August 2001 - cypherpunks-legacy

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by Your.Internet.Serverice.Provider＠toad.com 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

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Re: Linux On Steroids: DIY supercomputer software from Sandia
by Faustine 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

On Wednesday, August 8, 2001, at 02:28 PM, Faustine wrote: > Lots of interesting possibilities for cryptographic applications, I'm > sure... > Massively Parallel Computational Research Laboratory > http://www.cs.sandia.gov/ >Except when was the last time you heard of a Cypherpunks-interesting >cipher being broken with _any_ amount of computer crunching? Since when did people stop trying? The last time I heard a researcher talk about trying to break a Cypherpunks-interesting cipher was last Thursday. Hearsay and hot air? Probably; nothing that merits repeating. But it's hardly a dead issue. >(The "challenges" broken by a couple of our own list members over the >past several years were all weak ciphers by modern standards, or had key >lengths way below even the recommended lengths of the day. Increasing >the key lengths by just several bits ups the work factor by a factor of >ten or so. Increasing it to recommended levels ups the work factor to >the level of "not all the computers that will ever be built in all of >the galaxies of the universe" will be able to brute-force a crack.) We've all heard that line before, but I still don't think it's too far- fetched to assume that anyone who does work in this area might appreciate 50 megs of free software to create his own supercomputer. >There are indeed some cryptographic uses for big computers, but not much >of real interest here. Some voice- and traffic-analysis stuff, but not >cracking modern ciphers. You never know what might come from putting that kind of computational power in the hands of people here. Create, break, do whatever you want. ~Faustine.

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The Electromagnetic Bomb
by Joey DePaolo 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

E-Bombs generate electromagnatic pulse which destroys any and all electric current running in any particular area it is detonated in. E-Bombs are a national threat and are being sold on the black market for $400 to terrorists. For the place that is being hit, it wipes out all electricity and is said to destroy all of the technological advances within the past 200 years. Basically they generate a large magnetic pulse (with a large coil of wire) which has a lot of current running through it. Then the chemical inside explodes touching the coil of wire causing it to be a moving short circut. When it hits, all current running through any metal or electricity-using object is destroyed. Terrorists in the middle east along with Iraq have been said to be researching this bomb for several years and have become a large threat to the United States. I hope that answers your question

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More censorware stupidity, from the anti-spam camp
by Stanton McCandlish 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

Jonathan Wallace's BESS/N2H2 post reminds, me... A friend of mine runs a "garage ISP", on which I run some mailing lists. I got deluged with bounces the other day, all from a new subscriber. The mail from the (hi-traffick) list they'd joined was all being returned, with a notice from that person's ISP saying that the mail was blocked because the site it was sent from is blacklisted on the ORBS anti-spam blacklist for running an open mail relay. Funny thing is, my friend's little ISP has not run an open mail relay is well over a year. Not only that, but ORBS is dead. The "organization" folded, and no updates to their blacklists have been published in months. The upshot of this is pretty scary, given that an estimated 40% of US ISPs and 20% of ALL ISPs are using ORBS, MAPS and other. Your ability to communicate via SMTP with your friends, family and associates around the world is largely dependent on sysadmins remembering to dilligently update their blacklist subscriptions and thinking to ensure that their chosen blacklist is actually still viable (as much as any of them can be called that to begin with). Not only that, but when a spamcensorware maker kicks the bucket, if your site is blacklisted *it can never be unblacklisted ever again, from that particular list, for all eternity* and some site somewhere WILL be using that blacklist, for years. Meanwhile innocent list admins get tarred with bounce floods, people cannot reach who they are trying to mail, and users whose ISPs don't bother to inform them much less adhere to an opt-in (or even opt-out) spambouncing policy will not receive mail intended for them and often never even know about it. The only thing worse than a blacklist, is a blacklist that is "in-play" in the real world, but not being corrected. If/when MAPS dies, this problem is going to *explode*. Hardly anyone used ORBS and this has already caused a lot of people severe headaches that still continue. But, maybe the problem will be so big if/when that happens that blacklists will largely be simply abandoned. NB: I'm not against individual spam filtering - I do it agressively myself, and subscribe to several group-maintained *invidual-use* blacklists that I've chosen to trust (more or less). I'm referring to ISP-level "stealth blocking", esp. that based on the technical capabilities of the sending site, rather than said site being a known spam house. -- -- Stanton McCandlish mech(a)eff.org http://www.eff.org/~mech Technical Director/Webmaster Electronic Frontier Foundation voice: +1 415 436 9333 x105 fax: +1 415 436 9993 EFF, 454 Shotwell St. San Francisco CA 94110 USA ---

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More censorware stupidity, from the anti-spam camp
by Stanton McCandlish 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

Jonathan Wallace's BESS/N2H2 post reminds, me... A friend of mine runs a "garage ISP", on which I run some mailing lists. I got deluged with bounces the other day, all from a new subscriber. The mail from the (hi-traffick) list they'd joined was all being returned, with a notice from that person's ISP saying that the mail was blocked because the site it was sent from is blacklisted on the ORBS anti-spam blacklist for running an open mail relay. Funny thing is, my friend's little ISP has not run an open mail relay is well over a year. Not only that, but ORBS is dead. The "organization" folded, and no updates to their blacklists have been published in months. The upshot of this is pretty scary, given that an estimated 40% of US ISPs and 20% of ALL ISPs are using ORBS, MAPS and other. Your ability to communicate via SMTP with your friends, family and associates around the world is largely dependent on sysadmins remembering to dilligently update their blacklist subscriptions and thinking to ensure that their chosen blacklist is actually still viable (as much as any of them can be called that to begin with). Not only that, but when a spamcensorware maker kicks the bucket, if your site is blacklisted *it can never be unblacklisted ever again, from that particular list, for all eternity* and some site somewhere WILL be using that blacklist, for years. Meanwhile innocent list admins get tarred with bounce floods, people cannot reach who they are trying to mail, and users whose ISPs don't bother to inform them much less adhere to an opt-in (or even opt-out) spambouncing policy will not receive mail intended for them and often never even know about it. The only thing worse than a blacklist, is a blacklist that is "in-play" in the real world, but not being corrected. If/when MAPS dies, this problem is going to *explode*. Hardly anyone used ORBS and this has already caused a lot of people severe headaches that still continue. But, maybe the problem will be so big if/when that happens that blacklists will largely be simply abandoned. NB: I'm not against individual spam filtering - I do it agressively myself, and subscribe to several group-maintained *invidual-use* blacklists that I've chosen to trust (more or less). I'm referring to ISP-level "stealth blocking", esp. that based on the technical capabilities of the sending site, rather than said site being a known spam house. -- -- Stanton McCandlish mech(a)eff.org http://www.eff.org/~mech Technical Director/Webmaster Electronic Frontier Foundation voice: +1 415 436 9333 x105 fax: +1 415 436 9993 EFF, 454 Shotwell St. San Francisco CA 94110 USA ---

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08 Aug '01

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Microsoft Risking "Spoliation" Charges
by Tim May 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

Looks like Microsoft is racing to get copies of XP out where they can't be retrieved, where the distribution is a done deal, a fact on the ground. No word yet on whether Black Unicorn's "Mr. Happy Fun Court" is "not amused." --Tim May --begin excerpt--- Windows XP could see September ship date By Joe Wilcox Staff Writer, CNET News.com August 7, 2001, 3:20 p.m. PT Starting next month, some new PCs could include an unexpected accessory: Windows XP. Microsoft has given PC makers the go-ahead to ship Windows XP as much as one full month before the operating system's official Oct. 25 launch date, sources close to four major PC makers told CNET News.com. ... For Microsoft, the early release of Windows XP has an additional benefit. The company is advancing its release schedule to try to beat any possible injunction that would delay the new operating system's debut, analysts said. ..... "Because a new remedy would be forward-looking, that could include (Windows) XP," said Andy Gavil, an antitrust professor with Howard University School of Law. "There's no reason to think the government is not considering an injunction against XP." .... Specter of injunction Getting Windows XP on new systems ahead of the scheduled Oct. 25 launch could help Microsoft fend off possible injunctions against Windows XP,... ... Publicly, Microsoft Group Vice President Jim Allchin said the company had no contingency plan should an injunction be issued against Windows XP. But sources close to Microsoft said the company is concerned about the possibility. ---end excerpt---

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Re: Linux On Steroids: DIY supercomputer software from Sandia
by Tim May 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

On Wednesday, August 8, 2001, at 02:28 PM, Faustine wrote: > Lots of interesting possibilities for cryptographic applications, I'm > sure... > > Massively Parallel Computational Research Laboratory > http://www.cs.sandia.gov/ Except when was the last time you heard of a Cypherpunks-interesting cipher being broken with _any_ amount of computer crunching? (The "challenges" broken by a couple of our own list members over the past several years were all weak ciphers by modern standards, or had key lengths way below even the recommended lengths of the day. Increasing the key lengths by just several bits ups the work factor by a factor of ten or so. Increasing it to recommended levels ups the work factor to the level of "not all the computers that will ever be built in all of the galaxies of the universe" will be able to brute-force a crack.) There are indeed some cryptographic uses for big computers, but not much of real interest here. Some voice- and traffic-analysis stuff, but not cracking modern ciphers. --Tim May

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IRS Criminal Investigation Handbook
by John Young 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

The IRS Criminal Investigation Handbook describes in 95 chapters the procedures for investigation of crime, preparing for trial and a host of other activities including undercover operations and surveillance: http://cryptome.org/irs-ci/irs-ci.htm The handbook aptly describes the variety of methodologies used in the Bell and Parker cases, in particular covert methods used to induce criminal actions for entrapment, as well as massaging trial testimony of witnesses and agents. The chapter on Undercover Operations provides for covertly attending client-attorney sessions; posing as an attorney, physician, clergyman, or member of the news media; obtaining through false pretense privileged information from attorneys, physicians, clergy and news media; giving false testimony; putting innocent parties at risk of physical violence; carrying out criminal actions; and earn income to offset cost of the operations ("churning"): http://cryptome.org/irs-ci/36211a.html The chapter on Surveillance and Non-consensual Monitoring states: "It is important to distinguish between investigative techniques used in surveillance activities and certain undercover operations. The following characteristics apply to surveillance: The purpose is to observe ongoing activities and individuals. Interaction with subjects and third parties is usually not initiated. Conversations are incidental to the surveillance. Conversations are not monitored or recorded, except as set forth in above. The special agent has limited cover, used to protect the integrity of the surveillance. Local special agents are used. Special agents need not be trained in undercover techniques. Initiated surveillance activity bears little resemblance to an undercover operation. The following situations indicate the surveillance activity evolved into an undercover operation: The activity continues for an extended period, and begins to focus on certain individuals. Reliance on cover identities increase. Contacts with targets and other individuals are more in-depth. Agents become participants rather than observers of the activities of interest. The following characteristics apply to undercover operations: The purpose is to initiate or participate in activities with identified targets. Interaction with subjects and third parties is sought. Undercover agents or other authorized individuals initiate and direct conversations to further the objectives of the operation. Conversations may be monitored and recorded. The undercover agent has a documented cover. This cover is used as a basis for contacts with targets or witnesses." http://cryptome.org/irs-ci/36209a.html

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Re: cypherpunks@cyberpass.net closing
by Anonymous 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

Eric Murray wrote: > I wrote the stuff below to answer someone's request for a list of > CDRs and their policies. I'd like to keep it up to date and post it > regularly. Eric Murray kicks ass.

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