Since the beginning of June, the public has been privy to an ever-expanding flower of information springing from the NSA tagged with the code name PRISM. This keyword is attached to a program that whistleblower Edward Snowden is said to have been the sole leaker of for reports leading to the Guardian story on the GCHQ and the Washington Post story on the NSA. What lies beneath is a story on the expanding abilities of the NSA beyond their original bounds in international surveillance.
Now more than ever, people are becoming more worried about their privacy, specifically being monitored while out in the public. Whether it'd be commuting to work or going out with friends, people aren't too comfortable with the idea that there are people watching them. However, it's not going away anytime soon, according to NYC police chief Ray Kelly.
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Authorities are debating whether or not video surveillance should be increased in the United States due to their importance in uncovering the suspects of the Boston Marathon bombings. Lawmakers are in talks about the importance of increasing surveillance and how CCTV (close-circuit television) cameras will be able to increase security and protect citizens as well as help authorities track down suspects.
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Looks like the IRS believes it can read your emails, Facebook Chats, Twitter Direct Messages, SMS messages, and more without needing to obtain a search warrant beforehand. However, a ruling in the 2010 case, U.S. v. Warshak, by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals states that accessing someone's email messages without obtaining a warrant first violates the Fourth Amendment.
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This week the folks at LenovoEMC have revealed their next-generation move for the networked device universe - Network Video Recorders. With their new NVR family they'll be joining up with Milestone Arcus, a video management software platform, to bring you some real security installations - of less than 20 Internet Protocol Cameras, of course. This futuristic system will be aimed at small to midsize businesses and the whole lot will begin to be available this May.
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One of the most terrifying prospects we've heard in the past few years surrounding a gaming console - or a computer of any type, for that matter, has been re-addressed this week with the Xbox 720. This machine has not yet been confirmed as even being in development by Microsoft as of yet, but another bag of tips has been revealed with specifications and features included with the device that may set your hair on end. The first and perhaps most important of these is the idea that the included Kinect camera need to be plugged in to the machine at all times - and that it'll be watching you constantly.
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In light of the drones used to prowl the skies while snooping on the everyday person, Adam Harvey has designed a Stealth Wear hoodie that serves as a type of invisibility cloak against the spying equipment. Harvey hails from New York, and is no stranger in the world of surveillance-thwarting apparel. Some of the artist's other items in this category include CVDazzle, makeup that foils face-recognition applications.
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Late last week, the US Senate passed the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Amendments Reauthorization Act that would authorize phone surveillance of Americans without a warrant for counter-terrorism purposes for the next five years. The bill then moved onto the Oval Office, where President Obama signed it last night, officially putting the bill into action.
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The US Senate has voted 73-23 to approve the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Amendments Reauthorization Act, which will authorize phone surveillance of Americans without a warrant for counter-terrorism purposes for the next five years. The bill extends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Amendments Act of 2008, which granted immunity for wiretaps and email monitoring under the Bush Administration.
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The city of New York has unveiled a new wide-reaching surveillance system that was developed in cooperation with Microsoft called Domain Awareness System. The new system brings together various information streams, including content coming from CCTV footage and criminal databases. NYC went official with the announcement of the system this week.
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