- cypherpunks-legacy - lists.cpunks.org

RE: Can't block caller ID in Massachusetts?
by Bill Olson (EDP) 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

What's worse, is that if you just want to call and get information about a particular product, they can log you for their marketing database. >---------- >From: David Mazieres[SMTP:dm@amsterdam.lcs.mit.edu] >Sent: Friday, July 12, 1996 8:55 AM >To: cypherpunks(a)toad.com >Subject: Can't block caller ID in Massachusetts? > >My last phone bill said that Nynex is now giving out people's names in >addidtion to their phone numbers over caller-id. I therefore called >Nynex and told them to block caller-id on my phone line. > >They said no problem, but... They said nothing I can do will block it >when I call 800 numbers. "The people with 800 numbers have special >software, and there is nothing you can do to block your identity when >calling them. Not even *67." > >Wow. Maybe I'm not paranoid enough, but I never expected this. I can >never again call an 800 number anonymously to get information about >something unless I go out to a pay phone. What an incredible >inconvenience, and how truly depressing. > >I know 800 number owners probably used to be able to get lists of >calling phone numbers on their phone bills, but this is less >disturbing as it would take significant effort to match up the lists >after the fact. I just want to be able to call up companies and say, >for instance, "If I buy your product, can it do X?" as opposed to, for >instance, "I'm stuck with your product, can it do X?". People are >often more helpful in the former case. Now, though, they'll know >exactly who I am before they even say hello. > >David >

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Good dictionary files?
by Sentiono Leowinata 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

As many people say, a good password cracker is very dependent on the dictionary file(s). When one has a very good dictionary file(s), the chances of password being cracked is bigger. I am wondering if someone can tell me where I can get good dictionary file(s). Search on the web result to nothing. I have one large dictionary file (about 14Mb) to check it, but I still not feel comfortable to say it's a good one. This might be off topic from cryptography, but until we can reverse engineer (decrypt the crypt or crypt(3)) functions, nothing we can do but to rely on those good dictionaries. Thank you and I apologize for anyone who might get offended by my post. Regards, Sent.

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Re: Can't block caller ID in Massachusetts?
by Dana W. Albrecht 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

David Mazieres writes: > My last phone bill said that Nynex is now giving out people's names in > addidtion to their phone numbers over caller-id. I therefore called > Nynex and told them to block caller-id on my phone line. > > They said no problem, but... They said nothing I can do will block it > when I call 800 numbers. "The people with 800 numbers have special > software, and there is nothing you can do to block your identity when > calling them. Not even *67." > > Wow. Maybe I'm not paranoid enough, but I never expected this. I can > never again call an 800 number anonymously to get information about > something unless I go out to a pay phone. What an incredible > inconvenience, and how truly depressing. > > I know 800 number owners probably used to be able to get lists of > calling phone numbers on their phone bills, but this is less > disturbing as it would take significant effort to match up the lists > after the fact. I just want to be able to call up companies and say, > for instance, "If I buy your product, can it do X?" as opposed to, for > instance, "I'm stuck with your product, can it do X?". People are > often more helpful in the former case. Now, though, they'll know > exactly who I am before they even say hello. > > David 800 (And 888/900 etc.) numbers use a different mechanism (ANI) than caller ID to provide your telephone number to the person you are calling. This has been around far longer than caller ID, and really doesn't have all that much to do with the caller ID service, which is entirely different. So in essence, nothing's really changed with regard to 800 numbers, except that people are now becoming _aware_ that the called party has access to their telephone number. If you want additional information, I'd recommend starting with the FAQ for the alt.2600 newsgroup. Dana W. Albrecht dwa(a)corsair.com

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EFA attitude to crypto
by Sherry Mayo 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Just to clear up Rich Grave's comment regarding the Electronic Frontiers Australia's attitude to crypto. EFA did not object the the ABA's report and it's comment about crypto. They did object to an earlier government report which said that crypto should be *mandatory* - since turning people into criminals for transmitting plaintext is just as daft as turning them into criminals for transmitting encrypted text. Hope this puts things straight. Sherry

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Re: Another bad idea
by Deranged Mutant 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

On 12 Jul 96 at 10:23, Alan Olsen wrote: [..] > Of course this is all a moot point, because it has been proven by computer > projections that all informative net traffic will be buried under > advertisements by the year 2000 anyways. I expect some legislative body to > try and make money fast on the net by selling ad space on IP packet headers. Yes. They can follow the American model and rather than censor communications, allow advertising. Nobody will be able to get an inteeligent thought from the net without being interrupted by an ad every five minutes... and people will pay good money for this 'privledge' (sp?) too. Rob --- No-frills sig. Befriend my mail filter by sending a message with the subject "send help" Key-ID: 5D3F2E99 1996/04/22 wlkngowl(a)unix.asb.com (root@magneto) AB1F4831 1993/05/10 Deranged Mutant <wlkngowl(a)unix.asb.com> Send a message with the subject "send pgp-key" for a copy of my key.

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Re: Another bad idea
by Deranged Mutant 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Note that my main point was sort-of vague. Let me re-iterate it: crypto-activism should go along with the other activism for democratizing countries like China, Iraq, Burma, etc. Most of the activists involved with those issues know about the culture (and many are already PGP-aware)... so for specific situations some of the ideas presents may not be appropriate for others. It might be ok to direct-mail someone in one country, but dangerous for someone in another. Also don't take for granted the relative access of privacy one has in the US or Europe compared to some regime where you can only net surf with a policement watching over your shoulder at the police station's internet kiosks (hypothetical...). Using an anonymous remailer or web anonymizer may be reason enough to get somebody in another country in trouble. The thought of blindly being a k00l krypt0 activist and getting some poor guy in another country thrown in jail doesn't do much to help democratize that country. Spam and unsolicited mail aren't the way to go. Better, more subtle ideas, might be to say 'check out this page' ot 'i've got source code for that on my page at...', which has techie or even entertainment info but also has political info (that already happens quite unintentionally). I wonder what web users in places like Singapore thought when they kept running across blacked-out anti-CDA pages... If one is familiar with the culture, one can even be really subtle and seem to be talking about an unreleated story or even techie or sports but actually be discussing the political situation in that country (look at many Soviet films, some Chinese films, Spanish films under Franco's regime, Cuban films, etc.) On 12 Jul 96 at 18:30, E. ALLEN SMITH wrote: [..] > If these countries didn't value their technical people and what they > can do, they wouldn't be allowing them on the Internet (even in a restricted > way) in the first place. The above would only be a likely scenario if the [..] Don't underestimate people's stupidity. The party loyalists or bootlickers may get away with more naughtiness on the 'net, but those borderline techies who are about due for another month at a re-education camp or loyalty counseling may get screwed. If such countries really valued their techies, then why do they allow them to emmigrate to Western countries? [..] > How, precisely, is one going to filter out graphics from web sites in > Chinese? Ascii text and ideographs don't exactly get along. One interesting [..] By filtering out all photographs, which from what I heard the Chinese were contemplating. Whether is it truly feasible is another matter, of course. But since when has infeasability prevented anyone from trying it? Rob --- No-frills sig. Befriend my mail filter by sending a message with the subject "send help" Key-ID: 5D3F2E99 1996/04/22 wlkngowl(a)unix.asb.com (root@magneto) AB1F4831 1993/05/10 Deranged Mutant <wlkngowl(a)unix.asb.com> Send a message with the subject "send pgp-key" for a copy of my key.

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Re: ANI Blocking! Fast, Easy, Effective! (fwd)
by Bruce M. 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > Date: Thu, 4 JUL 1996 14:48:28 GMT > From: Glen L. Roberts <glr(a)ripco.com> > Newgroups: alt.2600, alt.privacy, alt.private.investigator, > alt.dcom.telecom, > comp.dcom.telecom.tech, alt.security, misc.consumers > Subject: ANI Blocking! Fast, Easy, Effective! > We are in the beta teating phase of a new service to block ANI. > You'll be able to call any toll-free number and prevent them from > getting your phone number. We do not charge for this service (you > do have to call a long distance number). > Complete details are on our web page. As we are beta testing, we > can't say for such what problems might crop up, but let us know. > http://pages.ripco.com:8080/~glr/block.html > ------ > Purity of Opinion through force of Intimidation: > http://pages.ripco.com:8080/~glr/rogue > Web Site for FBI File Access! You, too can be like Pres Clinton! > http://pages.ripco.com:8080/~glr/fbi.html > ------ I thought this might be of interest due of the recent discussions about ANI and privacy. I've seen this type of service before, but this one is apparently free (besides the cost of calling their area code if you aren't local). ________________________________ [ Bruce M. - Feist Systems, Inc. ] ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Official estimates show that more than 120 countries have or are developing [information warfare] capabilities." -GAO/AIMD-96-84

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Crypto-activism
by Deranged Mutant 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

On 13 Jul 96 at 0:37, Arun Mehta wrote: [..] > >> 1) Collect the e-mail addresses as Allen suggested (including those in > >> Hongkong), and send them a single, short message offering to teach them free > >> of cost how to use pgp and all the goodies at > >> http://www.eskimo.com/~joelm/cbsw.html > > > >Might be condescending. 'Civilized white man brings PGP to the > >barbarians...' > > Look around you: while "civilized", "white" and "man" might characterize the > vast (?) majority on this list, I'm sure that's not the universe on > cypherpunks. And how does it matter? I'm suggesting an e-mail course that My point is that a lot of people in those countries are aware of PGP etc. than make it out to be. Certainly many activists are. They focus on the human rights issues at hand, to which PGP etc. may be a tool... but isn't the central focus. It would be condescending to email to many people in a domain saying "hey, have you heard of PGP?..." Chances are they'll think it's a strange commercial spam anyway. The "civilized white man" comment was more of a metaphor. Change that to "Cypherpunks bring gifts of crypto to the natives" or maybe "Cypherpunks civilized the barbarians with PGP"... [..] > > They may well know about PGP, but not in a position > >to make that knowledge widely known. > > That's no good to the rest of the world. Forget them: the question is, are > *you* in a position to share your knowledge? Yep. But there's a proper way to share knowledge. You don't want to do it in such a way as to get the person you're sharing it with in trouble (esp. for something like crypto, where you could go to jail or be shot in some jurisdictions). If that person isn't interested, there's not much you can do... you may end up turning someone off. If you want someone to listen, and be interested (if they're not already), you have to do it in an appropriate way. You also have to know what you're talking about: if you're not familiar with the nitty -gritty of politics in such countries, you'll come off as the "cypherpunk bearing gifts of crypto for the natives"... the politics going on in places like Cuba, China, Iraq, Russia are a bit more complex than what comes off through the media (to some extent no matter where you are and what media you watch). For example... there are many anti-Castro 'democratic' socialists in Cuba. If you approach them as if they were anti-Communists you'll be seen as a clueless kook. Some Chinese I have spoken to are suspicious of the Tiennamen Sq. activists, claiming they were more 'reformists' than true democratizers who were unknown before Tiennamen. Many Iranians will insist Iran is a democratic country where fundamentalists hold a lot of popular power, and that Western tinkering will only strengthen fundamentalists rather than allow a transition to a more moderate party. I'm not saying any of these are true... they are just examples of how people in the respective territories view their situations differently, and that one can do more harm mistaking the situations in those countries. One more important issue: people have to trust you. You can't go into a strange environment and expect trust if you come off as a tourist. As for sharing knowledge... share crypto with activists involved with other issues. If one right, they're likely to use it in ways one hasn't imagined. [..] > >I'd leave the specifics to activists who are already familiar with > >the respective cultures, societies, politics, etc.... > > I'm one. Be glad to tell you more,... Yes, do tell. [..] > It's only crypto, not the Bible or Koran. And let them be their own judges? > You seem to want to protect people in the Third World the way the US > government wants to keep cyberporn from kids. No. I don't want to see somebody do something annoying and counterproductive that can get people it's allegedly meant to help in trouble and perhaps make a case for strengthening crypto regulations. Rob --- No-frills sig. Befriend my mail filter by sending a message with the subject "send help" Key-ID: 5D3F2E99 1996/04/22 wlkngowl(a)unix.asb.com (root@magneto) AB1F4831 1993/05/10 Deranged Mutant <wlkngowl(a)unix.asb.com> Send a message with the subject "send pgp-key" for a copy of my key.

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Re: Can the inevitability of Software privacy be used to defeat the ITAR?
by frantz＠netcom.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 9:21 PM 7/12/96 -0400, Michael Froomkin wrote: >> could claim that MIT came very close to violating ITAR, but the same claim > >"The ITAR do not apply to books" I'm not sure the exact legalities apply here. I think it is more like the mob pressuring business men for protection and punishing those who do not comply. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Frantz | The Internet may fairly be | Periwinkle -- Consulting (408)356-8506 | regarded as a never-ending | 16345 Englewood Ave. frantz(a)netcom.com | worldwide conversation. | Los Gatos, CA 95032, USA

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It's more than "White Punks on Dope"
by Brad Shantz 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Tim May Wrote: > In recent decades, do-gooders have taken upon themselves to intervene > in the parenting process and have essentially succeeded in making such > sanctions harder for parents to impose. Schools routinely teach young > children to inform on their parents if they have been spanked, touched, > talked to "inappropriately," etc. Check out the parent's rights > newsgroups (and father's rights) for tales of interrogations by agents of > Child Protective Services, who are empowered to remove a child > immediately and without court proceedings if they merely _suspect_ a > child has been treated in ways the State has deemed no longer >appropriate. ...yadda yadda yadda...more on how we all agree that burning children is not a viable option....etc. It is so much more than what the "State" deems appropriate. Having grown up with both parents being teachers in the public school system and my wife a teacher in a private Montessori school system, I've seen that the feeling in society is, "Everyone is a victim." In seattle a few years ago, there was a teenager who killed his girlfriend. (beat her face in with a rock) Yes, he was caught, yes he went to trial. This 19 year old lame-o used this as his defense, "Fetal Alcohol Syndrome." THEY LET THE MURDERER GO ON THE PRECEDENT IT WAS HIS MOTHER'S FAULT BECAUSE SHE HAD A FEW DRINKS WHILE SHE WAS PREGNANT WITH HIM. So, he wasn't in control of his own actions? I say bullshit to that. At my wife's school the kids are being taught that the definition of harassment is if someone is doing something to you that you don't like. Oh, the third graders have a heyday with this one. "Chris is looking at me and I don't like it." Immediately, Chris is repremanded because he is harassing the other kid. What's wrong with this picture? Well, it's not Chris' problem, is it? The teachers need to be a little more understanding of what harassment is. Chris could turn around and say, "By reprimanding me, you are harassing me for something totally stupid." There are so many different "syndromes" and "conditions" that you can't keep track of them all. ADD, Hyperactivity, Fetal Alchohol Syndrome, Chronic Fatigue, Repetitive Stress (which is a physical ailment, but it came to mind), they are all names to psychological conditions. Some because they are serious problems...like ADD in some children, but not all. Some however are lame attempts by psychologists to put the human psyche into a bunch of prepackaged little boxes. Eventually, you could build the perfect beast by just grabbing a handfull of syndromes from this box over here, mixing them with a few neuroses from this box over here. Pour in a little Free Love, a little Self Preservation and give the entity a stopwatch in the shape of a heart and a scroll for a brain and you've got an average human being. Sorry, no, thank you. We are more a part of our environment than that. Some people grow up to be just like their parents. Some grow up to be the exact opposite. However, our "raising" does have an effect on us. > So, what to do with children who are otherwise uncontrollable? > > Ah, the State has the answer. And its name begins with "R." 'Nuff said. At my wife's school, they do not use Ritalin. They have started using a product called PhytoBears. Don't laugh. These are GummiBears made out of all natural vegetable extracts. One of those, "100% of all the vitamins and minerals needed by the human body and mind in a day" kind of things. Apparently, the kids who were on Ritalin are now getting on much better with PhytoBears than they were with Ritalin. >> I will admit to the possibility of ADD being a "disease", but I >> think that the number of children who really have the disease is small >> compared to the number of childern recieving drugs for it. Yes, I've read this entire thread, I don't need loads of flame mail telling me to go back and read the ENTIRE THREAD again. I just want to say that in many schools, at least in Washington, ADD is no longer being treated strictly with drugs. Someone mentioned being put in a "special" class while his brother was in a regular class (or the other way around). That is more common than an automatic prescription for Ritalin. I still claim that ADD is a syndrome that is serious in some kids and for others it's a crutch. The diagnoses in Washington are getting better. > This is the point I have been making. Not that ADD (aka ADHD, > hyperactivity, etc.) does not sometimes exist, but that giving Ritalin > and suchlike drugs to children has been a panacea for fidgeting, > wandering attention, boredom, "cutting up" in class, class clowns, > and so on. Dr. Cynthia Tobias (who just happens to be from Seattle Pacific University, just a coincidence) has done studies for her entire doctoral carreer on the subject of learning patterns. Her findings are interesting. They aren't practical in a public school system, but interesting nonetheless. There are a number of different learning styles. I won't go into all of them for the sake of brevity (I know, too late.) One of the learnign styles that she has spent much time working on is the Kinetic/Kinesthetic learner. These are the kids who wander around, and fidget as Tim put it. The goal of the teacher with a Kinetic learner is not to get them to sit down, but to get them to not distract others. If the kid likes to do his work laying on the floor and he's not bothering anyone, let him. There are some people (like me) who can't stand to sit at a desk all day long. I get my work done, but I often lay on the floor, sit on the desk, walk around the office, etc. Anyway, my point is that there are teaching practices that could be used to teach the child without resorting to labelling (as I think ADD is sometimes used) or drugs. > And perhaps worse, _parents_, such as the example I provided, are using > it to control children. Where once they would've paddled the kid for > using obscene language, or refusing to get dressed for school, now they > pop a pill in the child's mouth. That is only in the example you provided, Tim. Yes, if one person is doing it, there are probably more. (It's like Cockaroaches....where there's one...) > I didn't have ADD. I was simply bored by a system that either taught > me stuff that was irrelevant > > I suspect this was true of 90% or more of us on this list...we're a > bright lot, and it's hard to imagine that _any_ school could keep us from > being bored a lot of the time. (And hard classes can be boring, too.) Agreed. The teachers at my High School and even at Oregon State University always had trouble convincing me of the validity of some of the topics we were learning. I'm sure it bugged them when I asked. Brad

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