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Submission Summary: 0 pending, 14 declined, 14 accepted (28 total, 50.00% accepted)

Submission + - FBI Considers CALEA II - Mandatory Wiretapping on End Users' Devices (freedom-to-tinker.com) 1

Techmeology writes: In response to declining utility of CALEA mandated wiretapping backdoors due to more widespread use of cryptography, the FBI is considering a revamped version that would mandate wiretapping facilities in end users' computers and software. Critics have argued that this would be bad for security, as such systems must be more complex and thus harder to secure. CALEA has also enabled criminals to wiretap conversations by hacking the infrastructure used by the authorities. I wonder how this could ever be implemented in FOSS.
Medicine

Submission + - Most GPs Prescribe Placebos (bbc.co.uk)

Techmeology writes: "In a survey of UK GPs, 97% said they'd recommended placebo treatments to their patients, with some doctors telling patients that the treatment had helped others without telling them that it was a placebo. While some doctors admitted to using a sugar pill or saline injection, some of the placebos offered had side effects such as antibiotic treatments used as placebos for vial infections."
Your Rights Online

Submission + - New Pirate Bay Proxies (torrentfreak.com)

Techmeology writes: "Just days after the UK Pirate Party was forced to kill its proxy service Pirate Parties in Argentina and Luxembourg have created their own proxies. In a statement, the Pirate Party in Argentina said: “We wish the UK Pirate Party best of luck in their continued fight for free access to culture and knowledge. We have put up our own Pirate Bay proxy which is accessible from anywhere in the world, including the UK and other places where it has been censored.”"
Your Rights Online

Submission + - BPI Threatens to Sue The UK Pirate Party over Proxy (torrentfreak.com)

Techmeology writes: The BPI has threatened to sue the Pirate Party for allowing people access to The Pirate Bay through its proxy service. The leader of the Pirate Party UK, Loz Kaye said his party would go to court over the issue. Kaye said that he was determined to defend his party's principles even in the face of an expensive legal battle.
Your Rights Online

Submission + - Automated DMCA Takedown Notices Request Censorship of Legitimate Sites (torrentfreak.com)

Techmeology writes: "Microsoft has sent automated DMCA notices to Google demanding the removal of several legitimate URLs from its search results that it claims were facilitating the distribution if illegal copies of Windows 8, including links to BBC news articles, Wikipedia pages, US government websites, and even Bing! The erroneous DMCA notices are being sent automatically by rights holders, who are increasingly using such techniques."
United Kingdom

Submission + - UK Ministers' Private Communications Subject to Freedom of Information Act (bbc.co.uk)

Techmeology writes: "Emails and texts sent from UK ministers' private accounts could be subject to the Freedom of Information Act, which means copies could be requested by members of the public. New guidelines to be released by the government say that the key factor is "the nature of the information and not the format". This development comes amid a two year dispute caused when a newspaper used the act to obtain and publish an email sent from the education minister's private email address."
Your Rights Online

Submission + - EU Court Asked To Rule On Private Copying (torrentfreak.com)

Techmeology writes: "The Dutch Supreme Court has asked the European Courte of Justice to decide whether downloading copyrighted material for personal use — even from illegal sources — is legal. At the heart of the debate is whether the European Copyright Directive requires that any new legal copy of material must have originated from a copy that is itself legal. The case tests the law in the Netherlands, where copyright holders are granted a levy on blank media in exchange for the legalisation of private copying."
The Internet

Submission + - Europe Rationing Last IPv4 Address Block (bbc.com)

Techmeology writes: "As IPv4 exhaustion draws ever nearer, European ISPs are now unable to acquire more than a handful (1024) of new IPv4 addresses. The measures are being brought in to ration the last /8 available to RIPE NCC, with 400,000 address previously being allocated every day. In addition to the limit, organizations applying for IPv4 addresses will be required to demonstrate that they are deploying IPv6."
Crime

Submission + - BMW Cars Vulnerable to Blank Key Attack (bbc.co.uk)

Techmeology writes: "Thieves have discovered how to steal BMW cars produced since 2006 by using the onboard computer that is able to program blank keys. The device used — originally intended for use by garages — is able to reprogram the key to start the engine in around three minutes. The blank keys, and reprogramming devices, have made their way onto the black market and are available for purchase over the Internet."
Science

Submission + - Extinct Mammoth: Coming to a Zoo Near You (telegraph.co.uk) 1

Techmeology writes: Professor Akira Iritani of Kyoto University plans to use recent developments in cloning technology to give life to the currently extinct woolly mammoth. Although earlier efforts in the 1990s were unsuccessful due to damage caused by extreme cold, Professor Iritani believes he can use a technique pioneered by Dr Wakayama (who successfully cloned a frozen mouse) to overcome this obstacle. This technique will enable Professor Iritani to identify viable cell nuclei, and transfer them to egg cells of an African elephant which will carry the mammoth for a 600 day pregnancy.
Security

Submission + - Cheap GSM Eavesdropping a Reality (bbc.co.uk)

Techmeology writes: GSM eavesdropping has been demonstrated at the Chaos Computer Club Congress, Berlin using a €10 Motorola phone, and open source GSM firmware. Karsten Nohl and Sylvain Munaut replaced the firmware on the phone, enabling them to process all the data it received. They used already available rainbow tables to decrypt data being sent to and from other mobile phones. They have no plans to release the hack publicly, however they expect others to successfully attempt the hack. Mr Nohl said the objective was to raise awareness of GSM's insecurity.
Government

Submission + - Major ISPs Challenge UK's Digital Economy Act (bbc.co.uk)

Techmeology writes: TalkTalk and BT, two of the UK's largest ISPs, seek to legally challenge the Digital Economy Act which was rushed through parliament during its last days prior to the election. TalkTalk and BT argue that the DEA infringes human rights and places large ISPs (with over 400,000 customers) at a disadvantage. They also believe the DEA could conflict with existing European Legislation such as the Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive, and the E-Commerce Directive — the latter stating that ISPs are not responsible for the actions of their customers. The Act, which saw twenty thousand letters sent to MPs in protest, contains measures to see websites suspected of distributing illegal material blocked, and Internet users disconnected or reported to copyright holders.

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