February 2005 - cypherpunks-legacy

Alleged mobsters guilty in vast Net, phone fraud
by R.A. Hettinga 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

<http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6928696/print/1/displaymode/1098/> MSNBC.com Alleged mobsters guilty in vast Net, phone fraud Mafia scheme said to have netted $659 million over 7 years By Mike Brunker Reporter MSNBC Updated: 8:22 p.m. ET Feb. 14, 2005 Writing a sudden ending to what authorities say is one of the biggest consumer fraud cases ever prosecuted, alleged members of one of New York's most notorious Mafia families pleaded guilty Monday to conspiracy and fraud charges stemming from an Internet and phone billing caper that bilked consumers out of more than $650 million. Prosecutors say the principals of the scheme, which ran from 1996 to 2003, are members of the Gambino crime family, an outfit better known for such muscle-and-blood criminal enterprises as gambling, loan sharking, protection rackets and creative bookkeeping for construction projects and garbage collection. But in this case, prosecutors said, the hoods targeted phone customers and Internet users, tricking them into responding to too-good-to-be-true offers of free porn, psychic readings, dating services and sports picks, and then putting the hurt on their pocketbooks with a series of unauthorized credit card and telephone charges. The mobsters also ripped off two federally supervised funds that subsidize rural phone companies through another billing scam. Alleged mastermind, Gambino 'capo' enter pleas Among those who entered guilty pleas Monday in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn - on the day jury selection was to have begun - were the alleged mastermind of the scheme, Richard Martino, 45, known in the New York tabloids as the "X-rated mobster," and 45-year-old Salvatore Locascio, described by authorities as a Gambino "capo," or captain. Under the plea bargain, Martino pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and one count of extortion for forcefully trying to extract a $1 million payment from a porn industry rival. Martino faces up to 10 years in prison and agreed to forfeit $15 million under the deal. Locascio entered a guilty plea to a single count of money laundering and also faces up to 10 years in prison and forfeiture of $4.7 million. Three other alleged mob associates - Dennis Martino, brother of Richard Martino, Thomas Pugliese and Andrew Campos - pleaded guilty to a count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. A fourth man, Zev Mustafa, pleaded guilty to money laundering in connection with the scheme. Daniel Martino, Pugliese and Campos each face up to five years in prison and agreed to forfeit a total of $2.1 million, while Mustafa faces up to 10 years in prison and will forfeit $1.7 million. Prosecutors allege that Richard Martino, a Gambino "soldier," directed the scheme and paid $8 million of the proceeds directly to Locascio, the leader of his "crew," and funneled at least $40 million more into Gambino family coffers. Bank, phone company purchased The elaborate scheme brought in so much money that the defendants and various co-conspirators were able to purchase a telephone company and bank in Missouri, according to court documents. They also created at least 64 shell companies and opened a host of foreign bank accounts through which to pass their ill-gotten gains, the documents said. In an indictment returned in March 2003, prosecutors alleged a two-headed scheme: People who called 1-800 phone numbers advertising free samples of phone sex, psychic hot lines and dating services unwittingly triggered recurring monthly charges that appeared on their phone bills as "voice-mail services" and other innocuous services. At the same time, the scheme trapped Web surfers seeking adult content on the Internet by enticing them to enter their credit card information for "free" tours, only to begin billing them between $20 and $90 a month. The defendants routinely changed corporate billing names and merchant banks to stay one step ahead of authorities and foil Visa USA's fraud-detection system, according to court documents. In 1999, they began processing credit transactions in Guatemala to further muddy the waters, the documents said. Prosecutors charged that the Web sites used in the Internet scam were part of a joint venture formed in 1996 between Crescent Publishing Group Inc., a Manhattan company that published such high-profile adult magazines as Playgirl and High Society, and Lexitrans Inc. of Overland Park, Kan., a Web hosting company that they said was secretly controlled by Richard Martino. Surprise guilty pleas The surprise guilty pleas on Monday, following negotiations that lasted through the weekend, pre-empted what would have been one of the most closely watched mob trials in years. Using the power of plea bargains, prosecutors already had peeled off a number of alleged co-conspirators who were expected to testify against Martino and Locascio, including: Norman Chanes, a 58-year-old millionaire advertising executive and movie producer (co-producer of the 2000 film "Blue Moon," starring Ben Gazzara, Rita Moreno and "Sopranos" cast member Vincent Pastore), who allegedly advertised the 1-800 phone numbers used in the telephone fraud in magazines and newspapers around the country. Bruce Chew, 57, who was CEO of Crescent Publishing Co. Chew was a defendant in a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit against Crescent Publishing that led to a $30 million settlement in November 2001. Kenneth Matzdorff, a 48-year-old Missouri businessman who allegedly acted as a front man to purchase the Cass County Telephone Co. in Peculiar, Mo., and the Garden City Bank in Garden City, Mo., on behalf of Richard Martino and others. Matzdorff pleaded guilty in January to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud charges under a plea agreement. Another figure in the case who might have been called to testify is Carl Ruderman, a 60-something-year-old publisher and philanthropist who reportedly was the secret owner of Crescent Publishing. 'The invisible man' of porn Ruderman, dubbed "the invisible man" of porn by fellow skin magazine publisher Al Goldstein in 1989 for his low profile, was never charged with any crime, reportedly because he told authorities that he delegated responsibility for day-to-day operations of Crescent Publishing to Chew and had no knowledge of the billing scam. One former Crescent employee said that Ruderman certainly lived up to the "invisible man" sobriquet at the company's Manhattan offices. "We used to call him the Wizard of Oz, because you never saw the guy," said the employee, who spoke with MSNBC.com on condition of anonymity. "I saw him twice the whole time I worked for him." Former Gambino crime boss John Gotti Sr., forever known as the "Dapper Don," also had been expected to testify from the grave. Longtime New York newspaper crime reporter Jerry Capeci, who now publishes his work on the Ganglandnews.com Web site, said prosecutors had planned to play a tape of a wiretapped conversation from January 1990 in which Gotti sings the praises of newly minted mobsters Martino and Locascio, who had just been inducted into the Gambino family. 'I like the Richies' "I want guys that done more than killing," Capeci quotes Gotti as saying on the tape, obtained from a listening device planted in an apartment above the Ravenite Social Club in Manhattan's Little Italy. "I like the Richies. They're young - twenty-something, thirty-something -- They're beautiful guys. Ten years from now, these young guys we straightened out, they're going to be really proud of them." Gotti died in prison at the age of 61 on June 10, 2002, from complications of head and neck cancer while serving a sentence of life without parole for murder and racketeering. The criminal case was filed more than three years after the FTC announced that it had filed suit, along with the New York attorney general's office, to stop Crescent Publishing from "illegally billing thousands of consumers for services that were advertised as 'free,' and for billing other consumers who never visited the Web sites at all." The suit did not address the phone billing portion of the scam. In announcing the suit in August 2000, the FTC estimated that the "free tour Web sites" had generated income of $188 million between 1997 and October 1999, including $141 million in the first 10 months of 1999 alone. According to Luke Ford, a pioneer blogger and keen observer of the Internet porn scene, the scheme was able to roll up such huge numbers because of deals Crescent made with two Internet traffic brokers - Serge Birbrair and Yishai Habari - that resulted in millions of porn-seeking surfers a day being directed to the sites. Traffic brokers allegedly 'made millions' "Yishai and Serge made millions off the scam and escaped FTC prosecution because they only functioned as traffic brokers," Ford wrote on his Web site. Neither Birbrair nor Habari responded to e-mail requests for comment. In November 2001, the FTC announced that Crescent Publishing and the company's principal officers, Chew and David Bernstein, had agreed to pay $30 million to settle the suit. The settlement also barred the company from "charging, debiting or billing consumers" for any Web site services without first obtaining a $10 million bond that could be used "to satisfy any judgment entered against the defendants" following trial. Doug Wolfe, an FTC attorney who worked on the case, said that despite the settlement, many victims never received compensation. "Our biggest problem was we had to rely on the company's data to link individuals to cards," he said. As of late 2004, the redress center established to administer claims had issued refund checks to 189,646 accounts but had been unable to match names and credit card information for 887,793 others, he said. Wolfe said the agency never uncovered any link between Crescent and organized crime, but there were signs that this wasn't your run-of-the-mill Internet fraud case. "It certainly was unique in my experience in terms of the number of entities through which the money appeared to be moving," Wolfe told MSNBC.com. "At the same time there were some unusual legal maneuvers. Individuals on the eve of testifying would suddenly fire their lawyers and there was a general reluctance on the other side to engage in civil discovery." Phone bill 'cramming' comes under scrutiny While the Internet operation was taking a hit, the scheme in which consumers' phone bills were being improperly charged - a practice known as "cramming" - also was coming under scrutiny. Martino et al bought the Cass County Telephone Co.,or CassTel, a county telephone company in Peculiar, Mo., (pop. 2,600) with 8,000 customers, using Matzdorff as a front man and hiring him to run the company, according to the indictment. Martino also gave Matzdorff $3 million in February 2001 to buy the Garden City Bank in Garden City, Mo., for purposes of credit card processing, it said. At the same time, prosecutors say Martino also formed a billing company called USP&C to place the bogus charges on customers' phone bills and charge the credit cards of surfers who visited Crescent Publishing's porn sites. Matzdorff told prosecutors in New York that USP&C set up a call center to handle complaints from outraged customers that handled an average of 17,000 calls a week at the height of the scheme. Though USP&C billed telephone customers on behalf of numerous companies and gave varying descriptions of the services allegedly provided, the billing agent's high charge-back rate began to attract attention from phone regulators. Complaints prompted wave of refunds In 1999, the California Public Utilities Commission investigated USP&C's business conduct and found that of $51.5 million in billings to California customers over the previous 18 months, 52 percent were refunded after customers complained. The PUC eventually fined USP&C $1.75 million for improper billing, but it was never able to collect it. Estimates of the amount netted by the scam have grown steadily since the March 2003 indictment was unsealed, when prosecutors estimated that the Internet end of the operation netted $230 million while the phone scam brought in approximately $200 million in revenue. Later, federal charges filed in Kansas added $9 million to that tally, money that prosecutors said the mob-run companies stole by overbilling two federally supervised telecommunications funds - the Universal Service Administrative Co. and the National Exchange Carriers Association. But sources familiar with the case told MSNBC.com that the estimate swelled recently when prosecutors obtained more information indicating that the phone "cramming" actually generated at least $420 million, bringing the overall total to $659 million. Given the riches the Gambino family allegedly struck in what experts say apparently was its first major foray into Internet crime, it is surprising that authorities say the Crescent Publishing case is still the exception to the Cosa Nostra rule. Dave Thomas, chief of the FBI's Computer Intrusion Section, said in an interview published Nov. 29, 2004, by the trade publication Network World Fusion that there is no evidence indicating that the Mafia has moved into Internet crime in a big way. No 'big move' to Internet "We haven't seen a big move with the traditional Italian-based Mafia groups to the Internet ... not like we have with the Eastern European hacking groups," he said. "But as the money (to be made) becomes more and more widely publicized, they probably will." Capeci, the crime reporter who specializes in the mob, said there should be no doubt about that. "There's no question Locascio's crew is a bit more advanced or sophisticated than many other mob families, but the trend among the gangsters is to move away from the stuff that the law enforcement community is well aware of and to move into new things," he said. "And there's nothing they won't do if they can figure out how to do it." -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah(a)ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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J.P. Morgan Paying $2.1M in Settlement
by R.A. Hettinga 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

<http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/ap/2005/02/14/ap1826161.html> Forbes Associated Press Update 1: J.P. Morgan Paying $2.1M in Settlement 02.14.2005, 06:02 PM The securities arm of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. has agreed to pay $2.1 million to settle regulators' charges that it failed to preserve e-mails sought by the authorities in their 2002-2003 investigation of alleged conflicts of interest at Wall Street investment houses. J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. is paying $700,000 in civil fines in each of three separate settlements with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the New York Stock Exchange and the National Association of Securities Dealers, which is the brokerage industry's self-policing organization. The investment firm neither admitted nor denied the allegations of violating record-keeping rules. J.P. Morgan spokesmen declined comment. J.P. Morgan was among ten of Wall Street's biggest firms that paid a total $1.4 billion and adopted reforms as a result of the investigation, in which regulators found that they issued biased ratings on stocks to lure investment-banking business. J.P. Morgan's share of the industrywide settlement, reached in April 2003, was $80 million. In the course of the investigation, begun in April 2002, J.P. Morgan told the regulators that all the relevant e-mails had been provided, the SEC said. In fact, the agency, said, the firm's systems and procedures for retaining e-mails "were inadequate to ensure that all electronic communications relating to (its) business were preserved for three years and for the first two years in an easily accessible place" as required by the rules. Companies' retention of internal documents took on new importance after the Enron scandal, in which key papers were shredded, and the landmark anti-fraud law enacted in July 2002 created new penalties for document destruction. -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah(a)ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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FEC May Tighten Restrictions On Internet Political Activity
by R.A. Hettinga 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

<http://www.drudgereport.com/flash3fec.htm> The Drudge Report FEC May Tighten Restrictions On Internet Political Activity Mon Feb 14 2005 10:38:41 ET The Federal Election Commission next month will begin looking at tightening restrictions on political activities on the Internet, ROLL CALL reports Monday. The FEC is planning to examine the question of how Internet activities, when coordinated with candidates' campaigns, fit into the definition of 'public communications. Specifically, the FEC is planning to examine the question of how Internet activities, when coordinated with candidates' campaigns, fit into the definition of "public communications." While coordinated communications are considered campaign contributions and therefore subject to strict contribution limits, current FEC regulations adopted in 2002 carve out an exemption for coordinated political communications that are transmitted over the Internet. Developing... -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah(a)ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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NSA May Be 'Traffic Cop' for U.S. Networks
by R.A. Hettinga 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

<http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/politics/10898954.htm?templat…> Posted on Mon, Feb. 14, 2005 NSA May Be 'Traffic Cop' for U.S. Networks TED BRIDIS Associated Press WASHINGTON - The Bush administration is considering making the National Security Agency - famous for eavesdropping and code breaking - its "traffic cop" for ambitious plans to share homeland security information across government computer networks, a senior NSA official says. Such a decision would expand NSA's responsibility to help defend the complex network of data pipelines carrying warnings and other sensitive information. It would also require significantly more money for the ultra-secret spy agency. The NSA's director for information assurance, Daniel G. Wolf, was expected to outline his agency's potential role during a speech Wednesday at the RSA technology conference in San Francisco. In an interview preceding his speech, Wolf told The Associated Press that computer networks at U.S. organizations are like medieval castles, each protected by different-size walls and moats. As the U.S. government moves increasingly to share sensitive security information across agencies, weaknesses inside one department can become opportunities for outsiders to penetrate the entire system, Wolf warned. Attackers could steal sensitive information or deliberately spread false information. "If someone isn't working on being a traffic cop, giving guidance on how secure they need to be, a risk that is taken by one castle is really shared by other castles," Wolf said. "Who's defining the standards? Who says how high the walls should be?" The NSA already helps protect systems deemed vital to the nation's security, such as those involved in intelligence, cryptography and weapons. Wolf said the administration is considering whether to designate its fledgling information-sharing efforts also under the NSA's purview. The White House Office of Management and Budget currently directs efforts by civilian agencies to secure their computer networks. The NSA's information security programs are highly regarded among experts. "Bring it on. This clearly ought to be done," said Paul Kurtz, a former White House cybersecurity adviser and head of the Washington-based Cyber Security Industry Alliance, a trade group. "This will raise the bar across the federal government to a far more secure infrastructure." Congress has directed the NSA and the Department of Homeland Security to study the architecture and policies of computers for sharing sensitive homeland security information. In the latest blueprint for U.S. intelligence spending, lawmakers warned that attackers always search for weak links and that connecting distant systems "will further increase the vulnerability of networks that originally were developed to be susbstantially isolated from one another." It's unclear how the NSA's efforts would affect private companies, which own and operate many of the electrical, water, banking and other systems vital to government. Wolf said the agency already works to secure such systems important to military installations, but he denied that NSA would have any new regulatory authority over private computers. "When we talk about being the traffic cop, we're not in charge of these networks," Wolf said. "We're not running these networks." It also was unclear how much the effort might cost. "If you're going to have a network that everyone in government can get into, that means some agencies are going to have to come up to meet new, higher standards, and that's expensive," said James Lewis, director of technology policy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a conservative think-tank. -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah(a)ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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Certicom and Beep Science Partner to Provide Advanced Security for Digital Rights Management
by R.A. Hettinga 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

<http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050214/to126_2.html?printer=1> Yahoo! Finance Press Release Source: Certicom Corp. Certicom and Beep Science Partner to Provide Advanced Security for Digital Rights Management Monday February 14, 7:00 am ET Device manufacturers can implement DRM as part of overall Certicom Security Architecture MISSISSAUGA, ON and OSLO, Norway, Feb. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Certicom Corp. (TSX: CIC - News), the authority for strong, efficient cryptography, and Beep Science, a leading provider of Open Standard DRM technology, today announced a partnership agreement to enable Certicom to integrate and resell Beep Science's digital rights management (DRM) software solution. The move supports Certicom's objective to provide a comprehensive, integrated security platform that addresses the evolving needs of device manufacturers. The robust and secure OMA DRM v2 Agent from Beep Science will become part of the Certicom Security Architecture, which consists of a modular set of security protocol toolkits and software cryptographic providers that are unified by a single, intuitive application programming interface. The Beep Science DRM solution (client- and server-side) is fully compliant with the digital rights management standard from the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) and supports the distribution of high value content to a wide spectrum of devices, including multimedia capable mobile phones, handheld devices, consumer electronic devices, and set-top boxes. "Certicom is uniquely positioned to address the evolving security needs of device manufacturers. Our focus on strong security, our experience with resource-constrained devices, and now our partnership with Beep Science, the DRM expert, combine to make a powerful offering," said Jim Alfred, director of product management at Certicom. "As devices become more complex, coordinated efforts, such as our partnership with Beep Science, become critical to helping device manufacturers meet the evolving needs of their customers." "For device manufacturers to succeed, they need to consider security at the design stage. It's for this reason that we have chosen to partner with Certicom, a leader and experienced player in embedded security. By working with Certicom, our DRM technology becomes part of comprehensive security architecture," said Markku Mehtala, VP business development at Beep Science. "This agreement represents new opportunities for both companies and a complete solution for device manufacturers." To learn more about the partnership please visit Beep Science at 3GSM World Congress in Cannes, France (stand J5&6 Hall 3,) and Certicom at RSA Conference 2005 in San Francisco (booth No. 430). About Beep Science Beep Science is a leading provider of client and server side Digital Rights Management (DRM) software solutions fully compliant with the Industry Standard from Open Mobile Alliance (OMA). The Beep Science OMA v2 DRM client product for device manufacturers and media player vendors is a total solution that applies to the strict performance and robustness requirements while providing flexible business models and enhanced end-user experience. The Beep Science OMA DRM Server integrates with existing service delivery infrastructure and automates the content protection and license management for digital content providers. The company represents one of the largest specialist resource centers within the field of Mobile Digital Rights Management and has world-class brands as customers. Visit www.beepscience.com About Certicom Certicom Corp. (TSX: CIC - News) is the authority for strong, efficient cryptography required by software vendors and device manufacturers to embed security in their products. Adopted by the US government's National Security Agency (NSA), Certicom technologies for Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) provide the most security per bit of any known public key scheme, making it ideal for constrained environments. Certicom products and services are currently licensed to more than 300 customers including Motorola, Oracle, Research In Motion, Terayon, Texas Instruments and Unisys. Founded in 1985, Certicom is headquartered in Mississauga, ON, Canada, with offices in Ottawa, ON; Reston, VA; San Mateo, CA; and London, England. Visit www.certicom.com. Certicom, Certicom Security Architecture, Certicom CodeSign, Security Builder, Security Builder Middleware, Security Builder API, Security Builder Crypto, Security Builder SSL, Security Builder PKI, Security Builder NSE and Security Builder GSE are trademarks or registered trademarks of Certicom Corp. All other companies and products listed herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Except for historical information contained herein, this news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially. Factors that might cause a difference include, but are not limited to, those relating to the acceptance of mobile and wireless devices and the continued growth of e-commerce and m-commerce, the increase of the demand for mutual authentication in m-commerce transactions, the acceptance of Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) technology as an industry standard, the market acceptance of our principal products and sales of our customer's products, the impact of competitive products and technologies, the possibility of our products infringing patents and other intellectual property of fourth parties, and costs of product development. Certicom will not update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. More detailed information about potential factors that could affect Certicom's financial results is included in the documents Certicom files from time to time with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities. -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah(a)ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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RE: Team Building?? WIMPS!!
by Tyler Durden 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

Well, I didn't say it would be easy. We'd definitely need to split up into teams...one to handle the alarm systems, one to handle the landmines, one to somehow fend off May's bullets. And then, even if we somehow capture May, I'd bet he's got all sorts of dead-man stuff like poison gas and whatnot. It'd be like a big game of D&D, not that any Cypehrpunk knows what THAT is! And yeah, there's a good chance someone's not gonna make it. But think of it like this: Those genes were slowing down our species anyway. The only problem is, what do we do once we're in? Throw a big-ass drinking, whoring Shriners-like party? (I say we need a bevvy of black hookers.) Break into May's survivalist supplies? Oh, and we DEFINITELY need video. -TD >From: joe cypherpunk <cypherpunk(a)rxcbc.org> >To: Tyler Durden <camera_lumina(a)hotmail.com>, >cypherpunks-moderated-request(a)minder.net >Subject: Team Building?? WIMPS!! Re: RSA Conference, and BA Cypherpunks >Date: Wed, 09 Feb 2005 17:36:13 -0800 > >Not unless you wish to meet YahWah , Allah, Jesus,Buddha(pick your favorite >deity!) early :) > >Tim is a VERY GOOD shot and the property is watched and alarmed. > > > so My opinion Tyler? > Feel free to win Darwins Award!!.. > > A cypherpunk > >ps. Tim has an Excellent Taxidermist, Your pelt and head will be displayed >in grand fashion:) > > >BTW a spell checker would be a good gift to yourself(think about >thunderbird) > > > ie "Cypherpunk 'team-building' excersize? " > >psps let me know when you plan to try so I can shoot live video of the >Firefight, should be worth at least 1k to the local TV stations :) > >also think about a vest of tubes of tannerite(exploding targets), that way >when Tim scores, the viewers of the video will know you have been hit!! > > > think of it as evolution in action > > > > > >Tyler Durden wrote: > >>How 'bout laying siege to May's compound as a Cypherpunk 'team-building' >>excersize? >> >>-TD >> >> >> >>>From: "J.A. Terranson" <measl(a)mfn.org> >>>To: "Trei, Peter" <ptrei(a)rsasecurity.com> >>>CC: cypherpunks(a)al-qaeda.net, cryptography(a)metzdowd.com >>>Subject: Re: RSA Conference, and BA Cypherpunks >>>Date: Mon, 7 Feb 2005 17:19:30 -0600 (CST) >>> >>>On Mon, 7 Feb 2005, Trei, Peter wrote: >>> >>> > Once again, the RSA Conference is upon us, and many of the >>> > corrospondents on these lists will be in San Francisco. I'd like to >>> > see if anyone is interested in getting together. We've done this >>> > before. >>> >>>Yeah, but can we eat food, drink beer, shoot drugs and screw expensive >>>hookers at Tim May's "compound"? >>> >>> >>>-- >>>Yours, >>> >>>J.A. Terranson >>>sysadmin(a)mfn.org >>>0xBD4A95BF >>> >>>"Quadriplegics think before they write stupid pointless >>>shit...because they have to type everything with their noses." >>> >>> http://www.tshirthell.com/

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From high-tech driver's licenses to national ID cards?
by R.A. Hettinga 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

<http://news.com.com/2102-1028_3-5573414.html?tag=st.util.print> CNET News From high-tech driver's licenses to national ID cards? By Declan McCullagh Story last modified Mon Feb 14 04:00:00 PST 2005 A recent vote in Congress endorsing standardized, electronically readable driver's licenses has raised fears about whether the proposal would usher in what amounts to a national ID card. In a vote that largely divided along party lines, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a Republican-backed measure that would compel states to design their driver's licenses by 2008 to comply with federal antiterrorist standards. Federal employees would reject licenses or identity cards that don't comply, which could curb Americans' access to everything from airplanes to national parks and some courthouses. The congressional maneuvering takes place as governments are growing more interested in implanting technology in ID cards to make them smarter and more secure. The U.S. State Department soon will begin issuing passports with radio frequency identification, or RFID, chips embedded in them, and Virginia may become the first state to glue RFID tags into all its driver's licenses. News.context What's new: A recent vote in Congress endorsing standardized, electronically readable driver's licenses has raised fears about whether the proposal would usher in what amounts to a national ID card. Bottom line:Proponents of the Real ID Act say it's needed to frustrate both terrorists and illegal immigrants. Critics say it imposes more requirements for identity documents on states, and gives the Department of Homeland Security carte blanche to do nearly anything else "to protect the national security interests of the United States." More stories on privacy and national security "Supporters claim it is not a national ID because it is voluntary," Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, one of the eight Republicans to object to the measure, said during the floor debate this week. "However, any state that opts out will automatically make nonpersons out of its citizens. They will not be able to fly or to take a train." Paul warned that the legislation, called the Real ID Act, gives unfettered authority to the Department of Homeland Security to design state ID cards and driver's licenses. Among the possibilities: biometric information such as retinal scans, fingerprints, DNA data and RFID tracking technology. Proponents of the Real ID Act say it adheres to the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission and is needed to frustrate both terrorists and illegal immigrants. Only a portion of the legislation regulates ID cards; the rest deals with immigration law and asylum requests. "American citizens have the right to know who is in their country, that people are who they say they are, and that the name on the driver's license is the real holder's name, not some alias," F. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wisc., said last week. "If these commonsense reforms had been in place in 2001, they would have hindered the efforts of the 9/11 terrorists, and they will go a long way toward helping us prevent another tragedy like 9/11," said House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas. Now the Real ID Act heads to the Senate, where its future is less certain. Senate rules make it easier for politicians to derail legislation, and an aide said Friday that Sen. Patrick Leahy, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, was concerned about portions of the bill. Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the top Democrat on a terrorism subcommittee, said "I basically support the thrust of the bill" in an e-mail to CNET News.com on Friday. "The federal government should have the ability to issue standards that all driver's licenses and identification documents should meet." "Spy-D" cards? National ID cards are nothing new, of course. Many European, Asian and South American countries require their citizens to carry such documents at all times, with legal punishments in place for people caught without them. Other nations that share the English common law tradition, including Australia and New Zealand, have rejected such schemes. A host of political, cultural and even religious concerns has prevented a national ID from being adopted in the United States, even during the tumultuous days after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks that ushered in the Patriot Act. Conservatives and libertarians typically argue that a national ID card will increase the power of the government, and they fear the dehumanizing effects of laws enacted as a result. Civil liberties groups tend to worry about the administrative problems, the opportunities for criminal mischief, and the potential irreversibility of such a system. Some evangelical Christians have likened such a proposal to language in the Bible warning "that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." That mark is the sign of the "end times," according to evangelical thinking, which predicts that anyone who accepts the mark will be doomed to eternal torment. Those long-standing concerns have become more pointed recently, thanks to the opportunity for greater tracking--as well as potentially greater security for ID documents--that technologies such as RFID provide. Though the Real ID act does not specify RFID or biometric technology, it requires that the Department of Homeland Security adopt "machine-readable technology" standards and provides broad discretion in how to do it. An ad hoc alliance of privacy groups and technologists recently has been fighting proposals from the International Civil Aviation Organization to require that passports and other travel documents be outfitted with biometrics and remotely readable RFID-type "contact-less integrated circuits." The ICAO, a United Nations organization, argues the measures are necessary to reduce fraud, combat terrorism and improve airline security. But its critics have raised questions about how the technology could be misused by identity thieves with RFID readers, and they say it would "promote irresponsible national behavior." In the United States, the federal government is planning to embed RFID chips in all U.S. passports and some foreign visitor's documents. The U.S. State Department is now evaluating so-called e-passport technology from eight different companies. The agency plans to select a supplier and issue the first e-passports this spring, starting in Los Angeles, and predicts that all U.S. passport agencies will be issuing them within a year. The high-tech passports are supposed to deter theft and forgeries, as well as accelerating immigration checks at airports and borders. They'll contain within their covers a miniscule microchip that stores basic data, including the passport holder's name, date of birth and place of birth. The chip, which can transmit information through a tiny included antenna, also has enough room to store biometric data such as digitized fingerprints, photographs and iris scans. Border officials can compare the information on the chip to that on the rest of the passport and to the person actually carrying it. Discrepancies could signal foul play. In a separate program, the Department of Homeland Security plans to issue RFID devices to foreign visitors that enter the country at the Mexican and Canadian borders. The agency plans to start a yearlong test of the technology in July at checkpoints in Arizona, New York and Washington state. The idea is to aid immigration officials in tracking visitors' arrivals and departures and snare those who overstay their visas. Similar to e-passports, the new system should speed up inspection procedures. It's part of the US-VISIT program, a federal initiative designed to capture and share data such as fingerprints and photographs of foreign visitors. A "Trojan horse" The legislation approved by the House last Thursday follows a related measure President Bush signed into law in December. That law gives the Transportation Department two years to devise standard rules for state licenses, requires information to be stored in "machine-readable" format, and says noncompliant ID cards won't be accepted by federal agencies. But critics fret that the new bill goes even further. It shifts authority to the Department of Homeland Security, imposes more requirements for identity documents on states, and gives the department carte blanche to do nearly anything else "to protect the national security interests of the United States." "In reality, this bill is a Trojan horse," said Paul, the Republican congressman. "It pretends to offer desperately needed border control in order to stampede Americans into sacrificing what is uniquely American: our constitutionally protected liberty." Unlike last year's measure, the Real ID Act "doesn't even mention the word 'privacy,'" said Marv Johnson, a lobbyist for the American Civil Liberties Union. "What I think the House is planning on doing is attaching this bill to tsunami relief or money to the troops," Johnson says. "When they send it to the Senate, the Senate will have to either fish or cut bait. They can approve it or ask for a conference committee, at which point the House can say 'they're playing games with national security.'" In response to a question about a national ID card, White House spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters on Friday that "the president supports the legislation that just passed the House." McClellan pointed to a statement from the White House earlier in the week that endorsed it. Another section of the Real ID Act that has raised alarms is the linking of state Department of Motor Vehicles databases, which was not part of last year's law. Among the information that must be shared: "All data fields printed on drivers' licenses and identification cards" and complete drivers' histories, including motor vehicle violations, suspensions and points on licenses. Some senators have indicated they may rewrite part of the measure once they begin deliberations. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., chairman of a terrorism subcommittee, is readying his own bill that will be introduced within a few weeks, spokesman Andrew Wilder said on Friday. "He has been at work on his own version of things," Wilder said. "Senator Kyl does support biometric identifiers." CNET News.com's Alorie Gilbert contributed to this report. -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah(a)ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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China shut down 12,000 Internet bars in 2004
by R.A. Hettinga 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

<http://uk.news.yahoo.com/050213/323/fce29.html> Yahoo! Sunday February 13, 10:35 PM China shut down 12,000 Internet bars in 2004 Click to enlarge photo BEIJING (AFP) - Chinese authorities shut down more than 12,000 Internet bars last year, state media said. As part of moves to "create a safer environment for young people," the government in 2004 closed 12,575 illegal Internet bars, 2,861 dance clubs, and 3,434 video halls, Xinhua news agency said. According to several government ministries, Chinese parents had complained that the businesses, mainly located near schools, had "severely affected students' cultural lives," it said. China has an Internet population of 87 million with about half of the web users under the age of 24. China welcomes the Internet, as it helps the economy leapfrog into the 21st century, but at the same time it is worried about the way it enables people to access information that is considered subversive. In reaction, the government has cracked down hard on Internet cafes, closing down many, and is also monitoring online traffic for content that might be deemed politically sensitive. -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah(a)ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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Cryptography Research Security Experts to Speak at RSA Conference 2005
by R.A. Hettinga 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

<http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/02-1…> Cryptography Research Security Experts to Speak at RSA Conference 2005 Company's Security Experts Chosen to Participate in Conference SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- RSA CONFERENCE 2005 -- Strengthening its reputation within the security industry, Cryptography Research, Inc. today detailed its participation in the RSA Conference 2005 program being held here this week in the Moscone Convention Center. Security experts Paul Kocher, Benjamin Jun, Nate Lawson and Carter Laren are scheduled to speak in various lecture sessions and panel discussions over the course of the largest and most comprehensive event created for information security professionals. Paul Kocher joins industry notables Whitfield Diffie, Burt Kaliski, Ronald Rivest and Adi Shamir in "The Cryptographers' Panel," one of the most widely attended and eagerly awaited sessions during the RSA Conference. Representing some of the leading minds in the field, this panel will look back at past panel predictions and how they turned out, and again look ahead at the future of cryptography and information security. In another panel discussion, "Inside-Out Security Strategy - Architecting an Effective Defense for Vulnerabilities in the Stored Data Environment," Kocher and the panel will look at a new, inside-out security architecture that protects valuable information by focusing on the stored data itself. The panel will look at common vulnerabilities and innovative approaches to securing data throughout the IT environment. In "Stalemate Security Problems," Kocher considers the perpetual arms race between attackers and defenders, where frequent updates are required to guard against network attacks, fraud, piracy, spam and other security problems. Kocher will explore challenges, successes, catastrophic failures and open problems in managing these stalemates. Carter Laren joins senior executives from major Hollywood studios, Fox and Warner Bros., in a roundtable discussion of new strategies and weapons in the war against next-generation digital piracy. Moderated by Newsweek reporter, Steven Levy, "Hollywood's Last Chance - Getting it Right on Digital Piracy" will highlight the threat sophisticated digital pirates present to the movie industry's economic viability and how Hollywood executives are fighting to make tomorrow's high-definition content safe from the piracy that has devastated the music industry. From CSS to credit card fraud and P2P to Y2K, Benjamin Jun exposes "Ten Bugs That Cost Our Customers Billions." This fascinating look into security blunders will reveal how these bugs happened, why they caused serious problems and what could have been done to prevent them. Jun also explores the nature of high-threat systems protecting digital content, cash and access privileges in his session, "Fragile Secrets - Handle with Care!" Jun will show how smart cards, content protection systems and trusted computing environments protect secrets against motivated attackers - often the very users and device holders they serve - and why it is important for developers to consider real-world attacks, design principles for tamper resistance and validation strategies. Nate Lawson will be leading a discussion titled "Open-Source Security Tools," focusing on the design, use and customization of tools for evaluating and improving system security. Topics will include the benefits and challenges of open vs. closed source, current maturity levels and customization approaches. About the Presenters Paul Kocher, president and chief scientist, has gained an international reputation for his consulting work and academic research in cryptography. An active contributor to major conferences and standards bodies, Paul has designed many cryptographic applications and protocols, including SSL v3.0. His development of timing attacks to break RSA and other algorithms received front-page coverage in several major publications. More recently he has led research to develop Differential Power Analysis and designs for securing smart cards and other devices against these attacks, as well as to design a record- breaking DES Key Search machine. Paul holds a B.S. degree from Stanford University. Benjamin Jun, vice president, heads the consulting practice and the company's Content Security Research Initiative. He leads engineering groups in the design, evaluation and repair of high-assurance security modules for software, ASIC and embedded systems. Ben holds B.S. and M.S. degrees from Stanford University, where he is a Mayfield Entrepreneurship Fellow. Carter Laren is Cryptography Research's technical liaison to Hollywood studios, content owners and consumer electronics manufacturers. Known as the "Anti-Pirate," he has extensive experience designing and evaluating secure communication and pay-television systems, tamper-resistant devices and content protection technology. Carter holds a B.S. degree in electrical engineering from the University of Pittsburgh, where he was awarded the elite Chancellor's Scholarship. Nate Lawson, senior security engineer at Cryptography Research, is focused on the design and analysis of network security devices. He is the original developer of ISS's RealSecure and the first version of Decru's fibre channel appliance. Nate holds a B.S. computer science degree from Cal Poly and is a member of USENIX and SMPTE. Cryptography Research Conference Talk Schedule Tuesday, February 15, 2005 11:10 a.m. - The Cryptographers' Panel, Paul Kocher Thursday, February 17, 2005 7:00 a.m. - Open Source Security Tools, Nate Lawson 8:00 a.m. - Hollywood's Last Chance - Getting it Right on Digital Piracy, Carter Laren 2:00 p.m. - Inside-Out Security Strategy - Architecting an Effective Defense for Vulnerabilities in the Stored Data Environment, Paul Kocher 3:25 p.m. - Stalemate Security Problems, Paul Kocher 4:50 p.m. - Ten Bugs That Cost Our Customers Billions, Benjamin Jun Friday, February 18, 2005 11:10 a.m. - Fragile Secrets - Handle with Care!, Benjamin Jun About Cryptography Research, Inc. Cryptography Research, Inc. provides consulting services and technology to solve complex security problems. In addition to security evaluation and applied engineering work, CRI is actively involved in long-term research in areas including tamper resistance, content protection, network security and financial services. The company has a broad portfolio of patents covering countermeasures to differential power analysis and other vulnerabilities, and is committed to helping companies produce secure smart cards and other tamper resistant devices. Security systems designed by Cryptography Research engineers annually protect more than $100 billion of commerce for wireless, telecommunications, financial, digital television and Internet industries. For additional information or to arrange a consultation with a member of the technical staff, please contact Jen Craft at 415-397-0123, ext. 329 or visit http://www.cryptography.com. SOURCE Cryptography Research, Inc. Web Site: http://www.cryptography.com More news from PR Newswire... Issuers of news releases and not PR Newswire are solely responsible for the accuracy of the content. Terms and conditions, including restrictions on redistribution, apply. Copyright ) 1996-2004 PR Newswire Association LLC. All Rights Reserved. A United Business Media company. -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah(a)ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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RSA(R) Conference 2005 Commences In San Francisco With Record Attendance And Keynotes By Bill Gates, John Chambers And John Thompson - Attendee Number Expected To Exceed 11,000
by R.A. Hettinga 14 Feb '05

14 Feb '05

<http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/02-1…> RSA(R) Conference 2005 Commences In San Francisco With Record Attendance And Keynotes By Bill Gates, John Chambers And John Thompson - Attendee Number Expected To Exceed 11,000 14th Annual Event Kicks-Off With Second Annual Executive Security Action Forum and Town Hall Meetings Featuring 9/11 Commissioner Jamie Gorelick and U.S. Secret Service Director Ralph Basham SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 14 /PRNewswire/ -- RSA(R) CONFERENCE -- The 14th annual RSA(R) Conference 2005, the world's leading information security event, opened today at San Francisco's Moscone Center to an expected record attendance of over 11,000. Attendees include security practitioners, academics, developers, IT professionals, industry leaders, and policy makers discussing the latest developments in technology, mathematics, public policy, and best practices in information security. The Conference keynotes will commence with featured speakers Bill Gates, chairman and chief software architect of Microsoft; followed by John Chambers, president and chief executive officer of Cisco Systems, Inc.; and John Thompson, chairman and chief executive officer of Symantec Corporation. This year's event features over 275 vendors demonstrating the latest technologies in more than 162,000 square feet of exhibit space. Monday's agenda kicks-off with the Second Annual Executive Security Action Forum, followed by four days of over 200 conference sessions including enterprise and common criteria tutorials and the Town Hall Meetings. "Over the past year information security has been elevated on the priority list of professionals, government officials and corporations alike, as a result of advanced threats, issues of liability and new regulations that require compliance," said Sandra Toms LaPedis, area vice president and general manager of the RSA Conferences. "The solid increase in our registration numbers compared to the last few years continues to show that RSA Conference is a valuable forum for balanced discussions and priceless networking opportunities for all attendees across the board. This year's event offers one of the most prestigious line-ups in Conference history as well as new events including Town Hall meetings that will cover critical trends and world issues on the minds of our attendees." Information security has grown to become a critical issue for both enterprises and individuals. Conference attendees gain vital information with their access to more than 200 educational presentations and class sessions throughout the week. The conference will conclude Friday, February 18th with a presentation by Frank Abagnale, industry consultant and best-selling author of "Catch Me If You Can." Other highlights include: Executive Security Action Forum The Executive Security Action Forum will be held on Monday, February 14, prior to the start of RSA(R) Conference 2005. The Forum is a continuous, independent commission that includes key business and government security policy and technology implementers - as well as security industry executives. Members of the Forum include CIOs, CSOs and CISOs from Fortune 500 companies such as Bank of America, eBay, Ford, Microsoft, Motorola, Pepsico, Safeway, Wachovia and Washington Mutual. During the forum, executives discussed ideas to improve information security in the private and public sectors. Other topics included the best practices and issues with funding of information security, enforcing security with outsourcers, balancing security and privacy, product liability, legislation and public policy and how to connect business, government and technology. Town Hall Meetings The Cyber Security Industry Alliance (CSIA) will host a Town Hall Meeting to discuss homeland security, critical infrastructure protection, and cyber security in the post-9/11 era, and what steps are being taken to enhance security measures. Featured speakers include: 9/11 Commissioner Jamie Gorelick and Dick Clarke, former US cyber security czar. This session will take place on Wednesday, February 16, 12:45 p.m. - 1:45 p.m., Gateway 104 Attendees interested in attending must RSVP for this session to csiatownhall(a)csialliance.org. Business Software Alliance (BSA) will sponsor the second Town Hall Meeting scheduled for Thursday, February 17, noon - 1:30 p.m., Gateway 104.BSA President and CEO, Robert Holleyman will host this session. The U.S. Secret Service Director, Ralph Basham, will open the discussion on the emergence of modern day "rum runners." The session will be moderated by Jon Swartz, USA TODAY technology reporter, who will focus on the threat of organized crime on the Internet along with a prestigious panel of experts on the forefront of this emerging criminal phenomenon. Attendees interested in attending must RSVP for this session at townhallrsvp(a)bsa.org. RSA Conference First Time Attendee Briefing RSA Conference first time attendees are invited to the Conference First Time Attendee Briefing to hear from past attendees on planning agendas and sessions to attend and to gain general information. This session takes place in Esplanade 302 on Monday from 6-7 p.m. Cryptographers' Panel The Cryptographers' Panel is one of the most widely attended and eagerly awaited sessions during the RSA Conference. Burt Kaliski, vice president of research at RSA Security and chief scientist of RSA Laboratories, will moderate this year's cryptographers' panel, which will look at past panel predictions and how they turned out, as well as looking ahead at the future of cryptography and information security. Other participants providing insights into future information security developments include: Dr. Whitfield Diffie, Sun Microsystems; Paul Kocher, Cryptography Research; Professor Ronald Rivest, MIT Laboratory for Computer Science; and Professor Adi Shamir, Weizmann Institute. This panel is scheduled for Tuesday, February 15 at 11:10 a.m. Sponsors, Registration and Attendance Platinum Sponsors exhibiting at the conference include: Cisco Systems, Computer Associates, Microsoft, Qualys, RSA Security, Sun Microsystems, Symantec, Tipping Point and VeriSign. Full Conference fees include access to all four days of general sessions and class tracks, exhibits, evening receptions and giveaways. Qualified members of the media receive complimentary admission. A list of confirmed exhibitors is available at http://www.rsaconference.com. For more information about RSA Conference 2005 or to register, visit the web site at http://www.rsaconference.com or call 1-866-518-2076. About the RSA Conference Now in its 14th year, the RSA Conference brings together decision-makers and influencers from all major markets, including consumer, education, financial, government, computer networking, telecommunications, Wall Street and the media for one of the industry's premier e-security and cryptography events. Later in the year, RSA Conference 2005 continues in Japan and in Europe. RSA Conference will also be holding one-day regional events throughout the year including: September 13, 2005 in Chicago and September 15, 2005 in New York. For more information, visit http://www.rsaconference.com. RSA is a registered trademark or trademark of RSA Security Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. All other products and services mentioned are trademarks of their respective companies. Media Contact: Sponsor & Exhibit Contact: Tamara Burnett Don Rosette McGrath Power Nth Degree 408-375-7190 617-848-8766 tamarac(a)mcgrathpower.com drosette(a)nthdegree.com SOURCE RSA Conference Web Site: http://www.rsasecurity.com More news from PR Newswire... Issuers of news releases and not PR Newswire are solely responsible for the accuracy of the content. Terms and conditions, including restrictions on redistribution, apply. Copyright ) 1996-2004 PR Newswire Association LLC. All Rights Reserved. A United Business Media company. -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah(a)ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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