WARNING: This document is FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY. It contains information that may be exempt from public release under the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552). This document is to be controlled, handled, transmitted, distributed, and disposed of in accordance with DHS policy relating to FOUO information and is not to be released to the public or other personnel who do not have a valid “need-to-know” without prior approval of the Homeland Security Operations Center Senior Watch Officer (HSOC SWO) at (202) 282-8101. Where appropriate, U.S. person identities have been removed. Should your agency have a requirement for particular U.S. person identity information, contact the HSOC SWO.

I have done quite a bit of public speaking on issues of privacy, some politics, and technology (mostly as it involves electronic civil liberties, privacy and the like). If it wasn't for a handful of site - my work would be rather difficult. I've always gotten a kick out of "The Smoking Gun", "F$Cked Company" and the like. Of Course there's The EFF, EPIC and Privacy.org - to name a few.

In that context - enter one of my absolute favorites - www.cryptome.org - been reading this site for a long time. Truly shows what independent individuals can do with this rich media (even though, we usually aren't classified as media, though our reporting tends to be more truth than the evening news). John Young, the guy that runs the site, came across some interesting info he just couldn't pass up. Those lovely "Top Secret" Homeland Security morning briefings (I wonder if these are what was included in the so calld "Threat Matrix").

I highly recommend you give them a read, they are truly interesting. The even have pictures. However, I also would advise you to make a copy of the page (I have it in pdf) just in case the site gets shut down - or the files are forced to be removed offline. They are a true eye opener - especially if you are at all like me and realize we have far too many issues on our own border.

The link to the page with the Homeland Security Operations Morning Brief is below:

cryptome.org

Happy reading..... and remember to make them copies - if the info gets pulled of of Cryptome - we can always flood the internet with copies of the information.

From the Russian Information Agency Novosti:

"MOSCOW, August 24 (RIA Novosti) - Yevgeny Kaspersky, chief of the Russian major anti-virus company, has warned about a large-scale virus attack on the Internet that might be delivered by the Islamic terrorists on August 26. "The hackers who have proclaimed 'electronic jihad' have enough experience and resources to paralyze the Internet for several hours at least," Mr. Kaspersky said at a press conference in RIA Novosti."

This site challenges whether a boeing jet even hit the pentagon or not on September 11. Ya gotta check it out!

The music industy to date is still unable to motivate senetors and members of congress to shutdown peer to peer networks but start talking about child porn and every one changes thier tune.

According to a online wired news article written by Joanna Glasner titled "P2P Taken to Task for Child Porn", "Several witnesses, representing law enforcement and child-protection agencies, blamed peer-to-peer networks for contributing to the spread of illegal pornographic images by allowing users to cloak their identities."

But the problem isn't the Peer to Peer networks, as Wendy Seltzer of the Electronic Frontier Foundation was quoted for wired news "We don't have hearings calling the photo industry to task when their film is used to create child porn" The same goes for media mail. If I sent a bomb to my local abortion office the entire US postal services wouldn't and shouldn't be shutdown. The same goes for peer to peer networks.

The funny thing is that according to Glasner,this hearing took place one day after the recording industry filed thier 261 suits against music swappers. It makes me wonder if these two events are some how connected.

Have you ever woken up and thought you were still dreaming? That’s how I feel today about a new Bill introduced to the house by congressmen John Conyers of Michigan's 14th Congressional District. The new Bill if passed will enact the folloing:

1. Make Providing false contact information to a domain name registry in regard to domain name registration will punishable by 5 year prison sentence.

2. The new bill allows for Information sharing and enforcement of foreign copyright law.

3. Peer to Peer file sharing will be punishable by a 6 month (felony) imprisonment and/or fines.

This doesn’t make any sense; I can give false information to a domain name registrar and go to jail for 5 years. But if I steal 2,500 dollars worth of software I can be punished by no more then 6 month of imprisonment and a few fines?

The below story was originally authored by Neil Mackay from sundayherald.com and republished from an e-group "action forum" post. The below information can be verified by visiting the smg sunday newspapers ltd website here

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As part of a plan to ensure its total military supremacy, the U.S. is preparing to complete the domination of space -- by any means necessary.

Neil Mackay explains the terrifying new face of global warfare

22 June 2003 Sunday Herald (Scotland)

http://www.sundayherald.com/34768

IT SOUNDS like the stuff of the darkest sci-fi fantasies, but it's not. The Air Force Space Command Strategic Master Plan is a clear statement of the US's intention to dominate the world by turning space into the crucial battlefield of the 21st century.

The document details how the US Air Force Space Command is developing exotic new weapons, nuclear warheads and spacecraft to allow the US to hit any target on earth within seconds. It also unashamedly states that the US will not allow any other power to get a foothold in space.

The New York Times, February 12, 2003

According to a recent article by Adam Clymer for the New York Times, congress has bared use of TIA or total information awareness and restricted new research with out expressed consultation by congress. Clymer makes his point by quoting Donald Sewell, “Lt. Cmdr. Donald Sewell, a Pentagon spokesman, defended the program, saying, ‘The Department of Defense still feels that it's a tool that can be used to alert us to terrorist acts before they occur.’ He said, ‘It's not a program that snoops into American citizens' privacy.’”

Bull Shit.

In recent articles in the CBS news, Chicago Tribune, and even Sci-Fi Today (Canadian), every one is talking about President Bushes plans to draft regulations and policies for what he explains as cyber war. Although no specific details have yet been released one can count on the almost every military and government spy agency being involved. This new warfare President Bush is planning may be his best choice in fighting a battle and spilling the least amount of blood possible. This may be his best idea yet.

According to Charles Lewis and Adam Mayle of publicintegrity.org, a draft of an act titled “Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003 “,which was previously unreleased to the public,has many worried. The new legislation (Created by Attorney General John Ashcroft), “would radically expand law enforcement and intelligence gathering authorities, reduce or eliminate judicial oversight over surveillance, authorize secret arrests, create a DNA database based on unchecked executive ‘suspicion,’ create new death penalties, and even seek to take American citizenship away from persons who belong to or support disfavored political groups.” Say’s Law Professor David Cole, who reviewed the draft legislation for the above authors. As a side note I would like to mention that Prof. Cole is also a Co-Chair for the constitution project.

In November I wrote an article that talked about a report that was released in which Admiral John Poindexter was supposed to head a broad new project dubbed TIA or total information awareness. The project goal was to incorporate many federal and non-federal databases of information together for use against terrorism. The system which seems extremely useful at preventing terrorism can also open a Pandora’s Box of privacy invasion. If there were little to no restirictions on the system and anyone in law enforcement had the ability to use such a system, the privacy of all americans would be at risk of being exposed, the consequences of which are incomprehensible

(January 30, 2003) Yesterday Internetnew.com ran a article written by Roy Mark on how the CIA has just won jurisdiction and complete control over a new yet-to-be-created terrorist threat integration center that is part of President Bush’s new proposal to create a central data mining center. According to Mark, “The center will play the lead role in overseeing shared databases, and for maintaining an up-to-date database of known and suspected terrorists that will be accessible to federal and non-federal officials and entities.”

DAN VERTON of computer world wrote a similar article titled “Bush seeks terror warning integration center” in which he describes past Data mining system used by the Army at Fort Belvoir, VA that was able to produce an entire profile on Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda terrorist organization. What if some one could hit a few key strokes and have your entire life history at thier finger tips? How poweful would that type of information make some one? These are the questions every private american citizen should be asking themselves if they wish to keep their private lives private.

Jason Miller of Post Newsweek Tech Media wrote yet another article titled “Bush touts center to support data sharing” in his article Miller paraphrases from Michael Scardaville who is a policy analyst for homeland security at the Heritage Foundation. According to Miller, Scardaville commented, “work being done by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is a possible solution to the data sharing problem.” Which of course we all know as Total Information Awareness or T.I.A

White House fact sheet