Archive for the ‘Government’ Category
For sale on eBay: Nuclear biological protection gear and other cool stuff | ZDNet Government | ZDNet.com
Posted on: April 11, 2008
- In: biological | cool | eBay: | for | gear | Government | nuclear | on | other | protection | sale | Stuff | ZDNet | ZDNet.com
- Leave a Comment
eBay auction. Item: F-14 Antenna. Winning bidder: Mahoud A.
For sale: Nuclear biological chemical gear. Contact anon1234@craigslist.org
eBay auction. Item: Small arms protective inserts. Winning bidder: Hu J.
These are just a few of the items the Government Accountability Office discovered for sale on eBay and Craigslist. There is much more, much of it stolen from the US military, sold to fences and eventually resold on the Internet. The GAO says in a report to Congress (PDF):
“Military-issue items bought on eBay and Craigslist on display at a House hearing. (Credit: Anne Broache/CNET News.com)
GAO investigators also identified examples of U.S. government property that was stolen and sold for a profit rather than being utilized by DOD. For example, GAO found two civilian store owners who acted as conduits for defense-related property that was likely stolen from the military. The store owners told GAO they purchased gear from service members—including Kevlar vests, flak jackets, and gas masks—and sold it through eBay to the general public. GAO also purchased stolen military meals, ready-to-eat (MRE) and found a robust market for stolen military MREs on eBay and Craigslist.
The GAO says Iran is a likely bidder for that F-14 antenna, as it’s the only country using F-14s. Bidders from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singpore have won those small arms inserts.
Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.), who heads the subcommittee that called a hearing on the report Thursday, expressed concern that these items could be used by terrorists. He cited an episode where Iraqi insurgents dressed as US soldiers entered a security post and killed five soldiers.
But it’s not illegal to sell many of these items, defense officials said at the hearing. It’s legal to sell body armor and night-vision goggles. And soliders are free to sell their uniforms after leaving the service.
It would be “very hard to tell (soldiers) that you can’t resell that item when they’ve purchased it with their own resources,” said the Army’s Sarah Finnecum.”
- In: Blackberry | censorship | Government | Indian | Services | Shutdown | Threatens
- Leave a Comment
IT
Indian authorities want ability to monitor Blackberry traffic for reasons of security
Some would say it’s not every day that a government gives a mobile phone service provider an ultimatum to either give in or give up, but recently, censorship and government snooping have become more common than in past decades.
Recently, the Indian government demanded that telecom providers allow government authorities to monitor traffic flowing through their networks for terrorist activities. According to a Business Standard post, the Indian government asked a number of telecommunications companies to open up their networks to monitor Blackberry-based traffic or face shutdown throughout the country within 15 days.
Indian government authorities proposed that each service provider work out the details with Blackberry licensor Research in Motion before this 15-day period.
DailyTech contacted RIM’s media relations and received the following statement, “RIM operates in more than 130 countries around the world and respects the regulatory requirements of governments. RIM does not comment on confidential regulatory matters or speculation on such matters in any given country.”
If RIM and service providers offering Blackberry services comply with the government’s demands, it will mean roughly 400,000 Blackberry users will be left without service such as email and messaging. According to India’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, the security of the nation of India is their top priority even if it means that telecom companies will be shut down if they do not let government authorities in and monitor traffic freely.
India is not the first government to demand the ability to monitor telecom traffic. Recently, U.S. government agencies, such as the NSA, have been the center for discussion and legal battles regarding wiretapping. The U.S. Senate has also gone so far as to pass a bill that would give telecoms that cooperate with U.S. agencies in warrant-less wiretapping and other illegal monitoring activities immunity from lawsuits.
Since India has a different legal process than the United States, the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology may have a better chance of getting its way with Indian telecoms and consumers.
Valleywag - valleywag.wordpress.com 
Recent Comments