn't a democracy at all...

[Aerozord]

So wherever you go, whatever you do, corporate government knows.

apple monitors your phones position at any given time, facebook follows you everywhere you go on the internet and google carefully collects your marketing data.

Privacy is a relative thing.

[Marelo]

Yeah maybe this isn't a particularly healthy view, I don't know, but I kind of don't give a shit about my privacy anymore. It's too much work to maintain any sort of privacy in this infrastructure, and whatever you do manage is basically illusory anyway. I feel like it's a choice between interacting with the world at the cost of privacy or privacy at the cost of interacting with the world and the choice seems obvious to me.

[Grandmaster_Skweeb]

apple monitors your phones position at any given time, facebook follows you everywhere you go on the internet and google carefully collects your marketing data.

Privacy is a relative thing.

These are fairly easy to circumvent or at least greatly minimize, for the most part.

Can't really speak for apple products, since I don't own any apple products and don't ever plan to, but both my android devices are rooted and use the Droidwall app. That app really should come with vanilla droid products. Is a front-end firewall so I can control what apps can 'get out' and talk to wherever and what doesn't. So between that judicious use of airplane mode, only signing in to my gmail accounts only when needing to, and fine grain tweaking settings I'm comfortable with my mobile device footprints.

Browser-wise I stick to ixquick for searches or Tor when doing research for my network security classes or pet-projects related therein. Also have Noscript, Adblock+, Do-Not-Track, Ghostery, and Peer block to tell me what is trying to get out or in. DNT takes care of the tracking cookies issue, for the most part, but I still go through it with a fine toothed comb from time to time. Or just blow it all out and let the tracker blocking fake cookies propagate again. Keeps google-analytics and other trackers trackin muh sheeit and unwanted little nasty malwares out, for the most part.

Facebook? Don't even have an account. Solves that problem.


It really isn't hard to maintain a low-key presence on the internet or physical presence, if one is even a little proactive with going about it.

As for the whole Trapwire thing? Automated facial recognition software tends to be notoriously stupid at times. Simple things like shaving, putting on / taking off hats or glasses can throw the whole thing for a loop. Sure they may be everywhere but unless one is doing something they shouldn't be doing in broad daylight than one has nothing to really worry about.

What one should really be more worried about is how easy it is to track someone by their mobile devices, RFID signals, bluetooth signal, etc. That shit can get spooky.

[Azisien]

I just don't care who watches what I do, but they will be rather startled by the amount of animal porn I set my browser to automatically view

[Aerozord]

These are fairly easy to circumvent or at least greatly minimize, for the most part.

Can't really speak for apple products, since I don't own any apple products and don't ever plan to, but both my android devices are rooted and use the Droidwall app. That app really should come with vanilla droid products. Is a front-end firewall so I can control what apps can 'get out' and talk to wherever and what doesn't. So between that judicious use of airplane mode, only signing in to my gmail accounts only when needing to, and fine grain tweaking settings I'm comfortable with my mobile device footprints.

Browser-wise I stick to ixquick for searches or Tor when doing research for my network security classes or pet-projects related therein. Also have Noscript, Adblock+, Do-Not-Track, Ghostery, and Peer block to tell me what is trying to get out or in. DNT takes care of the tracking cookies issue, for the most part, but I still go through it with a fine toothed comb from time to time. Or just blow it all out and let the tracker blocking fake cookies propagate again. Keeps google-analytics and other trackers trackin muh sheeit and unwanted little nasty malwares out, for the most part.

Facebook? Don't even have an account. Solves that problem.


It really isn't hard to maintain a low-key presence on the internet or physical presence, if one is even a little proactive with going about it.

As for the whole Trapwire thing? Automated facial recognition software tends to be notoriously stupid at times. Simple things like shaving, putting on / taking off hats or glasses can throw the whole thing for a loop. Sure they may be everywhere but unless one is doing something they shouldn't be doing in broad daylight than one has nothing to really worry about.

What one should really be more worried about is how easy it is to track someone by their mobile devices, RFID signals, bluetooth signal, etc. That shit can get spooky.

you are overestimating the average persons tech savvy. Your average internet user doesn't even know these things are happening let alone how to take measures to stop it.

Though was one point I need to get abit condescending on

Facebook? Don't even have an account. Solves that problem.

do you have any idea how impractical that is? How big of a deal social networking sites are to our society now. If you are a child or teenager and dont have facebook, you dont exist. You are socially crippled. Its like not having a phone when we were growing up. It is one of the primary communication tools of our modern digital age.

Look i dont like it, I hate facebook, but I have one because without it I was kept out of the loop of what everyone was doing, when people were meeting up, ect. Its a sociological need now, not a want. Be easier to keep in touch without a phone than without social networks like facebook or twitter.

[akaSM]

do you have any idea how impractical that is? How big of a deal social networking sites are to our society now. If you are a child or teenager and dont have facebook, you dont exist. You are socially crippled. Its like not having a phone when we were growing up. It is one of the primary communication tools of our modern digital age.

It's a good thing I'm a ninja!

[phil_]

But all my friends are here, Aero.

[Grandmaster_Skweeb]

A sociological need? No. I'm going to have to differ on that one. A massive convenience, yes. Need? far from it. If anything it has become a social crutch now. It has its place but yiu are vastly overestimating how important it is. Not disagreeing that social networking sites aren't useful, seeing as how linkedin and other professional networking sites exist. Those, i'd say are far more important than facebook.

The reason i said not having a facebook solves the problem of facebook is because facebook itself is a social engineer's goldmine of information. Not to mention all the infections and malware spread from it and the flash/java apps and games latched onto it like lamprey.

And moreso what causes me to specifically avoid facebook is o've found databases dedicated specifically towards storing compromised facebook account names, passwords, and all sorts of deets related
o. There's a reason facebook is one of most targeted, if not the most, site on the internet.

And no, i dont overestimate the average user because i deal with average users on a daily basis. I mention things like that to show a person how exposed they are and hopefully something i say will stick. Educating someone on even the basic of security practices, and those are pretty damn basic, is better than nothing at all.

[Aerozord]

thats right, convenience, like how internet itself is a convenience. To use another security issue as a comparison. Having a site store your credit card information is convenience. Otherwise you'd be entering it every single transaction. Would it be safer to not do this. Obviously, but its not realistic to expect people to not use it for that reason.

Do you honestly think that social networking systems will just go away if you tell enough people about crap on it? The world is moving towards total connectivity. How many different systems automatically network with facebook, twitter, reddit, etc. How many people gladly embrace using facebook to log into how many different sites and messaging programs.

Humans are not going to stop using a useful tool simply because there is dangers in using it. They will work towards making it more safe to use.

[edit]and I know you aren't teenagers, but guess what those teenagers will become adults and they aren't going to stop going to a site they have been using for a decade.

[Aerozord]

know what, forget all that, cause that wasn't even the point. Point is, as you said, there is a wealth of information to target as is. That was my point. Personal information is compromised, it has been for years. This is just a fact.

New technology always comes at a cost. Sure part of me dislikes my location being known at all times. Though a larger part of me likes access to AR software, realtime navigation, and 911 being able to locate me even in the middle of the woods.

[akaSM]

thats right, convenience, like how internet itself is a convenience. To use another security issue as a comparison. Having a site store your credit card information is convenience. Otherwise you'd be entering it every single transaction. Would it be safer to not do this. Obviously, but its not realistic to expect people to not use it for that reason.

I use convenient stuff :3. It's so convenient.

Do you honestly think that social networking systems will just go away if you tell enough people about crap on it?

Nope. See Apple (not a networking thing but, it sorta works) for reference. If people like/love something, it'll stay.

The world is moving towards total connectivity. How many different systems automatically network with facebook, twitter, reddit, etc. How many people gladly embrace using facebook to log into how many different sites and messaging programs.

I've seen this and, those buttons annoy me.

Humans are not going to stop using a useful tool simply because there is dangers in using it. They will work towards making it more safe to use.

Sadly, true.

and I know you aren't teenagers, but guess what those teenagers will become adults and they aren't going to stop going to a site they have been using for a decade.

When was the last time you saw one of those horrible 90's angelfire or geocities site? :P.

I mean, who knows what will happen, we're a social animal after all, I think social stuff will survive a looooong time, even if some sites begin to dissapear (what's a myspace?), others will come.

In general, I don't care about social stuff, I mean, my Twitter account exists because it's a nice news feed thing ::V:

[Aerozord]

that is a valid point, networking will stay but might not be the same form. I have actually seen alot of people shifting over to more niche networks. which isn't that surprising the internet flourishes because it allows those outside the mainstream to find like minded people. Though unless they diversify to the point none have strong awareness, I dont seen the stalker website vanishing. That facebook button might become a facepalm, but it will still be there.

Even in the event I'm wrong, its already proven mainstream not only tolerates it but prefers it. So if they all vanished, going to be someone that finds value in doing it. Nothing can stop them, unless you want government to start regulating what cookies they can slip into your browser

somehow that sounded kind of dirty