December 2008 - cypherpunks-legacy

EDRi-gram newsletter - Number 6.23, 3 December 2008
by Eugen Leitl 04 Dec '08

04 Dec '08

----- Forwarded message from EDRI-gram newsletter <edrigram(a)edri.org> -----

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UK: nationwide lie detector tests to catch benefit cheats
by Eugen Leitl 03 Dec '08

03 Dec '08

(Coming next: all useless eaters into showers and delousing) http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/3543784/Nationwide-lie-… Nationwide lie detector tests to catch benefit cheats Benefit claimants will be subjected to lie detector tests to discover if they are cheating the system in a widespread Government crackdown. Last Updated: 10:21AM GMT 03 Dec 2008 Currently 25 local councils use voice risk analysis technology to test if a claimant is providing false information but now the scheme will be roled out nationwide. In Harrow, north-west London, where the technology was first introduced, officials estimate they have saved B#300,000 in three months by rejecting fraudulent claims. Unemployed people could also be forced to carry out "community punishments" such as litter-picking or gardening if they miss meetings designed to help them back into the workplace. And single parents and those on sickness benefits will have part of their weekly payments stopped for not keeping to a promise that they will make themselves ready for work. The tough sanctions have been put forward by a Government adviser and could be adopted by ministers as part of a new regime to end Britain's culture of benefits dependency. Currently 2.6 million people claim Incapacity Benefit, with a further 900,000 on Jobseeker's Allowance and 750,000 lone parents receiving Income Support. As The Daily Telegraph disclosed, unemployed people on JSA will be fined up to a month's benefits if they do not look for work under plans likely to be outlined in the Queen's speech on Wednesday. The Work and Pensions Secretary, James Purnell, said: "At the core of these reforms are clear obligations on what we expect in return for benefits and how we ensure the modern welfare state applies fair rules for all." The review commissioned by Mr Purnell proposes dividing those on benefits into three categories b the "work-ready", the "progression to work" and the "no conditionality". The first group are those who claim JSA and are expected to be actively seeking work. If they miss one appointment they will receive a written warning, while a second offence would lead to the docking of a week's benefits b B#60.50 for those over 25. Those who persistently fail to look for work face losing up to four weeks' worth of benefits. The second group comprises those on Incapacity Benefit and lone parents of children under seven, who are expected to return to work one day, who will receive the new Employment Support Allowance. They are expected to sign Action Plans detailing how they will improve their CVs and find out about childcare, but the new proposals suggest punishments should be introduced for those who fail to attend courses or meetings. If they miss two appointments they will lose half of their weekly Work Related Activity allowance (B#12), rising to the full B#24 for a third offence. Both groups would also face a "non-financial sanction" such as "mandatory community based work" if they are found to be "playing the system". This could mean picking litter, digging gardens or sitting in an office from nine to five looking for work. Professor Paul Gregg of Bristol University, who wrote the review, admitted the idea was to punish people by creating a "hassle" in their lives rather than just making them poorer. He said: "It is a bit like detention at school b non-monetary sanctions are getting in the way of people's lives." A third group who have severe disabilities, who are full-time carers or who have children under the age of one would not have to show they are ready to work in order to continue receive benefits. The Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, Chris Grayling, said: "I have lost count of the number of documents the Government has published promising radical welfare reform in the past few years, but they never seem to get on with the job of delivering that reform." Brendan Barber, the TUC's general secretary, added: "The TUC has long supported the case for responsibilities and rights going together in our benefits system but Draconian workfare policies are not the answer." The Government will formally respond to Prof Gregg's ideas in a White Paper later this month, but the reforms were said to be the "main item" discussed at Tuesday's Cabinet meeting.

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thoughtcrime official now
by Eugen Leitl 03 Dec '08

03 Dec '08

(cargo cult -- the future of security? WTF is wrong with people?) http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/12/02/airport.security/index.html Behavioral screening -- the future of airport security? * Airport security screeners' focus is shifting towards studying passengers' intentions * Israeli companies have become leaders in developing security technology * Systems can detect signs of emotional strain, which may signal a passenger's intent * Other programs can study passengers' voice patterns for signs of stress By Dana Rosenblatt CNN TEL AVIV, Israel (CNN) -- Keep your shoes and belts on: Waiting in long airport security lines to pass through metal detectors may soon be a thing of the past. Behavioral screening could supplement, or even replace, walk-through metal detectors. Airport security checkpoints may become opportunities for screeners to study passengers' intentions. Security experts say focus is shifting from analyzing the content of carry-ons to analyzing the content of passengers' intentions and emotions. "We are seeing a needed paradigm shift when it comes to security," says Omer Laviv, CEO of ATHENA GS3, an Israeli-based security company. "This 'brain-fingerprinting,' or technology which checks for behavioral intent, is much more developed than we think." Nowhere is the need for cutting-edge security more acute than Israel, which faces constant security threats. For this reason, Israel has become a leader in developing security technology. Several Israeli-based technology companies are developing detection systems that pick up signs of emotional strain, a psychological red flag that a passenger may intend to commit an act of terror. Speedier and less intrusive than metal detectors, these systems may eventually restore some efficiency to the airplane boarding process. One firm, WeCU (pronounced "We See You") Technologies, employs a combination of infra-red technology, remote sensors and imagers, and flashing of subliminal images, such as a photo of Osama bin Laden. Developers say the combination of these technologies can detect a person's reaction to certain stimuli by reading body temperature, heart rate and respiration, signals a terrorist unwittingly emits before he plans to commit an attack. With these technologies, the emphasis is on speed and seamlessness. Ehud Givon, CEO of WeCU, envisions a day when a passenger can breeze through a security checkpoint in 20 to 30 seconds. Although traditional security profiling can discriminate by race and religion, security experts say behavioral profiling is more fair, more effective and less expensive. WeCU has received grants from the Transportation Security Administration within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which hopes to implement a system to pinpoint internal threats such as airline employees intending terrorist acts. Once these technologies are in place, a passenger may pass through a security screening without realizing it. For example, passengers could use an automated check-in system or gaze at a screen with departures information without realizing they've just been exposed to the words "Islamic jihad" written in Arabic. These stimuli, explains Givon, will intrinsically elicit some sort of biometric response -- whether the passenger knows it or not -- that can be picked up by WeCU's strategically placed sensors. "I believe that we introduce a new layer in security," Givon says. "This is something that couldn't be done in the past: finding the connection between a certain individual and the intent to harm." The Orwellian-sounding startup has gone further to develop a system that detects a passenger's behavioral intentions by scanning their every step, literally. While walking around certain parts of the airport terminal, a passenger may not realize he has stepped on a "smart carpet" filled with hidden biometric sensors. The technology is still under development, says Givon, who believes it will be strong enough to pick up biometric information from a footstep. If a passenger is wearing heavy hiking boots, for example, WeCU will rely on biometric sensors combined with video and thermal biometric imaging to detect malicious intent. Another option from WeCU is a "smart seat," or cushion full of hidden biometric sensors that could provide a more detailed read on someone sitting in an airport waiting area, Givon says. While the technology sound like something from a James Bond flick or even "A Clockwork Orange," Givon insists that passengers will not find the techniques intrusive. "We don't want you to feel that you are being interrogated," he says. Givon is negotiating contracts with airports worldwide and believes his company's technology may be implemented as soon as 2010. Nemesysco, another Israeli-based technology company, believes the key to a person's emotions and intentions lies in their voice. The company's patented LVA, or Layered Voice Analysis, technology can pick up verbal cues from a passenger who may pose a threat. Unlike a polygraph test, which checks for lies, Nemesysco's systems work as an "emotion detector," says Nemesysco CEO Amir Liberman. In other words, it's not what passengers say, but how they say it. Nemesysco's devices use a series of patented signal-processing algorithms that can differentiate between a "normal" voice and a"'stressed" voice. If emotional stress is detected, officials can determine if the passenger should be taken aside for further questioning. The system works on the premise that all voices have a certain frequency, and any deviation of that baseline frequency can indicate stress. Liberman says it takes approximately five to 10 seconds for their system to capture a "normal" voice in casual conversation, which establishes a baseline. Their system then measures changes from the baseline voice that signify an increase in stress, excitement, anticipation, hesitation or other emotions that can indicate a potential terrorism threat. A computer processes the voice patterns and then flashes words such as "high risk," "medium risk," "excited" and "highly stressed." Through his system, Liberman says, he "can see what's going on in your brain." Versions of Nemesysco's system already have been successfully tested at Moscow Domodedovo International Airport, where officials used it to target criminals and drug traffickers. A version was recently implemented at another major international airport which Liberman declined to identify. Layered Voice Analysis also has been used to test for insurance fraud and on the TV program "Big Brother Australia." Layered Voice Analysis has limitations, including the inability to trace the vocal patterns of a person with a speech impediment. But the system is more effective than current security measures, claims Liberman, who believes a terrorist currently can pass through airport security with explosive material "that can take down any plane." In fact, many experts express little confidence in the current state of airport security. Philip Baum, London-based editor of Aviation Security International magazine, says would-be terrorists could easily slip through security checkpoints, even with new regulations that check for liquids. "The archaic system of an X-ray machine and metal detector cannot pick up other potential threats posed by passengers," Baum says. "I can have a ceramic weapon or chemical weapons and walk through an archway metal detector and it won't be picked up. Yet we have huge faith in these metal detectors that can only pick up one substance." Laviv, whose consulting firm focuses on securing mass transportation systems, is equally skeptical. "It is possible today to hijack an aircraft using only five or six able-bodied passengers who are well-trained in Kung Fu fighting," he says. "There is no technology in place in airports to detect a threat like that. "The question is, should our desire be to look for each and every threat agent, rather than focus our efforts on identifying the [violent] intention of the passenger?"

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Russian analyst predicts decline and breakup of USA
by R.A. Hettinga 03 Dec '08

03 Dec '08

Geodesic America? <ducking...> Cheers, RAH <http://www.drudgereport.com/flashrur.htm> DRUDGE REPORT: Support The DrudgeReport; Visit Our Advertisers RUSSIAN ANALYST PREDICTS DECLINE AND BREAKUP OF USA Tue Nov 25 2008 09:04:22 ET A leading Russian political analyst has said the economic turmoil in the United States has confirmed his long-held view that the country is heading for collapse, and will divide into separate parts. Professor Igor Panarin said in an interview with the respected daily IZVESTIA published on Monday: "The dollar is not secured by anything. The country's foreign debt has grown like an avalanche, even though in the early 1980s there was no debt. By 1998, when I first made my prediction, it had exceeded $2 trillion. Now it is more than 11 trillion. This is a pyramid that can only collapse." The paper said Panarin's dire predictions for the U.S. economy, initially made at an international conference in Australia 10 years ago at a time when the economy appeared strong, have been given more credence by this year's events. When asked when the U.S. economy would collapse, Panarin said: "It is already collapsing. Due to the financial crisis, three of the largest and oldest five banks on Wall Street have already ceased to exist, and two are barely surviving. Their losses are the biggest in history. Now what we will see is a change in the regulatory system on a global financial scale: America will no longer be the world's financial regulator." When asked who would replace the U.S. in regulating world markets, he said: "Two countries could assume this role: China, with its vast reserves, and Russia, which could play the role of a regulator in Eurasia." Asked why he expected the U.S. to break up into separate parts, he said: "A whole range of reasons. Firstly, the financial problems in the U.S. will get worse. Millions of citizens there have lost their savings. Prices and unemployment are on the rise. General Motors and Ford are on the verge of collapse, and this means that whole cities will be left without work. Governors are already insistently demanding money from the federal center. Dissatisfaction is growing, and at the moment it is only being held back by the elections and the hope that Obama can work miracles. But by spring, it will be clear that there are no miracles." He also cited the "vulnerable political setup", "lack of unified national laws", and "divisions among the elite, which have become clear in these crisis conditions." He predicted that the U.S. will break up into six parts - the Pacific coast, with its growing Chinese population; the South, with its Hispanics; Texas, where independence movements are on the rise; the Atlantic coast, with its distinct and separate mentality; five of the poorer central states with their large Native American populations; and the northern states, where the influence from Canada is strong. He even suggested that "we could claim Alaska - it was only granted on lease, after all." Panarin, 60, is a professor at the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and has authored several books on information warfare. Developing...

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