- cypherpunks-legacy - lists.cpunks.org

Re: Secret Warrants and Black Bag Jobs--Questions
by Kerry L. Bonin 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

At 04:21 PM 8/8/01 -0700, Greg Broiles wrote: >At 08:59 AM 8/8/2001 -0700, Tim May wrote: > >> According to my sources ("The Sopranos" 8-)), those doing the bugging >> are supposed to "not listen" except when putatively criminal acts are >> being discussed. > >The Sopranos gets it right - the process is called "minimization", and is >intended to limit the evidence collected to only that which discloses >criminal activity - there are strict rules about how a conversation can be >sampled, as the show portrayed. > >But the agents don't need to follow the rules if they don't intend to ever >use the proceeds of the tap in court, or disclose its existence. There is the additional use of evidence raised publicly in LA a few years back - that LEO routinely passed information collected during wiretapping to other officers that could be used to collect legal grounds for admissible search against people not directly related to the initial wiretapping. In the LA case, this was sometimes as simple as "be at X at Y time", where the tipped off LEO could observe an incident "accidentally" without having to reveal their source. >>1) Are the secret warrants always revealed eventually, regardless of >>whether a court case happens or the evidence is introduced? Is it possible >>that there are N never-revealed secret warrants for every warrant >>discussed in open testimony? > >Yes. There is a time limit for when they should be disclosed if they don't >lead to a prosecution - that time limit can be extended by a judge, if the >agents think they need more time to develop a case. I don't believe the >(federal) law allows for taps to go undisclosed forever, but I believe it >happens anyway. Since the undisclosed taps aren't likely to be the focus of >litigation, there's no effective check on that practice. I'd imagine this would depend on the nature of the investigation. If the feds can make a case that unsealing the warrant could compromise a "critical contact" (even if they are in fact a worthless paid informant used as a warrant justification factory) or a "critical technical means" (i.e. Radio Shack directional microphone), its likely this would never be unsealed. There are also cases where "national security" is raised by SS/CIA/NSA/EPA(sic), and the public will never see any of the paperwork shreds.

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RE: Advertisements on Web Pages
by Jonathan Wienke 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 The Jurassic Park and Lost World DVD's play an ad for Universal DVD titles when you start the movie, and while it is playing, you can't chapter skip, fast forward, or rewind. I have some DVD's that do similar things when the disc is first put in the player. Fortunately, most DVD's don't have this annoying "feature". - -----Original Message----- From: Trei, Peter [mailto:ptrei@rsasecurity.com] Sent: Wednesday, August 08, 2001 12:29 PM To: 'Tim May' Cc: 'cypherpunks(a)lne.com' Subject: RE: Advertisements on Web Pages > Tim May[SMTP:tcmay@got.net] wrote [snipped] > Yes, we have heard here (or at a physical meeting, I forget which). > I don't buy many DVDs, but this was discussed. Apparently the > trailers and ads cannot be fast-forwarded through...something > built into the DVD spec which allows this. > > So an ad-buster which "circumvented" this would violate the DMCA, > presumably. > --Tim May > Commercial VHS tapes have had trailers (and occasionally ads) at the start for several years, but they can be zapped with FF. Over 20-30 DVDs I've seen none *forced* you to watch the trailers - they have always been part of the 'extra features' stuff off the main menu. OTOH, they all *do* force you to sit through the FBI and Interpol warnings for about 15 seconds. BTW: my VCR has a feature that allows it to automatically FF through ads. It works about 90% of the time, and is a very nice thing to have. Peter Trei -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: PGPfreeware 6.5.8 for non-commercial use <http://www.pgp.com> iQA/AwUBO3HjrRj6oMyeDxZoEQIQ+ACfQuhAOY+eNoFZEJqg3LVV0CxlYAIAmgMK vzdnU3z1HJvTJXvtd5v6crhv =fO4t -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

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Re: IP: FBI gets cash to spend on anti-encryption research (fwd)
by Mark Saarelainen 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

I believe that it is criminal the FBI to try to break my business communications. I encourage all persons around the world to use the strongest encryption possible. I am just an ordinary man who has gone through some extra-ordinary experiences in the past few years. Markku J. Saarelainen P.S. I recently sent my message to most representatives of the U.S. government in the Senate and Congress. I may start my political lobbying and influence program soon. P.S. The FBI is indeed criminally involved in spying on many international enterprises and organizations. One fax from one entity to another may cost millions if not protected with the storngest encryption possible. Join 18 million Eudora users by signing up for a free Eudora Web-Mail account at http://www.eudoramail.com

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Re: Remailer Phases
by Anonymous 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

An Unknown Party wrote: > On Wed, 8 Aug 2001, Anonymous wrote: > > We need a good mixmaster net. > > > > working remailer: > > 1. Average latency less than 5 min > > Bad. See the papers done on threats of traffic analysis/spam attacks > against remailers. "Average latency" exists. What do you think it should be? a) 5 minutes b) 5 hours c) 5 days d) 5 months e) longer I like a).

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RE: Advertisements on Web Pages
by Trei, Peter 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

> Tim May[SMTP:tcmay@got.net] wrote > > On Wednesday, August 8, 2001, at 11:44 AM, Ray Dillinger wrote: > > On Wed, 8 Aug 2001, Tim May wrote: > >> (Ads could be tied-in to the content, with some light crypto or > >> copright > >> protection. A "circumvention" of this liight crypto could be a DMCA > >> violation. I would not be surprised to see this already impicated in > >> the > >> DVD cases: that 5 minute period of trailors that cannot be > >> fast-forwarded past...it's probably a violation of the DMCA to build > >> devices which circumvent the copyright holder's plans and intents.) > > > > They're sticking *trailers* on movies that people *pay for??* > > > > Geez.. talk about destroying the value of the merchandise they're > > trying to sell. > > Yes, we have heard here (or at a physical meeting, I forget which). I > don't buy many DVDs, but this was discussed. Apparently the trailers and > ads cannot be fast-forwarded through...something built into the DVD spec > which allows this. > > So an ad-buster which "circumvented" this would violate the DMCA, > presumably. > --Tim May > Commercial VHS tapes have had trailers (and occasionally ads) at the start for several years, but they can be zapped with FF. Over 20-30 DVDs I've seen none *forced* you to watch the trailers - they have always been part of the 'extra features' stuff off the main menu. OTOH, they all *do* force you to sit through the FBI and Interpol warnings for about 15 seconds. BTW: my VCR has a feature that allows it to automatically FF through ads. It works about 90% of the time, and is a very nice thing to have. Peter Trei

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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 05:06 PM, Faustine wrote: > 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. And why not name who this researcher was, and why you think the cipher he was trying to break was Cypherpunks-interesting? (Mere factors of 100 are not interesting, vis-a-vis good ciphers and large keys. Arguably, as we have discussed many times, not even "swimming pools full of Adleman DNA computers" make a difference.) >> (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. > Fatuous nonsense, Beowulf clusters have been out for several years. The hard part is getting 50 Pentiums, not the software. As for "50 gigaflops," big whoop. A readily-available dual G4 machine is rated at about 8-10 gigaflops. (Or "FLOPS," as you wish.) Still not interesting for cracking ciphers, in the real world. > > 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. You need to get up to speed, so to speak. --Tim May

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Advertisements on Web Pages
by Tim May 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

Just a note about what's happening with Web advertising. Went to a site, www.imdb.com, to check something about a film. Up popped a doubleclick.net ad. In front of the main page, obscuring it. I clicked the close box. Up popped a _different_ ad. I clicked the close box. Yep, up popped a third ad box. I closed it. I think it stopped at this point. Of course, the usual ads were filling the right third of the screen (Amazon ads for DVDs, books, etc.). And the top part of the screen had an annoying Java-enabled ad with a blinking package and the message "Claim your FREE PRIZE!" and another one screaming "Find a loan for me!" Part of the rest of the screen was IMDB hyping itself, offering special accounts, etc. Still, I figured that having 40% of my screen area left for actual _content_ was part of the deal. But as soon as I clicked on the details I wanted, the boxes obscuring the content appeared _again_. Again, I closed the box, again up popped a new one, and so on. Perhaps we are in the End Times. Surely this advertising model cannot last long. Maybe this is how remailers will have to finance operations. (There are better models, of course.) --Tim May

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56k Dialup Access For $11.99 A Month!!
by Your.Internet.Serverice.Provider＠toad.com 08 Aug '01

08 Aug '01

-------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- (This safeguard is not inserted when using the registered version) -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- (This safeguard is not inserted when using the registered version) -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------

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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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