[LINK] Technology and privacy
stephen at melbpc.org.au
stephen at melbpc.org.au
Thu Jan 23 18:39:36 AEDT 2014
Six Technologies and Privacy
Number six is especially surprising to me .. molecular level scanning?
1. Our TVs are watching us back. An IT consultant in England got suspicious
after he noticed that his shiny new LG smart TV began showing him targeted
advertisement based on programs hed just been watching. So he used his
laptop to monitor wireless traffic between the TV and his Wi-Fi receiver,
and discovered every show he watched and every button he pressed on his
remote control were being sent back to LGs corporate headquarters in South
Korea.
London's Daily Mail wanted to know: What if someone were giving credit card
information to a shopping app that comes with these smart TVs? That might
be intercepted by an identity thief. It certainly argues against a "smart
TV."
2. Street lights that can record conversations. Illuminating Concepts makes
LED-based streetlights called Intellistreets, which can auto-adjust to the
brightness outside to help save power. They also include a Wi-Fi connection
and built-in speaker, to stream audio broadcasts to anyone within earshot.
Oh, and they also have audio and video recorders. These are supposedly to
field calls for assistance; but if you're walking in a city with
Intellistreets, like with Las Vegas or Branson, Missouri, how comfortable
are you knowing that the lampposts have Wi-Fi transmitters, a camera, and a
microphone?
Also included: proximity sensors to record pedestrian and road traffic, and
optional video displays to broadcast advertising, Amber Alerts, and other
"civic announcements." And yes, this was with paid for with federal funds.
3. Police using data-extraction devices on cell phones. A cop asks for you
license, registration, and cell phone. In his car, your phone is connected
to Cellebrite to download your text messages, photos, video, and even GPS
data. Your four-digit security code can't hide your naughty sexting. The
law is on your side in this -- for now. The Michigan State Police, the
first force in the nation to adopt Cellebrite, only uses the devices after
obtaining a search warrant or the phone's owner's consent. But given the
histories of some police departments, I'm wary.
Cellebrite's products are used to transfer your data from an old phone to a
new one at a cell phone story, so this is another case of questionable use
of good technology.
4. Palantir Technologies, Lord of the Spy Rings. Palantir started to help
PayPal fight against fraud, but has since moved into Big Data analytics for
the FBI, CIA, and others. Its advisors include former Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice and former CIA director George Tenet.
Palantir identifies related pieces of information in dozens or hundreds of
databases within an organization and puts everything together at incredible
speed. It can help banks find fraudsters -- but it can know your every
move. Rumors say Palantir was involved in finding Osama Bin Laden. With
Palantir, the FBI can quickly assemble dossiers on citizens, "tying
together surveillance video outside a drugstore with credit-card
transactions, cell-phone call records, e-mails, airplane travel records,
and Web search information."
5. Software that will analyze and store millions of voices. The NSA's
metadata collection was just the beginning. Federal agencies and law
enforcement are using a database called VoiceGrid Nation and developed by
Russia's Speech Technology Center (which operates under the name SpeechPro
in the United States) to scan and identify voices on phone calls within
seconds.
When authorities intercept a call and they're not sure who is speaking,
VoiceGrid is called into action. SpeechPro claims 90 percent accuracy if
the recording is decent quality and more than 15 seconds in length.
The company's president says the software is being is used in 70 countries
to collect, store, and match voice recordings of intercepted conversations.
Why were they intercepted? Why do you need to know that?
6. Molecular scanners that can secretly scan you from 164 feet away. Genia
Photonics makes a laser scanner technology that it says is able to
"penetrate clothing and many other organic materials and offers
spectroscopic information, especially for materials that impact safety such
as explosives and pharmacological substances." Genia claims it can identify
individual cancer cells in a real-time scan or detect trace amounts of
harmful chemicals in sensitive manufacturing processes.
But as always, it's not so much the technology itself as how it can be used
or misused. With Genia's tech, the Department of Homeland Security will be
able to scan you from up to 164 feet away for traces of drugs or explosives
on your clothes, or even for changes in your biochemistry -- if your
adrenaline levels are up, they might want to have a talk with you.
Ref: <http://www.arnnet.com.au/slideshow/536548/pictures_8_privacy-
destroying_technologies_should_scare/?image=1>
--
Cheers,
Stephen
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