Paranoia

DANGER LIST

2008-08-13T18:08:00.001-04:00

Privacy.org: "The Department of Homeland Security's Transportation Security Administration Agency (TSA) disclosed that it amassed a secret database of air travelers who arrived at airports without a drivers license or passport. The database also includes information on the traveler's companions."

The collection of names into an official List is always cause for concern. While many people feel these things are created without much purpose, this is almost always not the case: the purpose is to remember who was where, and under what conditions. So they can decide what to do with you... later.

THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS PROPERTY

2008-08-12T18:47:00.001-04:00

Again, from Slashdot:

It seems that authorities in Massachusetts have raided a home chemistry lab, apparently without a warrant, and made off with all of its contents. Here's the local article from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette.

Reactions to things like this tend to range from amusement to outrage. There is a reason for events like this -- always remember: the Government can take anything away from you at any time.

(And we also wonder if those guys from the Hacker Crackdown ever got their stuff back.)

NETWORK WATCHING YOU

2008-08-12T13:43:00.001-04:00

A company called BBN Technologies has received a $4,400,000 contract to build advanced network monitoring technology for the military. At least, that's what they're saying now.

The contract is probably legit, and the claim that the technology will be used to counter cyber-attacks against the U.S. military may be true, but keep in mind: as badly as different government agencies are at working together, technology is like a genie in a bottle. Advanced network monitoring tech is no doubt in use at other agencies currently tasked with surveillancing U.S. citizens, but whenever improvements come along, they are usually greedily adopted.

From Slashdot.

ONE MORE THING

2008-08-07T14:24:00.001-04:00

One more thing about the TSA laptop search program. Critics keep suggesting that it's not very well thought out, since anyone who wants to sent dangerous information into the United States could just use the Internet to do so. But, as the motto around here says: Never attribute to stupidity what can be blamed on malice.

It is important to the authorities that they be perceived as stupid and ineffective by the mass population. That way, they can do what they like but still hide their sinister motives behind a smokescreen of idiocy. If we assume a basic level of competence at the TSA's decisionmaking level, then we can make some educated guesses about the laptop seizure program:

Case 1: If the stated goal of the laptop program is true, the senders and receivers of dangerous information either can not or will not use the Internet to send certain types of information. The only reason for that is that they are afraid the information will be captured. Which means that there is a high likelihood that your traffic is being captured.

Case 2: The stated goal is a smokescreen. They are looking for something else. But what? Something that isn't likely to be transferred over the Internet (or by FedEx, for that matter). Something that people are likely to carry, but is not available in any government database. It could be that they simply want to have a look around, just to see what kind of stuff people keep on their hard drives, and arresting any low-hanging fruits (stumbled-upon illicit pornography, for example).

We just can't be sure: What are they looking for?

Another question: What are they leaving behind?

BELATED PARANOIA

2008-08-07T13:44:00.001-04:00

The fact that the TSA can seize any American citizen's laptop for any reason, indefinitely, could have repercussions for all Internet data transactions that enter or leave the country as well. So says Steven M. Bellovin.

Could have? This surveillance is already happening.

Internet traffic is aggregated at hundreds of different choke points as it makes its way from your computer to the remote servers you're trying to access. If China can filter all of the Internet traffic that enters their country, then you must concede that it is at least possible for another country to monitor their own.

The U.S.A. does not necessarily filter its net traffic. The strategy, as ever, is to give people enough rope to hang themselves. This is what they are doing, and probably have been doing for years. Without a doubt, every page you've looked at and every email you've sent or received, is archived in some giant data store somewhere.

Or do you think it's a coincidence that storage, and search technology are two of the fastest growing segments of the IT sector?

OH DEAR

2008-08-06T13:36:00.001-04:00

We've tried to warn you.

You didn't listen.

So, we've come back. To protect your precious freedom by scaring the stuffing out of you.

Good luck, America.

A Recap Would Be Impossible

2007-08-06T01:54:00.000-04:00

We've been keeping up with the news, and boy are we more paranoid than ever. Of course, if paranoia is an irrational fear then, well, we're not paranoid at all.

Oh great.

Suffice to say, there's no way we can recap all of the things that have happened on the privacy front since our long sleep began, all those months ago.

See you soon. (Probably literally.)

Subliminal Messages Might Work (fnord)

2007-03-11T09:15:00.000-04:00

Original article at at Slashdot. Read this: "University College London researchers have found the first physiological evidence that invisible subliminal images do attract the brain's attention on a subconscious level. The wider implication for the study, published in Current Biology, is that techniques such as subliminal advertising, now banned in the UK but still legal in the USA, certainly do leave their mark on the brain."

We've never bought into the popular nonsense that subliminal messages don't work. Of course they do. But those who are in a position to take advantage of the technologies of mass distribution don't want us to know that.

We also believe that there are other, more powerful techniques that allow the powers that be to manipulate our brains. We believe this because some countries, like Great Britain, have outlawed subliminal messages, and that can only mean that mass brain-washing tech has moved on. They're just behind the curve in the USA.

Testing

2007-02-22T21:49:00.000-05:00

Ignore this post.

Times Don't Change

2007-02-08T00:36:00.000-05:00

Let's see. It's been nearly a year since our last post. Nearly two years since our last substantive post. As we've explained before, we've lost our taste for blogging. Sticking one's neck out on the Internet is a bad idea (and no, we're not talking about those nude photos from Spring Break '92). Still. . .

We still read the news. We still listen to the people on the streets. The things we hear do not match up.

The public reaction is a joke. We admit that we started this blog out of a sense that our perfectly irrational feelings of paranoia might be of some use to the general public. The average person who swans about his life, who wouldn't believe for a second that there are threats out there they need to be concerned about.

But no; nobody cares.

So we're back. Even though the risks are great, we're back.

2006-05-23T10:14:00.000-04:00

Look Upon This Article and Despair

We recently wrote a piece for Sloganeering.org about government access to phone records and the implications therein. Today, we came across this:

"Banks, Internet-service providers and other companies that possess large amounts of data on their customers say that police and intelligence agencies have been increasingly coming to them looking for tidbits of information that could help them stop everything from money launderers to pedophiles and terrorists."

As we pointed out in our article, privacy isn't just for criminals, and people should be upset that the average American citizen's information is no longer safe.

We know it's been awhile since we have posted anything, and not because there's nothing for us to write about. Quite the opposite - there's just too much.

And we don't really like the internet any more either.

2005-05-16T23:01:00.000-04:00

I'm Back -- And I'm Still Me

Where have we been for the past year (and change)? Let's just say that we were deep under-cover. And, while we've seen plenty of things that have gotten us worried over the past year or so, there didn't seem to be anything worth leaving the bunker over.

But, lately, there have been a few developments that warrant our return to the Internet, that haven of craziness.

We've been apprehensively following the latest assault on privacy from our "government" (puppets, to a man): The Real ID act. In what could be considered the legislative equivalent of using a child as a human shield, it was passed mostly due to the fact that it was attached to a military appropriations bill. According to this CNET article:

"Starting three years from now, if you live or work in the United States, you'll need a federally approved ID card to travel on an airplane, open a bank account, collect Social Security payments, or take advantage of nearly any government service."

Sound fantastic. We can't wait for the "Real Electronic Micro-chip in the Ass act." Expect it in 2007.

* * *

Ok, this wasn't enough to draw us out of our hasty and unannounced retirement. What, we asked ourselves, was the point of highlighting issues about which we should all be genuinely paranoid? It was this article about a recent poll:

"In one finding, 43% of the public says the press has too much freedom, while only 3% of journalists agree. And just 14% of the public can name "freedom of the press" as a guarantee in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, in the major poll conducted by the University of Connecticut Department of Public Policy."

Please understand that we have our problems with the so-called "free-press." But, considering that most of those problems have to do with the fact that they are so obviously in thrall to their evil, hidden masters (corporate for sure, aliens... well, maybe), we think the solution is to have more freedom of the press. Yes, in spite of things like this.

Wake up drones! The lives of your children are at stake!

2004-04-28T10:18:00.000-04:00

PRELUDE TO THE CYBORG ARMY

A company called Bio Control Systems thinks you need to be closer to your machines. They are building human-to-machine interfaces, the first step in organic/inorganic intergration. What that means: in the future there will be cyborgs.

More information on the "nerve chip" technology here.

2004-04-27T18:19:00.000-04:00

EVEN MORE EYES IN THE SKY

""The horizon someday may be lined with giant floating orbs guarding people below from the enemy." Giant balloons may soon be floating above our heads, you know, to "protect" us all.

More scare quotes from the article: "Floating about 13 miles above the earth and holding a stationary orbit for 12 to 18 months, they would provide more constant scrutiny than existing unmanned reconnaissance planes such as the medium-altitude Predator and the high-altitude Global Hawk that have to move around."

Nothing gives us a warm feeling like the phrase "constant scrutiny".

2004-04-26T08:13:00.000-04:00

NEWS ROUNDUP

Apologies for our absense over the past week. We find it important to get away from the world for awhile (of course, we also have to work for a living so that can take up a good deal of our time as well). Still, hiding from all of the brian control signals out there is important.

Speaking of mind control, look at this. It's all about brain control drugs. The most disturbing thing about the article is that is seems to have been written by a representative of the Center for Cognitive Liberty and Ethics. Why do we need a center for Congitive Liberty? Be afriad. Especially if they turn out to be a front organization, like that whole Cult Awarness Network thing.

Here's a plug for Rick Ross, by the way. Good resource for craaaazy cults.

"No one from NASA is to do interviews or otherwise comment on anything having to do with [the film]." What are they talking about? The Day After Tommorow, of course. NASA has told its employees not to comment on the movie [You can read the story here -- NYTimes internet survallience information required.] Why won't NASA talk about the possibility of a coming ice age? Hmm...

In spite, or perhaps because of improved medical technology, super bacteria are infesting hospitals. Today, the ICU, tomorrow the world.

2004-04-17T11:08:00.000-04:00

NEW MONITERING TECHNOLOGY

A "black box" for the human body. They say it can moniter a person's heart rate, blood pressure, "and more."

We're thrilled. Generally speaking, civilian versions of just about any technology are dumbed down compared to the military ones. Likely, governments have had access to this sort of tech for years.

2004-04-17T10:37:00.000-04:00

BY THE LOOKS OF YA'

A new security system is being tested at Logan International Airport. It uses behavior pattern recognition to detect possible terrorists. Sounds sophisticated, right? Not exactly. The system consists of, "uniformed and undercover security officials [who] watch people as they move through terminals." Given the lack of funding for better security since 9/11, we suppose it makes sense to have men doing what machines could more expensively accomplish.

Just what sort of patterns are they looking for? "... odd or suspicious behavior: heavy clothes on a hot day, loiterers without luggage, anyone observing security methods." That last one doesn't seem fair, does it? If you look at the security guards who are staring at you, they'll think your a terrorist. Instead of a normal person thinking normal thoughts like, "Boy, I sure hope they don't shoot me."

We here a Paranoia are ready to call this "behavior pattern recognition" by its true name: Bullshit. It's obvious what this really is. Over the past two years, airport security providers have been raked over the coals for racial profiling. They really want racial profiling, but every time they bring it up the American public gets all huffy about it. You can bet your ass that they'll be pulling in plenty of Arabs as part of this behavior pattern system. But, when accused of profiling all they'll have to say is, "Um, he was sweating and stuff. His clothes looked heavy for the temperature, ok?" Advice to our brown-skinned brothers and sisters: Stay away from Logan International Airport this summer.

Part of CNN's scary hed: "Could hand signals between people in a terminal be part of an inside joke or a terror plot?"

Maybe. But our hand signals will simply say, "We're on to you, Jonny Federale."

2004-04-15T07:27:00.000-04:00

Amazon Wants to Know More About You

Amazon.com is launching a new search engine that will allow them to gather information on your web browsing habits and searches, in order to more successfully sell books to you. Read about it here.

A quote from the article: "Because A9 is so closely integrated with Amazon, it could offer the Seattle company unparalleled access to customers' Web browsing and online shopping habits. Google and Yahoo have the ability to collect personal information from their users, but it pales in comparison to the storehouse of data that Amazon has on its millions of customers."

All that needs to happen now are three things:
1. Other merchants will develop similar technology.
2. Those merchants will form partnerships with ISP's.
3. Anyone who signs up with these ISP's will be forced to download the toolbar/tracking technology as part of their service agreement.

Oh, we can't wait.

2004-04-15T07:05:00.000-04:00

Good Plan

We here at Paranoid aren't very interested in politics; our only take on the subject is summed up by this quote: The people who are the most capable at getting elected are the last people you'd want serving in the government. However, in our effort to bring you the latest news concerning Rational Paranoia, we feel it is our duty to mention this:

New Reports on U.S. Planting WMDs in Iraq

An Iraqi source close to the Basra Governor’s Office told the MNA that new information shows that a large part of the WMD, which was secretly brought to southern and western Iraq over the past month, are in containers falsely labeled as containers of the Maeresk shipping company and some consignments bearing the labels of organizations such as the Red Cross or the USAID in order to disguise them as relief shipments.

Now, we rather suspected that President Bush would pull something like this, probably leading to an announcement in September or October that WMD's had been found in Iraq. It would be a surefire way for him to boost his sagging poll ratings.

We don't care about that.

What worries us is that he is trucking deadly weapons into one of the most destabilized regions in the world. Imagine what would happen if Iraqie insurgents, or Bin Ladin's forces got ahold of some of these chemical or biological agents.

2004-04-13T07:06:00.000-04:00

Free Floating

We here at Paranoia have honed anxiety into an artform, but we're pretty sure that nobody is comforted by the phrase "The golden age of robots is coming."

When it comes to asteroid impacts, it's not a question of "if," it's a question of "when." Now, a new piece of software can tell you if you'll be killed should an asteroid hit your town. We're skeptical, however. How hard is it to write a piece of software that says nothing but"You're screwed," when you click on it?

The FBI can already monitor your Internet use without a subpoena if they think you're a terrorist. But now the greedy bastards want to be able to tap your communications, you know, just because they feel like it. Public comments are being accepted today over at the FCC website. No word yet on whether or not disagreeing with more lenient wire tap rules qualifies you as a terrorist.

We're going to have to start calling Chicago, "The City of Big Brother." Last year, Chicago police put 30 bullet proof cameras in high crime areas, also known as "you know, where poor people live." Well, now the city wants to add fifty more of them. Also: The police are going to add "gunshot detectors," which are capable triangulating within 20 feet the location of a shooting. Pray God the Bulls don't win another NBA championship. . .

Given the mad cow disease scare that took place back in January, you'd think that the USDA would be in favor of testing cattle, right? Well, no. The agency in charge of protecting our health decided not to allow an American beef production company to test its beef, which is something it would have to do in order to sell in Japan. Always a proud agency, the USDA isn't about to let those crummy Japanese tell US beef producers what to do. Well, it's either that, or the USDA is afraid of what they might find. Paranoia suggests that you stick with the chicken from here on out.

2004-04-06T17:38:00.000-04:00

Russian “Flying Saucers” to Grace American Skies

Those damn Russians again. Is it just us, or does that picture look like it was taken back in 1950? It would explain a lot. Keep watching the skies!

2004-04-05T20:43:00.000-04:00

Don't Worry, We Get It

Libratarian mouthpiece, Reason Magazine, is going to be sending its subscribers issues with customized covers, featuring a satellite photo of the subscriber's house. Libratarians get off on scaring each other almost as much as we here at Paranoia do -- except we're not trying to get you to re-up on your subscription.

Modern Libratarianism is an outgrowth of Ayn Rand's objectivist philosophy/religion. And, of course, we fear them as much as we fear any other crazy-ass religion.

2004-04-05T20:37:00.000-04:00

The Robots are Coming

If this doesn't scare the hell out of you, you're crazier than we are.

2004-04-05T15:26:00.000-04:00

The Ocean Is Dying

We need the ocean. It covers two thirds of the surface of the Earth, and it is the home to countless unique animal and plant species. And parts of it have been rendered more barren than the largest deserts, according to the UN.

While the United Nations is undoubtably the one-world government spoken of in Revelations, it's still a pretty big organization. We believe there is a reasonable possibility that the people responsible for this report are not connected to the black helicopter division.

2004-04-05T15:20:00.000-04:00

U.S. Government (Allegedly) Stole a Man's Gold

It's all explained in this article here. All the usual suspects are named, like the CIA and Ferdinand Marcos. That's right folks, before we demanded that he leave, we helped him steal.