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U.S. Authorizes Sales of American Communication Tech To Iran
An anonymous reader writes "A report at SF Gate notes that 'The United States has lifted portions of two-decades-old sanctions against Iran in an effort to bolster communication between the country's citizens — and potentially aid organization against a repressive Iranian government. Thursday afternoon the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control authorized the sale of hardware and software that pertain to the Internet, instant messaging, chat, e-mail, social networking, sharing of media, and blogging — basically, all things digital. The Treasury Department wrote, 'As the Iranian government attempts to silence its people by cutting off their communication with each other and the rest of the world, the United States will continue to take action to help the Iranian people exercise their universal human rights, including the right to freedom of expression.'"
Do you have to pay extra to not have Stuxnet installed out-of-the-box?
Apparently wizard is not a legitimate career path, so I chose programmer instead.
>> U.S. Treasury Department: "universal human rights, including the right to freedom of expression"
The fine print: "...unless you advocate the rule of law based on the U.S. Constitution or the Bill of Rights."
You do realize this is simply a cold hearted attempt to bring Iran to it's knees. Hear me out ....
- Iran is subjected to crushing economic sanctions. Their economy makes Newark, NJ look like a paradise on earth.
- Now, Apple and Sony can dump their high priced, effete toys on a naive, unsuspecting populace.
- Billions of dollars flow outward from the Iran economy which, heretofore, had been largely supported by itinerant photoshop interns.
- Profit
- Iran collapses in a heap of shiny trinkets!
USA! USA! USA! (oh, and China...)
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
Change that to "a repressive government". No need for the US, of all places, to single out Iran, unless of course, you're trying to sell a war.
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
As an Iranian I see this as a very positive development.
The computing technology sanctions were doing exactly what the Iranian regime wants, that is to prevent average Iranian from uncontrolled access to information. They filter the web, ban VPN services, limit home Internet access to a maximum of 128Kbps. When people are already sanctioned by their own government, better not to add to that.
I don't see how this solves anything. If the users can have access to VPN/encryption to communicate, the government can now also buy network devices with advanced features such as Deep Packet Inspection or Lawful Interception or Man in the Middle - anything Next Generation Firewall can do, or dedicated devices can do better. Since they are the government they can easily push their own certificates so you wouldn't even know they do MitM unless you look very closely (not many people do).
All of this is rather easily doable, the only cost is performance and scalability, and you only need to throw more money at this to solve these issues.
Particularly after what we did to Saddam's folks with IT equipment in the first Gulf War...
"Knowing everything doesn't help..."
They're going to have to allow the export of high-grade encryption to Iranian customers. Otherwise they're just inviting the regime in Tehran to oppress anyone who tries to use this technology for the purposes specified in the OP...
In SOVIET RUSSIA... erm...NSA AMERICA, the Internet logs onto YOU!
To: Cisco
From: Iran
Subject: OMG HELP!
Body: Dear kind sirs of Cisco,
My name is Barrister Allahu Akbahara Salami Mozambique. I am trying to install your router system here in order to oppress my population in the name of Allah. However, I have been trying to change the root password for your switch. Whenever I try to telnet into it, the welcome message says "America, Fuck Yeah!" and plays a strange intro song. At the same time, all of the webcams, printers, faxes, document scanners go completely haywire and my network traffic spikes.
Also, I have a large inheritance that I believe is meant for you. Could you send me your bank account information so that I may deposit a sum of 89 billion rial ($18 US) into your account?
Yours in kind regards,
Barrister Allahu Akbahara Salami Mozambique
sudo make me a sandwich
Blue Coat will never be approached, as they sell their product to the US Government for use in many three-letter agencies. Either the US Government is forcing Blue Coat to have a back door, or the USG doesn't want Blue Coat to pull their license for 90% of government firewalls.
sudo make me a sandwich
Stuxnet Part Deux and add potential eavesdropping capability?
Hmmm... One would think the ability to insert more eavesdropping and spying capabilties ("hidden features? :>) ) may be more the reasoning behind something like this. Perhaps another bonus gift inserted into the software, hardware, or microcode, like Stuxnet did?
They have a big bang for the buck: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahya_Ayyash
They would love to see high level Iranian officials using their products.
Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
Please, just install it. No you can't examine the source code. Just run it. It'll be ok...
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
Do US citizens get some sort of sick twisted feeling of satisfaction from this?
"Blame the victim" is SOP in DC. Most Americans would prefer sugar in their Coke and premium cigars but they're too complacent to do anything about it. Neither the gang nor its subjects care much about the people of Cuba, though there are certainly exceptions.
My God, it's Full of Source!
OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
Just another USG subversion campaign. If you don't bend the knee to the USG-led globalist finance system, you are targeted. I wonder what color of Soros-funded "revolution" is coming soon to Iran?
Slashdot: Failed Car Analogies. Amateur Lawyering. Anecdote Battles.
Money talks
That order of back doors has arrived.
Have gnu, will travel.
Ah yes, the freedomogiston hypothesis.
.: Semper Absurda
Most of them never think about it at all. Anymore than most Cubans think about traffic problems in Nashville (not to imply that there ARE traffic problems in Nashville - don't really know, since I haven't driven through Nashville in ten years) on a regular basis.
"I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
This change specifically continues the ban on commercial grade services or equipment and in particular does not supersede any specific bans from other orders or laws. In and of itself, it doesn't give a pass to Blue Coat et al.
.: Semper Absurda
Well, now it's OK to sell " hardware and software that pertain to the Internet...basically, all things digital" I guess the flights to Iran will be full of salesmen.
Of course, big business will be taking care that the right stuff will not fall into the wrong hands, eh?
After all, look what happened last time.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Contra_Affair#Indictments
Oh wait, looks like they all got a presidential pardon...
Meanwhile, I'm sure that the regime in place will continue to control access to everything, and the chances of this trickling down to the populace are nil.
Better to get the CIA, USAID or whoever to dish out free stuff (satphones, encrypted laptops...) on the borders for smuggling in; compared to the billions we're pissing away in Iraq & AfPak, I'm sure the "coalition" could spare some millions for that.
Here's what happens with oppressive governments - they crack down on people organising to oppose them so sometimes the only people left that can meet in public are the religeous groups. When the oppressive government is overthrown the only groups with their shit together are those religeous groups. That's how the current situation in Egypt developed, and that's more or less what happened in Iran. The difference in Iran is that there was active culling of other factions that had been allied with them during the revolt (eg. they killed off all the communists which really pissed off the USSR), leaving bloodstained fanatics as the only ones left standing.
The people wanted to get rid of the Shah. The Islamic groups wanted an Islamic state. Now with the Islamic state being run by a vanishing group of geriatrics with no line of succesion it's only a matter of time before we find out what the people of Iran currently want.
It doesn't change that you are taking the official US state department line at of the time (which had little relationship with reality and was soon abandoned) yet calling me an "Imperialist".
Is this some sort of high school mass debating game?