Archive for the 'Fraud' Category
An NSA-Derived Ransomware Worm Is Shutting Down Computers Worldwide
May 12th, 2017I don’t know what it’s going to take to convince people to stop using abandoned versions of Windows, but if this doesn’t do it, nothing will. Via: Ars Technica: A highly virulent new strain of self-replicating ransomware shut down computers all over the world, in part by appropriating a National Security Agency exploit that was […]
Ex-L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca Sentenced to Three Years in Prison in Jail Corruption Scandal
May 12th, 2017Via: Los Angeles Times: Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, once a towering, respected figure in policing, was sentenced Friday to three years in federal prison for his role in a scheme to obstruct an FBI investigation of abuses in county jails, marking an end to a corruption scandal that has roiled the Sheriff’s […]
Europe: How Billions Vanish Into the Security Industry Black Hole
May 9th, 2017Via: The Correspondent: The European Union spends billions on research into advanced technologies meant to make society safer. But our investigation – with 22 journalists in 11 countries – shows that the generous subsidies are mostly good for one thing: filling the coffers of the security industry.
The 265 Members of Congress Who Sold You Out to ISPs, and How Much It Cost to Buy Them
March 29th, 2017Hint: Not much. Via: The Verge: Republicans in Congress just voted to reverse a landmark FCC privacy rule that opens the door for ISPs to sell customer data. Lawmakers provided no credible reason for this being in the interest of Americans, except for vague platitudes about “consumer choice” and “free markets,” as if consumers at […]
How Police Departments Use Civil Forfeiture to Collect Billions
March 15th, 2017Whenever you hear about tips to the police from confidential informants or “concerned citizens,” etc. keep this in mind: U.S. Communications Intelligence Secretly Shared with Law Enforcement for Use Against Americans in Criminal Investigations. So, mass surveillance and civil forfeiture: Is there a link? “It is the height of naivete to think that once collected […]
Electronic Energy Meters’ False Readings Almost Six Times Higher Than Actual Energy Consumption
March 4th, 2017Via: Science Bulletin: Some electronic energy meters can give false readings that are up to 582% higher than actual energy consumption. This emerged from a study carried out by the University of Twente (UT), in collaboration with the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (AUAS). Professor Frank Leferink of the UT estimates that potentially inaccurate meters […]
Lithium Ion Like Battery with 3X the Energy Density, Sodium Glass Electrolyte
March 1st, 2017Disclosure: I sell solar power systems in New Zealand. — I’ll reiterate the usual warning when posting about battery technology “breakthroughs.” Laboratory experiments have virtually nothing to do with finished products that you and I can buy. Indeed, DO NOT hold your breath waiting for this. That said, it’s VERY interesting, if you’re like me […]
Trump Seeks U.S. Military Spending Boost, Domestic Cuts
February 27th, 2017Mmm hmm. Via: Reuters: President Donald Trump is seeking what he called a “historic” increase in defense spending, but ran into immediate opposition from Republicans in Congress who must approve his plan and said it was not enough to meet the military’s needs. The proposed rise in the Pentagon budget to $603 billion comes as […]
Illegal Fundraiser for the Clintons Made Secret Tape Because He Feared Being Assassinated
February 24th, 2017Via: Daily Mail: A Chinese-American businessman at the center of a Clinton campaign finance scandal secretly filmed a tell-all video as an ‘insurance policy’ – because he feared being murdered. In footage provided exclusively to DailyMail.com, Johnny Chung spills details on how he illegally funneled money from Chinese officials to Bill Clinton’s 1996 re-election bid. […]
Most Scientists ‘Can’t Replicate Studies by Their Peers’
February 23rd, 2017Via: BBC: Science is facing a “reproducibility crisis” where more than two-thirds of researchers have tried and failed to reproduce another scientist’s experiments, research suggests. This is frustrating clinicians and drug developers who want solid foundations of pre-clinical research to build upon. From his lab at the University of Virginia’s Centre for Open Science, immunologist […]
