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Putting Stickers On Your Laptop is Probably a Bad Security Idea (vice.com)
From border crossings to hacking conferences, that Bitcoin or political sticker may be worth leaving on a case at home. From a report: Plenty of hackers, journalists, and technologists love to cover their laptop in all manner of stickers. Maybe one shows off their employer, another flaunts that local cryptoparty they attended, or others may display the laptop owner's interest in Bitcoin. That's all well and good, but a laptop lid full of stickers also arguably provides something of a red flag to authorities or hackers who may want to access sensitive information stored on that computer, or otherwise cause the owner hassle.
"Conferences, border crossing[s], airports, public places -- stickers will/can get you targeted for opposition research, industrial espionage, legal or investigative scrutiny," Matt Mitchell, director of digital safety and privacy for technology and activism group Tactical Tech, told Motherboard in an online chat. Mitchell said political stickers, for instance, can land you in secondary search or result in being detained while crossing a border. In one case, Mitchell said a hacker friend ended up missing a flight over stickers.
"Conferences, border crossing[s], airports, public places -- stickers will/can get you targeted for opposition research, industrial espionage, legal or investigative scrutiny," Matt Mitchell, director of digital safety and privacy for technology and activism group Tactical Tech, told Motherboard in an online chat. Mitchell said political stickers, for instance, can land you in secondary search or result in being detained while crossing a border. In one case, Mitchell said a hacker friend ended up missing a flight over stickers.
I only paste QR codes for bad dragons and onaholes on my laptop.
...while I slap some stickers on this honeypot.
Which has more power: the hammer, or the anvil?
Keep your opinions to yourself if you don't want to be targeted.
his penis is very very tiny
I just put a sticker with the Compaq logo over my Apple logo. Never had my laptop messed with.
The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
The sticker covering your laptop's camera might be a good security idea ;-)
I wonder...
Do anyone make laptop camera stickers that look like laptop cameras?
Not sure if they would even know what that is, just like my Lotus Notes or Harvard Graphics stickers.
I guess I should think about taking off that "My other computer is an AR-15" sticker, huh?
I thought this was America. Isn't this America? I'm sorry, I thought this was America.
You are welcome on my lawn.
got a sticker of your mom on my machine, you're right, it is ugly
Nice try, Joker! The Gotham City Police Department aren't so easily fooled!
Favor the Lords of the masses, do not express yourself, do not talk to others about your interests, do not put stickers on your laptops and automobiles. Be a good sheep, please the Lords. Be normal. Carry on.
It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
I'd like to see you try checking in to a high-rise Las Vegas hotel with that.
And much of stealth is just blending in. This isn't really anything new. One key to not getting robbed is to not wear all this flashy stuff that identifies you as someone worthy of being robbed. Who's the pick-pocket going to target, the guy with the $20,000 Rolex, or the guy with the $20 Timex?
Similarly, If you're doing things governments don't like, you'd far smarter just blending in rather than sticking out. People have this odd idea that they need to TELL EVERYONE who they are. Be Proud, Be Loud! Get over yourself. You can still make changes in the world and not have to stick out like a sore thumb.
What are you gonna do? Shoot 'em if they target you for legal scrutiny?
// This is not a sig.
No, but you can make your own out of some old-fashioned shiny clear Scotch tape.
Yea, if you're flying domestically, you shouldn't allow anyone to search your laptop. Period.
Mine has full disk encryption (including encrypted boot using Grub with the luks module).
The sad thing is thought, if the TSA detains you, no one is responsible. You lose your plane ticket money. Travel insurance doesn't cover the TSA either.
You seem to fail to understand that "the authorities" have more guns and bigger guns and more people and jails. It's cute that you want to display your bravado but that will only get you targeted and will not end well.
I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
Apple is the only one doing it right.
You mean lighting up the back shell like a Christmas tree with a big-assed glowing corporate logo?
Probably is. I mean dumb slogans, pseudo-intellectual quotes and in-jokes are practically the definition of "chick magnet".
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
You seem to fail to understand that "the authorities" have more guns and bigger guns and more people and jails. It's cute that you want to display your bravado but that will only get you targeted and will not end well.
And what is very disturbing to this thread is that we're talking about a dystopian police state and nobody seems to notice, or care. And I'm living in a South American country that seems and feels far more free than the US.
My only advice for you: RISE!
Actually second-amendmenters have it a lot easier dealing with police and similar (at least in the US) since they tend to be a lot more respectful and straightforward about their weapons than others. Also, most of the police/military forces agree with expressing at least your second constitutional right (not so much the first one).
Custom electronics and digital signage for your business: www.evcircuits.com
Yes, yes! Please express yourself! Be unique. Put the SAME DAMN sports team sticker on your car as everyone else in your city. What kind of coffee mug do you own? Yeti?! Me too brother, me too! How many people are in your family? How many pets? Oh, I can just look at the back window of your vehicle. Haha, I have the same sticker on mine. Aw look, you know someone that died, so you put a memorial sticker on the back of your car. I know someone that died too... where did you get that?! I need one, so I can be unique and expressive too. Where do your kids go to school? Are you proud of them? That is unique sentiment amongst parents. Salt Life? What is that? Please tell me all about it. I like your Honda... thanks for putting the giant Honda logo sticker on the back window, it makes me not have to look at the other 8 logos that the factory put on it.
I hate all of that shit too, but I hate oppression even more.
It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
Can we just respect both sides of this argument, as long as their opinions or convictions are their own, not blindly copying someone else?
I both show what I think (through T-Shirts) and keep some opinions to myself (because it makes no sense to openly express them towards people who aren't ready, willing or capable of understanding someone else can cave a different opinion).
Going into a church with a visible anti-religion message makes you an asshole.
Not reacting when your convictions are squashed makes you a coward.
So... it really depends. Nobody's 100% right and nobody's 100% wrong either.
...gis sdrawkcab (usually not responding to ACs; don't bother posting as AC)
Give it a rest mate. People can express themselves as they choose, who cares, as long as they don't shove it in everyone else's face. So wear a T shirt with what ever the hell on it, including some of yesterdays lunch, well as long as you are not standing on a park bench screaming that I look at it and it doesn't smell bad, fine, why the fuck would I care. Want to wear a kilt, not be problem, without shorts underneath, well, expose yourself offensively and expect a small fine if caught, wear a toga instead, still not a problem and you might even consider, shock horror, traditional clothing to that region, wow something so offensive in the modern age of fashions, seriously, it's true, it's offensive to them, you will be defined as being insane for wearing traditional clothing and not the latest fashions, victims of marketing, oh yeah.
Stop forcing that style, the civilian variant of military uniforms on everyone, fuck off with that autocratic shite. People, wear what you like, as long as it doesn't smell and covers up your smelly bits just in case and does not include harmful shit like metal spikes, razors or handguns, the more colour the better (I'd rather be in a flower garden, than in a desert). Fuck the military civilian derivative shit, fuck it up the arse, fuck it's drabness, fuck it's authoritarianism, fuck its conformity and fuck all those who try to force it.
This message brought to you by FREEDOM of expression ;D.
Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
everyone knows speed holes give you like a 15 HP boost
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same