If it's old, then it's out of warranty. Yeah, I get the whole e-waste thing, and I'm sure it pains people to see a pallet of otherwise good 1TB drives headed off to be shredded into chips.. but remember they are 3-4 years old and having one go bad while is a far bigger PITA in terms of lost productivity, lost data, etc. than it is to just buy a new one for $100 and pay $1 for the old one to get securely scrapped.
There is a reason for this sort of gear Time is money.
As an example, we have a couple thousand PCs that are dumped each year due to lifecycle replacement. Yes, these are perfectly good PCs that could be wiped and loaded with (whatever) and donated.. but THAT COSTS MONEY. Loosing even ONE hard drive with data on it puts us in the newspaper, hence the policy is :
No data storage device leaves intact, ever.
We have the guys in facilities run them through a giant metal bandsaw, and that's BEFORE they go to be shredded/recycled (which, ironically, we pay THEM for, despite the fact that we're talking about tons of aluminum/steel/whatever.. but they won't burn off the insulation out back like JimBob either).
The reason you don't use.45ACP or sledgehammers is one of liability. Before the bandsaw method we used sledgehammers until some idiot hurt himself. When somebody looses a finger due to stupidity we'll probably buy one of these.
Just southwest of that structure is what's obviously a pretty big electrical substation (you can see the transmission tower shadows leading to it).. also, look further west and you see another U shaped building with no roof and what are obviously little rooms/cells.. so be it dormitories or whatever, I think you're on the right track.
That's a big substation though.. something need a lot of juice.
No, if you are professional staff (meaning EXEMPT) you work until the job is done. There is no overtime.
For those that say "if you want me to be on-call, you need to give me a toy".. the policy is simple.. for this job, you must be reachable if you are on-call. We don't care HOW you are reachable, but you must be reachable.
Then it's a company-issued phone with company-controlled software. That means no angry birds or other goofing-off apps.
If you're allowing BYOD for company use you're asking for problems, but that too is manageable with the proper software containerization.
Is it reasonable?.. absolutely.
I routinely visit a location like this.. when you go through the metal detector/xray if they see a phone (or anything else with a microphone/camera) it gets confiscated and you get it back when you leave. I don't have any issue with this at all.
You're forgetting that you're being paid to WORK.. not attend to personal matters. You have a phone on your desk, don't you?.. I'm fairly certain that in an emergency, someone can call the main number of your employer and say "this is X's daycare, Y just fell down the steps.. we need to speak with Z immediately" and you'll get the call. Remember.. kids survived just fine before cellphones and Google calendar.
The malware concern is legitimate as well.. while it might be technically feasible to create separate networks or require MDM middleware for BYOD it's easier for them to just say "leave it in the car". Think about it.. a simple app can turn your smartphone into a GSM->Wifi bridge, webcam, remote bug, etc. Heck, just this week we reprogrammed a old Android phone and stuck it in a plant to catch somebody stealing out of the office fridge.
When there is a state test that gives brownie points (and $) to the school district based on any of those classes, the district will offer them overnight.
Granted, they still won't teach anything useful (same as the other exiting subjects).. but at least you'll have a choice of which test to learn how to take.
Do they have a right to block you?.. absolutely.. it was probably buried on paragraph 327 part 6 of their terms of service (which you no doubt read in it's entirety).. it probably said they reserve the right to suspend service for illegal activity or unsolicited commercial email. You are operating an semi-anonymous proxy service, what did you think was going to happen?
Look on OR-TALK (TOR mailing list) for all the problems those folks have with VPS providers and the like.. no, the server isn't *itself* doing anything illegal, and it's really not your fault that other people are using it for nasty stuff.. but what's easier when you're dealing with a $1/mo customer (hint: answer is not "spend hours on the phone letting you justify whatever it is you're trying to do").
Not in the slightest. You can grab one in each hand and nothing *at all* will happen. The resistance of your skin/body is too high to actually conduct any current.
You can still fix your own car.. computers have made it easier, not harder.
Get the "real" manual (the manufacturer's service manual, typically 2-3 volumes each the size of the yellow pages).. about $60 on fleaybay. It will have every connector, the wire colors, the test procedure, the flowchart of function, etc.
If you understand computers, then the workings of ABS and fuel injection should be no problem.. and in reality, you don't service those modules anyway, you just figure out which part is bad and replace it, and they don't really go bad very often. The culprit is still most often a random mechanical or electrical part that makes the system fail in a baffling way, but you just test it methodically and the solution becomes apparent.
All of the other systems (power windows, AC, whatever) can be fixed with a multimeter and knowing what to look for.
Like so many of you, I'm an IT geek, had my first computer when I was 4.. but my dad also let me hang around while he fiddled in the garage (he was an engineer) and I developed the confidence (no so much the skills, per se) to tackle pretty much anything.
Sure, there were plenty of times I got in over my head, like when I tried to rebuild a transmission at 15 and had to take buckets of parts to a mechanic because I couldn't get it back together. I did do that successfully again a few years later, having learned from my mistakes.
As for "skilled trades", my most recent one is I installed a complete HVAC system, including all the sheet metal work to fabricate my own ductwork. Now I've never oxy/ace brazed before, but I studied for the EPA test and got my license to handle refrigerant (easy), bought a torch kit and regulators as well as vacuum pumps and gauges, practiced a bit.. and guess what?.. it isn't that hard. The city inspector was baffled that it was DIY and I had all the licenses. It probably cost me a little less than paying someone to just come do it, but in the end, now I know how to do it again, and I have the tools.. so the couple weeks of "vacation" from work was worth it. How did I learn how to do that?.. Youtube, mostly.
Compared to what some of the European folks that were using DPA to harass Facebook and getting reams of data, this seems pretty tame.. perhaps it's because FB was just responding the subpoena as written?
Nothing in TFA should surprise anyone that has any experience in enterprise IT.. think about your average webserver and what it logs by default.
Well.. the simple answer to that one would be to open up the phone and clip the data pins to the iPort on the bottom. The police buy off-the-shelf gear and go to expensive training courses to learn how to plug it in and press the 'go' button.. electrical engineers they ARE NOT.
That said, if you are sufficiently interesting and your phone ends up in the hands of the FBI/NSA/etc with someone that has the experience to do SMD rework and physically pull the chips off the board you're likely being held incommunicado and the forensic value of the hardware in court is the least of your problems.
Have a look at WhisperSystems (the Marlinspkie project I mentioned).. he is working on encrypted voice/sms, but AFIK it's only for Android ATM.
Here's what they can gather at a network level:
1. Which antenna of what tower your phone last registered on (and possibly also RSSI).
2. Incoming and outgoing numbers dialed, call duration, and technical data during call (which towers, etc.).
3. Data ingoing/outgoing (including SMS) to the extent that they log it (ever notice the proxy under the APN settings?).
Once they have the device itself..
1. Anything stored on the device (including SMS not stored on the SIM).
2. GPS history (and other debug information the device might have collected).
3. Contacts and other information in the SIM (provided you didn't lock the SIM, unless they get the PUK, which is mentioned in tfPDF).
The network-level stuff is controlled (in your phone) by the baseband chip and associated firmware.. it would *theoretically* be possible to write custom firmware that identified attempts at triangulation (frequent BTS handoffs) and denied them or deliberately registering with a tower with a less-than-ideal RSSI (ie: farther away), but PCS technology is fragile enough with everyone following the rules as-is.. if enough people start breaking the standards *on purpose* I suspect it will be detected and blocked by the carriers proper quick.
You're carrying an active transceiver that operates independent of your input (eg: there is no 'key' like in HF). Finding it will be easy. Tracking it will be easy.
Moxy Marlinspike (et.al.) have done some work on the upper layers with respect to anonymizing and/or encrypting the content of the communication, and there are several projects to help you secure the container (the phone itself), but realistically.. if you don't want to be tracked, don't carry a radio beacon in your pocket.
Ever put tinfoil in the microwave?.. what happens at the edges. Unless you're 100% covered *and* grounded to a decent earth, you'll just gather and concentrate the energy.
The standoff distance of this toy is still less than your average deer rifle.. which I suspect is what will happen if it ever finds use in any US city.
This is CW Microwave at 95ghz so I'd imagine it takes that long for everything to charge and come into spec frequency-wise, since all of the waveguides and antenna would be very sensitive to SWR if the frequency drifts too badly.. probably to the point of destruction at 100kw PEP.
Can't seem to get permits for your 4G towers?.. just build shopping cart sized versions and get people to wheel them around all day. Let them sleep at the recharge point and you kill 2 birds with 1 stone.
Kindle DX. Seriously.. borrow one from somebody and try it.
Assuming non-DRM'd.mobi files that are properly backed up, they will be 100% identical forever.
Slashdot Mirror
Never greet him at the airport.
If it's old, then it's out of warranty. Yeah, I get the whole e-waste thing, and I'm sure it pains people to see a pallet of otherwise good 1TB drives headed off to be shredded into chips .. but remember they are 3-4 years old and having one go bad while is a far bigger PITA in terms of lost productivity, lost data, etc. than it is to just buy a new one for $100 and pay $1 for the old one to get securely scrapped.
You forgot the while().
You have to pay by the hour for the while().
There is a reason for this sort of gear
.. but THAT COSTS MONEY. Loosing even ONE hard drive with data on it puts us in the newspaper, hence the policy is :
.. but they won't burn off the insulation out back like JimBob either).
.45ACP or sledgehammers is one of liability. Before the bandsaw method we used sledgehammers until some idiot hurt himself. When somebody looses a finger due to stupidity we'll probably buy one of these.
Time is money.
As an example, we have a couple thousand PCs that are dumped each year due to lifecycle replacement. Yes, these are perfectly good PCs that could be wiped and loaded with (whatever) and donated
No data storage device leaves intact, ever.
We have the guys in facilities run them through a giant metal bandsaw, and that's BEFORE they go to be shredded/recycled (which, ironically, we pay THEM for, despite the fact that we're talking about tons of aluminum/steel/whatever
The reason you don't use
Just southwest of that structure is what's obviously a pretty big electrical substation (you can see the transmission tower shadows leading to it) .. also, look further west and you see another U shaped building with no roof and what are obviously little rooms/cells .. so be it dormitories or whatever, I think you're on the right track.
.. something need a lot of juice.
That's a big substation though
No, if you are professional staff (meaning EXEMPT) you work until the job is done. There is no overtime.
.. the policy is simple .. for this job, you must be reachable if you are on-call. We don't care HOW you are reachable, but you must be reachable.
For those that say "if you want me to be on-call, you need to give me a toy"
Then it's a company-issued phone with company-controlled software. That means no angry birds or other goofing-off apps.
If you're allowing BYOD for company use you're asking for problems, but that too is manageable with the proper software containerization.
Is it reasonable? .. absolutely. .. when you go through the metal detector/xray if they see a phone (or anything else with a microphone/camera) it gets confiscated and you get it back when you leave. I don't have any issue with this at all.
.. not attend to personal matters. You have a phone on your desk, don't you? .. I'm fairly certain that in an emergency, someone can call the main number of your employer and say "this is X's daycare, Y just fell down the steps .. we need to speak with Z immediately" and you'll get the call. Remember .. kids survived just fine before cellphones and Google calendar.
.. while it might be technically feasible to create separate networks or require MDM middleware for BYOD it's easier for them to just say "leave it in the car". Think about it .. a simple app can turn your smartphone into a GSM->Wifi bridge, webcam, remote bug, etc. Heck, just this week we reprogrammed a old Android phone and stuck it in a plant to catch somebody stealing out of the office fridge.
I routinely visit a location like this
You're forgetting that you're being paid to WORK
The malware concern is legitimate as well
Lawyers, guns, and money.
When there is a state test that gives brownie points (and $) to the school district based on any of those classes, the district will offer them overnight. Granted, they still won't teach anything useful (same as the other exiting subjects) .. but at least you'll have a choice of which test to learn how to take.
Do they have a right to block you? .. absolutely .. it was probably buried on paragraph 327 part 6 of their terms of service (which you no doubt read in it's entirety) .. it probably said they reserve the right to suspend service for illegal activity or unsolicited commercial email. You are operating an semi-anonymous proxy service, what did you think was going to happen?
.. no, the server isn't *itself* doing anything illegal, and it's really not your fault that other people are using it for nasty stuff .. but what's easier when you're dealing with a $1/mo customer (hint: answer is not "spend hours on the phone letting you justify whatever it is you're trying to do").
Look on OR-TALK (TOR mailing list) for all the problems those folks have with VPS providers and the like
Not the books themselves, per se.
Not in the slightest. You can grab one in each hand and nothing *at all* will happen. The resistance of your skin/body is too high to actually conduct any current.
.. you need all three.
E=I*R
You can still fix your own car .. computers have made it easier, not harder.
.. about $60 on fleaybay. It will have every connector, the wire colors, the test procedure, the flowchart of function, etc.
.. and in reality, you don't service those modules anyway, you just figure out which part is bad and replace it, and they don't really go bad very often. The culprit is still most often a random mechanical or electrical part that makes the system fail in a baffling way, but you just test it methodically and the solution becomes apparent.
Get the "real" manual (the manufacturer's service manual, typically 2-3 volumes each the size of the yellow pages)
If you understand computers, then the workings of ABS and fuel injection should be no problem
All of the other systems (power windows, AC, whatever) can be fixed with a multimeter and knowing what to look for.
Like so many of you, I'm an IT geek, had my first computer when I was 4 .. but my dad also let me hang around while he fiddled in the garage (he was an engineer) and I developed the confidence (no so much the skills, per se) to tackle pretty much anything.
.. and guess what? .. it isn't that hard. The city inspector was baffled that it was DIY and I had all the licenses. It probably cost me a little less than paying someone to just come do it, but in the end, now I know how to do it again, and I have the tools .. so the couple weeks of "vacation" from work was worth it. How did I learn how to do that? .. Youtube, mostly.
.. don't be afraid to get dirty.
Sure, there were plenty of times I got in over my head, like when I tried to rebuild a transmission at 15 and had to take buckets of parts to a mechanic because I couldn't get it back together. I did do that successfully again a few years later, having learned from my mistakes.
As for "skilled trades", my most recent one is I installed a complete HVAC system, including all the sheet metal work to fabricate my own ductwork. Now I've never oxy/ace brazed before, but I studied for the EPA test and got my license to handle refrigerant (easy), bought a torch kit and regulators as well as vacuum pumps and gauges, practiced a bit
Really
Compared to what some of the European folks that were using DPA to harass Facebook and getting reams of data, this seems pretty tame .. perhaps it's because FB was just responding the subpoena as written?
.. think about your average webserver and what it logs by default.
Nothing in TFA should surprise anyone that has any experience in enterprise IT
What's this HFCS I keep hearing about? .. sounds like a funny chemical.
Well .. the simple answer to that one would be to open up the phone and clip the data pins to the iPort on the bottom. .. electrical engineers they ARE NOT.
.. he is working on encrypted voice/sms, but AFIK it's only for Android ATM.
The police buy off-the-shelf gear and go to expensive training courses to learn how to plug it in and press the 'go' button
That said, if you are sufficiently interesting and your phone ends up in the hands of the FBI/NSA/etc with someone that has the experience to do SMD rework and physically pull the chips off the board you're likely being held incommunicado and the forensic value of the hardware in court is the least of your problems.
Have a look at WhisperSystems (the Marlinspkie project I mentioned)
In short .. No.
:
..
.. it would *theoretically* be possible to write custom firmware that identified attempts at triangulation (frequent BTS handoffs) and denied them or deliberately registering with a tower with a less-than-ideal RSSI (ie: farther away), but PCS technology is fragile enough with everyone following the rules as-is .. if enough people start breaking the standards *on purpose* I suspect it will be detected and blocked by the carriers proper quick.
.. if you don't want to be tracked, don't carry a radio beacon in your pocket.
Here's what they can gather at a network level
1. Which antenna of what tower your phone last registered on (and possibly also RSSI).
2. Incoming and outgoing numbers dialed, call duration, and technical data during call (which towers, etc.).
3. Data ingoing/outgoing (including SMS) to the extent that they log it (ever notice the proxy under the APN settings?).
Once they have the device itself
1. Anything stored on the device (including SMS not stored on the SIM).
2. GPS history (and other debug information the device might have collected).
3. Contacts and other information in the SIM (provided you didn't lock the SIM, unless they get the PUK, which is mentioned in tfPDF).
The network-level stuff is controlled (in your phone) by the baseband chip and associated firmware
You're carrying an active transceiver that operates independent of your input (eg: there is no 'key' like in HF). Finding it will be easy. Tracking it will be easy.
Moxy Marlinspike (et.al.) have done some work on the upper layers with respect to anonymizing and/or encrypting the content of the communication, and there are several projects to help you secure the container (the phone itself), but realistically
While flipping through the powerpoint slides, I noticed the spin they put on Kyllo, namely that they quoted the dissenting opinion.
Good 2012 Ted Talk on the "Moral Dangers of non-lethal weapons"
http://www.ted.com/talks/stephen_coleman_the_moral_dangers_of_non_lethal_weapons.html
Ever put tinfoil in the microwave? .. what happens at the edges. Unless you're 100% covered *and* grounded to a decent earth, you'll just gather and concentrate the energy.
.. which I suspect is what will happen if it ever finds use in any US city.
The standoff distance of this toy is still less than your average deer rifle
This is CW Microwave at 95ghz so I'd imagine it takes that long for everything to charge and come into spec frequency-wise, since all of the waveguides and antenna would be very sensitive to SWR if the frequency drifts too badly .. probably to the point of destruction at 100kw PEP.
Can't seem to get permits for your 4G towers? .. just build shopping cart sized versions and get people to wheel them around all day. Let them sleep at the recharge point and you kill 2 birds with 1 stone.
Kindle DX. Seriously .. borrow one from somebody and try it. .mobi files that are properly backed up, they will be 100% identical forever.
Assuming non-DRM'd