Well, not for the everyday person like you and me perhaps. But apparently the NSA wants to build a secondary internet so they can put government activity separate from all the civilian activity. While they think it will keep government sites more secure from attacks, they are gravely mistaken.
One of the reasons hackers hack is for the challenge and bragging rights. The mentality could be similar to the compulsive shoplifter who steals and steals and never gets caught. Then one day BOOM. She is caught and does not understand why she got away wit hit all along. Despite security measures taken by many stores to hinder shoplifting attempts, people are dishonest enough to find ways to get around security measures. So doesn't the NSA think that a mischievous hacker will have this same mentality? Or even worse, what about the devious foreigner?
It has recently been disclosed that China is suspected of hacking two satellites a few years ago. Most people do not think about hacking satellites, but now that it is being thought about, a little bit of it is fumy. When satellites are being considered, most people think only paranoid thoughts about the US government spying. Most people, unless you are a US government official perhaps, do not think about foreign intelligence getting the satellites to spy. Whether they will be interested in the everyday person is another story. It is more likely that they only care about what the US government is doing. Phew, we are safe!
But even so, it is scary to think that a satellite can be hacked into just as easily as a personal computer if someone has loose security. Now with the secondary internet put in place, will the security get better or is this more or less just a band aid that the NSA wants to have? If there will be no change in security, it is better that they stay on the same internet and improve security. Hacking is inevitable, especially when there are juicy secrets to be found. So swallow the truth and just improve security in what is in place now. Don't isolate yourself and make yourself more vulnerable. Remember that the Stuxnet attacked technology that was not even attached to an internet.
Friday, October 28, 2011
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Help! My Twitter account has been hacked!
Well, not my Twitter account. But many people have been saying this today. It is not the first time people's accounts have been hacked into as most of us know. Unfortunately for innocent, unsuspecting people out there, it certainly won't be the last.
Usually an application (you know those third party apps that want your username and password) has gotten access to a user's Twitter account. While some of these applications or websites use the account for good, such as finding certain statistics on a Twitter account, there are those third party sites that are made for bad things such as spamming people with direct messages. Today's direct message came in the form of "You might want to click on this site! People are saying bad things about you here" or something to that effect. When a user clicks on the link, he is prompted to enter his username and password for access to what the user is lead to believe is juicy gossip about him online. Unfortunately, by entering in his Twitter username and password, he has just given access to this site to use his account to spread other similar direct messages to all his followers.
Sites like this are similar to the email messages that one might get with an attachment from someone you know with a message of "Look at the program I made for you!" When a user clicks on it, the file opens, scans the address book, and now all of his address book receives this same email.
Some people have no life. I know.
Here are some steps to fix your Twitter account if you suspect it's been hacked. The most common way to know if your account has ben hacked is if you get someone asking you "Did you send me a DM?" If you know you did not send the DM (assuming you did not drunk DM someone....in that case, there is no security for drunk behavior. Sorry about your luck.)then your account is likely hacked.
Do no despair. The fix is easy. Remember how you gave someone (in this case a site) your login id and password? So just change your password. The site will not be able to authenticate on your account again and the spam messages will stop.
If using Twitter from a smart phone, every client is different. RTFM:)
Otherwise if you are using Twitter off of the website itself, just click on your profile name on the upper right hand corner of the screen. When the popup menu comes up, click on settings. Click on the password tab. This is where you change your password in Twitter. Don't forget to save your changes!
THe losers who create sites that get login information for bad purposes are getting smarter. But the users can get smarter too by at least knowing what to do if they are attacked in this way.
Usually an application (you know those third party apps that want your username and password) has gotten access to a user's Twitter account. While some of these applications or websites use the account for good, such as finding certain statistics on a Twitter account, there are those third party sites that are made for bad things such as spamming people with direct messages. Today's direct message came in the form of "You might want to click on this site! People are saying bad things about you here" or something to that effect. When a user clicks on the link, he is prompted to enter his username and password for access to what the user is lead to believe is juicy gossip about him online. Unfortunately, by entering in his Twitter username and password, he has just given access to this site to use his account to spread other similar direct messages to all his followers.
Sites like this are similar to the email messages that one might get with an attachment from someone you know with a message of "Look at the program I made for you!" When a user clicks on it, the file opens, scans the address book, and now all of his address book receives this same email.
Some people have no life. I know.
Here are some steps to fix your Twitter account if you suspect it's been hacked. The most common way to know if your account has ben hacked is if you get someone asking you "Did you send me a DM?" If you know you did not send the DM (assuming you did not drunk DM someone....in that case, there is no security for drunk behavior. Sorry about your luck.)then your account is likely hacked.
Do no despair. The fix is easy. Remember how you gave someone (in this case a site) your login id and password? So just change your password. The site will not be able to authenticate on your account again and the spam messages will stop.
If using Twitter from a smart phone, every client is different. RTFM:)
Otherwise if you are using Twitter off of the website itself, just click on your profile name on the upper right hand corner of the screen. When the popup menu comes up, click on settings. Click on the password tab. This is where you change your password in Twitter. Don't forget to save your changes!
THe losers who create sites that get login information for bad purposes are getting smarter. But the users can get smarter too by at least knowing what to do if they are attacked in this way.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Social Media: Making Protests Heard Around the World
Social media has been such an important part of all the protests that have taken place around the world. One of the first was all the protesting done during and after the Iran election. Since then, all the revolutionary movements that have taken place around the world have been caught on social media sites such as Twitter and Youtube for all to see.
The growth of social media has enabled anyone with a smart phone, digital camera, or just a computer and an internet connection to become a journalist. (for better or worse) Some of the footage that the amateurs have caught has then been picked up by mainstream media. Such footage picked up by bigger media outlets include a woman being shot at a protest in Iran and police brutality around the world.
Much mainstream media has given much attention to the protests in other countries. Yet, when it comes to the Occupy America protests, they are barely being acknowledged. CNN, for example, did not have any front page coverage on their website at the time of this writing. This is no problem for the amateur journalists, however, who are determined to get their word out.
Since before it was created, the Occupy movement has advertised and gained likes on Facebook. They also have their own Twitter streams with constant updates and retweets. Videos are always being uploaded on video sharing sites such as Youtube and pictures are being taken all over the place.
Looking at the impact of social media has shown a different perspective since the protests are more local than the overseas protests. Not only has social media been a media outlet for the people, it has also come into the rescue to keep the events going as intended. There have been tweets requesting food donations for the demonstrators, ponchos for when it began to pour rain all over them, and even external hard drives so they can keep live coverage of the Occupy Boston event going so the world can see. Apparently social media is doing the work those tweets were hoping for. There is still live streaming video, one man showed up today with a pickup truck full of bottled water, and restaurants answered the call for food by donating food.
Every time there is a huge event where social media is used to impact it, a new benefit of social media is seen. In the Occupy America protests as well as the revolutions in the Middle East, people are of different cultures and backgrounds. But one thing that everyone has in common is a need for the average person not to be taken advantage of by a select few. THe voice of individualism is speaking out. Thanks to social media, it is no longer being ignored.
The growth of social media has enabled anyone with a smart phone, digital camera, or just a computer and an internet connection to become a journalist. (for better or worse) Some of the footage that the amateurs have caught has then been picked up by mainstream media. Such footage picked up by bigger media outlets include a woman being shot at a protest in Iran and police brutality around the world.
Much mainstream media has given much attention to the protests in other countries. Yet, when it comes to the Occupy America protests, they are barely being acknowledged. CNN, for example, did not have any front page coverage on their website at the time of this writing. This is no problem for the amateur journalists, however, who are determined to get their word out.
Since before it was created, the Occupy movement has advertised and gained likes on Facebook. They also have their own Twitter streams with constant updates and retweets. Videos are always being uploaded on video sharing sites such as Youtube and pictures are being taken all over the place.
Looking at the impact of social media has shown a different perspective since the protests are more local than the overseas protests. Not only has social media been a media outlet for the people, it has also come into the rescue to keep the events going as intended. There have been tweets requesting food donations for the demonstrators, ponchos for when it began to pour rain all over them, and even external hard drives so they can keep live coverage of the Occupy Boston event going so the world can see. Apparently social media is doing the work those tweets were hoping for. There is still live streaming video, one man showed up today with a pickup truck full of bottled water, and restaurants answered the call for food by donating food.
Every time there is a huge event where social media is used to impact it, a new benefit of social media is seen. In the Occupy America protests as well as the revolutions in the Middle East, people are of different cultures and backgrounds. But one thing that everyone has in common is a need for the average person not to be taken advantage of by a select few. THe voice of individualism is speaking out. Thanks to social media, it is no longer being ignored.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Hacktivism
Many have heard of activism, but a new trend is combining hacking with activism to make hacktivism. I'm not sure how long the actual hacktivism movement as we know now has been around. For too long, hackers were known as basement boys who had no friends. Not anymore. Now they claim to be fighting the government's battles in the online world.
For example, when Wikileaks came to be known to the public, the sight was hacked into and defaced. The reason for the hacktivists doing this was because they endangered national security by releasing government secrets for all to know, including enemies. Nothing has happened to the guy who did it as he is still hacking. About two weeks ago, he hacked into a website that recruited people for jihad. Hacktivism sounds like a good idea in theory.
There are many things that are online that do not need to be there. Do holocaust denial websites end to exist? Do other organizations deemed as terrorists by the State Department and its allies need websites to spread their agenda? I think not. But then again, I do not work for the government, and at the time of this writing, they are not paying me to fight terrorism.
Unfortunately that is where people's sentiments end there. Unfortunately sentiments cannot lead to an actual ideology. Once a person goes and hacks into a website, they may be participating in what the government deems as cyber terrorism thanks to the lovely Patriot Act that was passed after 9/11. Ironic how the people who want to help fight cyber terrorism of any form can be considered cyber terrorists by their own government. I guess the government really does not want civilians to get involved in their affairs. Let them fight the terrorists and hope they do a good job.
If one thinks about it though, the same mentality can be used for the police. People may not agree with what police do or who they arrest. But if people take action against the police or someone who was not arrested but should have been, they are then criminals even though they may be perceived by many as "the good guy".
So just like in real life when we are walking down the street, we look both ways to make sure we will not get hit by a car. We try to be aware of our surroundings, and if something does not feel right, we leave. We have to do the same online. If something does not feel right, there is a back button or exit button. (Online life is great for that. There are no back buttons in real life!) So until the governments that be can figure out how to keep terrorists off the internet to post their propaganda or recruit people, we as civilians must take care of ourselves and just know not to get involved with bad people. Just like in real life.
For example, when Wikileaks came to be known to the public, the sight was hacked into and defaced. The reason for the hacktivists doing this was because they endangered national security by releasing government secrets for all to know, including enemies. Nothing has happened to the guy who did it as he is still hacking. About two weeks ago, he hacked into a website that recruited people for jihad. Hacktivism sounds like a good idea in theory.
There are many things that are online that do not need to be there. Do holocaust denial websites end to exist? Do other organizations deemed as terrorists by the State Department and its allies need websites to spread their agenda? I think not. But then again, I do not work for the government, and at the time of this writing, they are not paying me to fight terrorism.
Unfortunately that is where people's sentiments end there. Unfortunately sentiments cannot lead to an actual ideology. Once a person goes and hacks into a website, they may be participating in what the government deems as cyber terrorism thanks to the lovely Patriot Act that was passed after 9/11. Ironic how the people who want to help fight cyber terrorism of any form can be considered cyber terrorists by their own government. I guess the government really does not want civilians to get involved in their affairs. Let them fight the terrorists and hope they do a good job.
If one thinks about it though, the same mentality can be used for the police. People may not agree with what police do or who they arrest. But if people take action against the police or someone who was not arrested but should have been, they are then criminals even though they may be perceived by many as "the good guy".
So just like in real life when we are walking down the street, we look both ways to make sure we will not get hit by a car. We try to be aware of our surroundings, and if something does not feel right, we leave. We have to do the same online. If something does not feel right, there is a back button or exit button. (Online life is great for that. There are no back buttons in real life!) So until the governments that be can figure out how to keep terrorists off the internet to post their propaganda or recruit people, we as civilians must take care of ourselves and just know not to get involved with bad people. Just like in real life.
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