Jeb Bush: NSA Bulk Telephone Records Collection Hugely Important

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Video:Jeb Bush Backs NSA Powers

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who is seriously considering a run for the White House in 2016, said Wednesday that the National Security Agencys program that collects bulk telephone records was hugely important, throwing his support behind the practice as Congress debates whether to reauthorize or limit it.

At an event on foreign policy hosted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Mr. Bush, a Republican, said, For the life of me, I dont understand the debate over the metadata program.

The programs many supporters say it helps the U.S. government prevent terrorist attacks. But its critics believe it exists with little oversight and few boundaries and could allow the government to spy on U.S. citizens.

Mr. Bushs comments are significant, as the legal authority that allows the program to exist is set to expire in June. Congress is weighing whether to rework the program in a way that would strip the NSA of some of its powers.

Details of the NSAs metadata bulk collection program were exposed in 2013 by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, prompting a vigorous national debate over how much power the government should have to spy on people.

Mr. Bushs support for the metadata program puts him in sharp contrast with another likely GOP White House candidate, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky.

Mr. Paul is a critic of the NSA, and has joined a class-action lawsuit against the Obama administration over the NSAs spying practices. He also voted against a bill that would restrain some of the NSAs powers last year, saying it didnt go far enough.

Mr. Paul is popular with the libertarian wing of the GOP, and Mr. Bush as he made evident during his comments in Chicago supports more government spending on the military and a broader military influence.

Messrs. Bush and Paul will likely square off over the privacy issue on the campaign trail but also during GOP debates.

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Jeb Bush: NSA Bulk Telephone Records Collection Hugely Important

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Not Only the NSA Knows How to Make Unerasable Malware

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Hacking tools that burrow inside hard disk drives could also be made by nongovernment hackers.

Over the weekend Russian security company Kaspersky described a suite of extremely sophisticated hacking tools that since 2008 have been used to infiltrate government, military, and corporate computers in 30 countries around the world. Reuters reports that it was the work of the U.S. National Security Agency.

Kasperskys most striking finding was that the toolkit of what it calls the Equation Group could inject malware into the software embedded inside hard disk drives. Not only is that firmware invisible to conventional security software, but malicious code hidden inside it can emerge to take over a computer even after its hard disk has been carefully erased. Costin Raiu, a researcher with Kaspersky, told the New York Times that the technique rendered investigators like him practically blind.

That impressive trick sets a new bar for the sophistication in malware caught in the wild. And it has led to speculation that the NSA had assistance from hard drive manufacturers, for example by getting access to details on how their firmware worked.

But despite suggestions it would be just about impossible for even the NSA to reverse-engineer hard drive firmware without such help, it appears to be well within its reachand that of many others, too. In recent years hackers and researchers with budgets far smaller than the NSAs have reverse-engineered the firmware of hard drives and other devices and demonstrated their own invisible malware.

That raises the prospect that multiple national intelligence agenciesand perhaps even groups without government backingcould be using the technique. Few, if any, security researchers are on the lookout for such attacks because they are essentially invisible.

Anyone looking to get started hacking hard drive firmware would be well advised to start with this page on the subject from prolific hacker Jereom Domburg. In 2013 he gave several talks on his research and showed how it enabled him to remotely take over a server with a hard disk made by Western Digital, a leading manufacturer whose drives were also targeted by Equation Group.

Also in 2013, academic researchers independently went even further and developed several proof-of-concept attacks against a hard disk from a different manufacturer. They showed how a disks firmware could be infected remotely, and made a system to communicate over the Internet with the unerasable malware to send commands and copy data such as encryption keys. This line from the academic papers summary has gained new plausibility after what we learned over the weekend:

The difficulty of implementing such an attack is not limited to the area of government cyber-warfare; rather, it is well within the reach of moderately funded criminals, botnet herders and academic researchers.

At the Black Hat security conference last summer, two researchers described how they had reverse engineered the firmware of USB sticks to hide code inside that can silently take over a computer.

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Not Only the NSA Knows How to Make Unerasable Malware

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Google strongly opposes plans to let ANY US COURT authorise digi-snoops

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Google has strongly opposed US government plans to expand federal powers to authorise remote searches of digital data - claiming in a letter the powers will weaken citizens' fourth amendment rights.

The right is the part of the US Constitution that prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures and requires any warrant to be judicially sanctioned and supported by probable cause.

In a letter to the Washington committee considering the proposed changes to the Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41, Google said the amendments raise a number of "monumental and highly complex constitutional, legal, and geopolitical concerns."

"Google urges the committee to reject the proposed amendment and leave the expansion of the government's investigative and technological tools, if any are necessary or appropriate, to Congress," it said.

The changes would permit any court within any district to issue a warrant authorising remote access searches of electronic information.

The company said a magistrate judge in the Southern District of Texas recently denied an application for a Rule 41 Warrant to permit US law enforcement agents to hack a computer whose location was unknown, but whose IP address was most recently associated with a country in South-East Asia. "Such searches clearly violate the extraterritorial limitations of Rule 41," it said.

It added: "The nature of today's technology is such that warrants issued under the proposed amendment will in many cases end up authorising the government to conduct searches outside the United States.

"Although the proposed amendment disclaims association with any constitutional questions, it invariably expands the scope of law enforcement searches, weakens the Fourth Amendment's particularity and notice requirements, opens the door to potentially unreasonable searches and seizures and expands the practice of covert entry warrants."

Richard Salgado, Google's director for law enforcement and information security, said the proposed change "raises a number of monumental and highly complex constitutional, legal, and geopolitical concerns that should be left to Congress to decide".

Google raised its objections as part of a public consultation that ended on Tuesday.

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Google strongly opposes plans to let ANY US COURT authorise digi-snoops

New constitution: NAssembly okays independent candidacy for poll

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National Assembly building, Abuja

No fewer than 20 states in the country rejected autonomy for local governments in the fourth amendment to the 1999 Constitution, passed by the Senate on Wednesday.

However, the National Assembly has also approved the inclusion of independent candidacy in the new proposed constitution.

The extant electoral law in section 177 stipulates that candidates for elections must be sponsored by political parties. But the lawmakers have altered this section by inserting a new paragraph that a candidate must be sponsored by political party or he is an independent candidate.

Consequently, any qualified Nigerian can now stand for election without necessarily belonging to any political party.

Our correspondent, who obtained a copy of the report of the Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution, submitted by Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, on the floor of the Senate, noted that 20 states voted against local government autonomy while 16 states voted in support.

The 20 states that voted against were: Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Enugu, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kwara, Lagos, Ondo, Osun, Rivers, Taraba, Yobe and Zamfara.states.

The states that voted in favour of the councils autonomy were Adamawa, Anambra, Abia, Bauchi, Benue, Edo, Gombe, Imo, Kebbi, Kogi, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Oyo, Plateau and Sokoto states.

The proposed amendments which was rejected had stated that a local government council not democratically elected shall not be recognised by all authorities and persons and shall not be entitled to any revenue allocation from the Federation Account or the state government.

It shall not also exercise any function exercisable by a local government council under this constitution or any law for the time being in force; and shall stand dissolved at the expiration of a period of four years, commencing from the date the members of the Council were sworn in.

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New constitution: NAssembly okays independent candidacy for poll

Court upholds ban on openly carrying guns

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From The News Service of Florida...

TALLAHASSEE -- In what judges described as a first-of-its-kind case, an appeals court Wednesday upheld a Florida law that prevents people from openly carrying firearms, finding that the restriction does not violate constitutional rights to bear arms.

The ruling by a three-judge panel of the 4th District Court of Appeal stemmed from the 2012 arrest in Fort Pierce of Dale Norman, who was openly carrying a gun in a holster. A jury found Norman guilty of a second-degree misdemeanor charge, leading to the appeal on constitutional grounds.

The appeals court said the state law does not "destroy the core right of self-defense enshrined in the Second Amendment" and in part of the Florida Constitution that guarantees the right to keep and bear arms. Also it pointed to the ability of people to get concealed-weapons permits.

"Floridas requirements to obtain a permit for concealed carry are not so burdensome, or so onerous, as to make the ability to obtain a permit illusory,'' said the 27-page ruling, written by Judge Mark Klingensmith and joined by judges Melanie May and Cory Ciklin. "Nor can it be said that these requirements, unlike those found in other (state) jurisdictions, make the right to carry a weapon in public a virtual nullity."

The ruling described the case as presenting a question of "first impression" about whether the Second Amendment forbids the state from banning the open carrying of firearms while allowing people to carry concealed weapons under a permitting system. In legal terms, a question of "first impression" indicates a first-of-its-kind decision.

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Court upholds ban on openly carrying guns

First Amendment Test San Clemente Hosts DUI And License Checkpoint Feb 13 2015 – Video

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First Amendment Test San Clemente Hosts DUI And License Checkpoint Feb 13 2015
READ http://tinyurl.com/SanClementeDUI Feb 13 2015 - Residence in San Clemente were treated to a surprise Friday evening while driving northbound on El Camin...

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First Amendment Test San Clemente Hosts DUI And License Checkpoint Feb 13 2015 - Video

THE COMETS OF DOOM – Dead of night (This fine day 2013) – #4.Trmchen-Rckblick-Folge – Video

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THE COMETS OF DOOM - Dead of night (This fine day 2013) - #4.Trmchen-Rckblick-Folge
The Comets of Doom "Dead of night" wurde 2013 im Jangland Studio aufgenommen und auf dem Album "This fine day" 2014 und der Demo CD "Herald" 2013" verffentlicht. Die Band THE COMETS ...

By: Basser Trmchen

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THE COMETS OF DOOM - Dead of night (This fine day 2013) - #4.Trmchen-Rckblick-Folge - Video

THE COMETS OF DOOM – Too many voices (2011) – #9.Trmchen-Rckblick-Folge – Video

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THE COMETS OF DOOM - Too many voices (2011) - #9.Trmchen-Rckblick-Folge
Der Song wurde 2010/2011 fr den Berenstark-Sampler "Spiel mir das Lied vom Ber!" aufgenommen, und befindet sich auch auf der Demo CD "Comets of Doom" 2001. Die Band THE COMETS OF ...

By: Basser Trmchen

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THE COMETS OF DOOM - Too many voices (2011) - #9.Trmchen-Rckblick-Folge - Video

Comets Roll Past Stars 5-2

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February 18, 2015 - American Hockey League (AHL) Utica Comets UTICA, N.Y. - The Comets kicked off their season-high five-game homestand by defeating the Texas Stars 5-2 Wednesday night at The Utica Memorial Auditorium.

The Comets (30-14-5-1) scored two power-play goals for the eighth en route to their 30th win this season. The power-play goals were the first power-play goals allowed by the Texas Stars in the past 15 road games for the Stars.

The Stars (23-17-10-1) were unable to add to their three-game winning streak and were stumped five times by the Comets' penalty kill, which entered the game ranked as the third best in the entire league.

Brandon DeFazio (2-1-3) who scored two goals and his first empty-net goal this year was credited as the first star of the game. Bobby Sanguinetti (1-2-3), Dustin Jeffrey (1-0-1) and Brendan Gaunce (1-0-1) all found the back of net as well to help push the Comets' points total to 66.

Sanguinetti got it all started for the Comets after he scored his 13th goal of the season just 37 seconds into the game. The play developed as Will Acton took a shot on the blocker side of Stars goaltender Jussi Rynnas as he battled with defenseman Cameron Gaunce. After a quick tussle, Acton beat Gaunce to the rebound and swung around to the backside of the net as he looked for the next course of action. Once Acton saw a passing lane to Sanguinetti, he dished it to the center hashmarks where Sanguinetti banged it home to give the Comets the 1-0 lead just 37 seconds into the opening stanza. DeFazio was credited with the secondary assist.

After some back and forth play, the Stars found the equalizer towards the tail end of the period at 13:36. Travis Morin initiated the play by making a pass along the blue line to Scott Glennie, who then ripped a shot off on net from the right point. Vision was an issue for Jacob Markstrom as Jesse Root was screening in front. Once the puck reached the crease, Root tipped the puck into the mesh past the Comets netminder. The play was reviewed as Markstrom argued goaltender inference; however, the goal stood and the Stars were credited with the 1-1 equalizer.

With a little more than a minute left in the opening period, the Comets took back their one-goal lead on the power play following a slashing call on Matej Stransky. Confusion ensued in front of the net after Sanguinetti lifted one towards the goal. Alex Friesen got his stick on the puck but Jeffrey followed through with the play as he snuck it past Rynnas for the power-play goal and the 2-1 lead.

Just as they did at the beginning of the first, the Comets did it again at the start of the second. Just 17 seconds after the puck was dropped, Darren Archibald streaked in towards the net and brought Rynnas to the far left side of the net as he shot the puck. Little did Rynnas know that the puck would make its way around the backside of the net and on to DeFazio's stick before the Finnish netminder could slide to the other post. DeFazio popped it in on the open side to give the Comets a two-goal lead.

A hooking call on Julius Honka dug an even deeper hole for the Stars as the Comets capitalized on their second power play chance of the night. Gaunce found his eighth goal of the season after receiving the puck from Hunter Shinkaruk. Gaunce slipped a wrist shot through the legs of Rynnas for the power-play goal and the commanding 4-1 lead. Travis Ehrhardt also received an assist on the play.

The third period didn't see as much action as the first two periods, but it was enough to keep the Comets on top for the rest of the game.

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Comets Roll Past Stars 5-2

Madeira travel guide – Discovery Tourism Vacation [Travel Documentary] – Video

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Madeira travel guide - Discovery Tourism Vacation [Travel Documentary]
Madeira travel guide - Discovery Tourism Vacation [Travel Documentary] "You are a person like travelling, let #39;s Subscribe this channel to learn about the beautiful places in the world. And...

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Madeira travel guide - Discovery Tourism Vacation [Travel Documentary] - Video