How to Keep the NSA Out of Your Computer

[EphesiaNZ]

Do not feed the troll. ^

Troll, where?

 

[Bobby64]

If we put a policeman inside of every home, we could save many lives, prevent many robberies, prevent domestic violence, and many other things. Are you in favor of that?

That's impractical. How do we find that many police officers? Combing the Internet for illegal activity, however, is practical.

And no, I'm not a troll. I just don't mind the NSA monitoring our activity some. It's that simple.

 

[Stone Butterfly]

Step 1. Pick up your internet access box of choice.
Step 2. Place it outside on a rock.
Step 3. Pour copious amounts of thermite upon said internetz box.
Step 4. Ignite.

You are now not being tracked by the nsa.

Or, rather than come to law enforcements attention because you set off Thermite in a residential area, simply return the modem to the ISP for credit and close your account. Or if you own your modem get a return by putting it for sale on Amazon or an internet auction site and follow the interest via a library or some other public computer until it's sold. This way you get some money back rather than risking a fine for melting the thing in your back yard.

Of course you'll have to then go in the house and destroy your sim card in the cell phone. And cut up your credit cards that have trackers in them. As do many debit cards that are supported by a CC company.
Oh yes, and then there's the matter of selling your new model car and buying an old style, like say 90's or older, so as to insure On-Star is not a factor. Even when you don't subscribe they can still link to your vehicle. And now of course we read that the airplane equivalent of black boxes are going to start being installed in certain new model cars. So there is that.

Not to mention of course you'll not continue to carry or even initially apply for a drivers license or State ID card. Because laws are being passed across the country wherein it is against the law, this is actually amazing that it entered print in law, to smile when posing for the pictures that go along with those identification documents. And one day, if it's not already the case, we'll read that new applicants for Passports are also legally prohibited from smiling for their picture.
This is because facial identification software attached to public surveillance throughout the country and across the world, is impinged in finding the facial markers on a person if their facial muscles are distorting those points in a facial expression like that of a smile.

NYC is said to soon be the most surveilled American city by 2016. And at this moment in Europe London enjoys that honor.

All this makes the NSA creeping into your computer just one more issue. Not the issue as relates to the very real fact that our privacy has long been compromised. Not to mention how that is so when we have iPhones that can live capture a video of our activities anywhere we are and have those uploaded and available forever online in a matter of seconds.
And that then refers to our spying among ourselves! Sort of a double dose of personal violations when government does it electronically and so to do many of us on each other.

Nope, because they aren't stealing money from me or anything like that. If they want to comb through my Internet activities, it's fine by me. If some "spying" saves lives, then it's worth it. Life is more sacred than "privacy."

I'll hope that you are very young in order to state that knowing not a thing about what it means to hold liberty as sacrosanct. Much less freedom!

"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." Benjamin Franklin (1775)

 

[FreedByte]

- redacted -

 

[Saleena]

Or, rather than come to law enforcements attention because you set off Thermite in a residential area, simply return the modem to the ISP for credit and close your account. Or if you own your modem get a return by putting it for sale on Amazon or an internet auction site and follow the interest via a library or some other public computer until it's sold. This way you get some money back rather than risking a fine for melting the thing in your back yard.

Of course you'll have to then go in the house and destroy your sim card in the cell phone. And cut up your credit cards that have trackers in them. As do many debit cards that are supported by a CC company.
Oh yes, and then there's the matter of selling your new model car and buying an old style, like say 90's or older, so as to insure On-Star is not a factor. Even when you don't subscribe they can still link to your vehicle. And now of course we read that the airplane equivalent of black boxes are going to start being installed in certain new model cars. So there is that.

Not to mention of course you'll not continue to carry or even initially apply for a drivers license or State ID card. Because laws are being passed across the country wherein it is against the law, this is actually amazing that it entered print in law, to smile when posing for the pictures that go along with those identification documents. And one day, if it's not already the case, we'll read that new applicants for Passports are also legally prohibited from smiling for their picture.
This is because facial identification software attached to public surveillance throughout the country and across the world, is impinged in finding the facial markers on a person if their facial muscles are distorting those points in a facial expression like that of a smile.

NYC is said to soon be the most surveilled American city by 2016. And at this moment in Europe London enjoys that honor.

All this makes the NSA creeping into your computer just one more issue. Not the issue as relates to the very real fact that our privacy has long been compromised. Not to mention how that is so when we have iPhones that can live capture a video of our activities anywhere we are and have those uploaded and available forever online in a matter of seconds.
And that then refers to our spying among ourselves! Sort of a double dose of personal violations when government does it electronically and so to do many of us on each other.



I'll hope that you are very young in order to state that knowing not a thing about what it means to hold liberty as sacrosanct. Much less freedom!

"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." Benjamin Franklin (1775)

fa·ce·tious
fəˈsēSHəs/Submit
adjective
1.
treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humor; flippant.
synonyms: flippant, flip, glib, frivolous, tongue-in-cheek, ironic, sardonic, joking, jokey, jocular, playful, sportive, teasing, mischievous; More

Lrn2sarcasm

 

[C-Man]

I suppose one could use a Unix shell account. Won't stop them, but it would slow them down.

 

[paul1149]

I also use Ixquick, or actually their other site, Startpage, and am very happy with it. These searches should be pretty secure because they're encrypted, but then as soon as you click on a hit the jig is up.

I don't think anyone is arguing that there isn't a need for surveillance operations. But these things were always done only under cover of a court order, in respect of the 4th Amendment, I believe it is, prohibiting unreasonable searches. What we have here is ongoing institutionalized data gathering, operating under only the thinnest veil of automatic and virtually unaccountable authorization. It's no longer the guy down the street who you voted in as judge doing the authorizing. It's a nameless bureaucrat drawing his pay as a direct consequence of his writing the authorizations.

At the same time conservatives are being increasingly smeared as radicals and domestic terrorists by Homeland Security and even the military (while jihad at Fort Hood was absurdly passed off as "workplace violence". I think there's cause for real concern where this thing is going.

 

[Bobby64]

Ok, then do you support putting government security cameras in each home? We have the budget for that.

I am simply proposing that the government comb through our Internet activity, digging deeper if it seems suspicious. I'm not proposing that the government monitor each and every aspect of our lives. It requires balance. Would you like it if the government never monitored anyone's activity? I sure wouldn't.

And keep in mind that I am not a troll because I disagree with your opinions. I learned many years ago that people have opinions different from mine, and they aren't disagreeing with me just to be mean. I think you should realize this as well.

Can people please give specific examples of what you're afraid of the NSA doing? Are you afraid it's going to use its power to steal money from you? To spread gossip about you? What websites are you visiting that you're afraid of the government finding out about?

But if you're afraid of the NSA and want to do whatever you can to keep it off your computer, then go ahead. I don't mind. That's your choice. But I don't care about the NSA monitoring me. That's my choice.

 

[brinny]

I'm not a terrorist, so if the NSA wants a quick look at my activity, I don't mind. The NSA has managed to arrest some people spreading child porn, as I read in a recent article. So it has done good things.

they don't care if yer a "terrorist" or not

 

[FreedByte]

- redacted -

 

[EphesiaNZ]

Well if this article is true then we might as well all use plain text again. Looking on the positive side (as I do occasionally) it may speed the Internet up just a tiny, tiny fraction.

 

[FreedByte]

- redacted -

 

[Bobby64]

So the equivalent of this outside of the internet would be to have cameras in every home and building that are normally off but can be turned on whenever the government wants to comb through our activity. Do you support this?

Having your bodily actions examined in the privacy of your own home is not comparable to having Internet communication and transactions monitored. People tend to do things in the privacy of their own homes such as walk around without much clothing on or perform other bodily actions that I won't detail here. So your comparison is lacking.

Please reread the thread. I was the one saying that you were not a troll. Others said that you were a troll.

Sorry if I made myself unclear, I was addressing the other person, not you.

I'm not afraid of the NSA nor am I afraid of it doing anything. I know that the NSA is violating the 4th amendment, though, so it is behaving illegally.

That's debatable. The amendment says, "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized." Are Internet communications and transactions included in "effects"? This is still unclear, so to say you "know that the NSA is violating" it is jumping to conclusions.

Of course, you're entitled to your opinions, and many people agree with you. So I'd recommend signing petitions or writing your representatives if you want to see real change.

 

[FreedByte]

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[EphesiaNZ]

Another NSA gem, http://rt.com/news/nsa-spy-visa-swift-893/

 

[Bobby64]

Ok, then how about listening devices without a video feed? That is an accurate comparison.

Sorry, but you are still incorrect. That would still pick up entirely personal noises such as talking to oneself or... bodily noises, we'll call them. This is entirely different from monitoring online communication. Physical activity and digital activity are simply different things.

It's included in "papers", but maybe effects as well.

The Internet is not made out of paper. It might be included in effects, but that has yet to be confirmed by a legal authority.

Hardly, the 4th amendment was put in place to protect against these exact scenarios, where the government is broadly searching and seizing information without probable cause.

The amendment has not legally and specifically put into place a rule forbidding Internet surveillance. Also, the Internet is commonly used for illegal activities (child porn, piracy, plotting, etc.), so to say that there's no "probable cause" for scanning Internet activity as a whole is highly debatable.

I find that educating others about the problem is a far better use of time than trying to accomplish something through representatives.

Representatives are the ones who have the final say in things. Hence, while educating others is important, I wouldn't say making your voice heard in government is a poor use of time.

 

[FreedByte]

- redacted -

 

[EphesiaNZ]

Let's forget the US amendments for a moment as all this has worldwide implications. From where I sit I see many countries now starting to look at the US as a nation that's become too powerful and untrustworthy in just about all it does.

The NSA thing has only just started to surface and I see it diminishing trust even further around the world. This could ultimately lead to the downfall of your IT/technology businesses in the US. Before you laugh at this, I have seen and heard numerous things stating avoid using US based internet services and hardware etc... Some have even cautioned the use of US based Linux distros - well thats hardly going to hurt the US financially I hear you say? Well RedHat could suffer and technologies using Linux based software (and that's a lot) might suffer too. BTW, I have a VPS based in the US for email and other stuff, I will pull this at the end of the contract as I cannot absolutely trust my email is not being looked at.

Yes, I know, this maybe worst case but the NSA issue is still just a ripple on the ocean of untrust - I think the wave or tsunami will follow. Before you say the NSA is doing nothing wrong, think about the fallout this may have over the coming years.

Personally I hate my government (NZ) potentially spying and interfering with my daily life, I absolutely hate foreign governments trying to do the same!

 

[Bobby64]

You two are finally starting to pull out some interesting arguments. Yes, now that you've explained yourself more clearly, searchingforapostolicity, I can definitely see where you're coming from. And you have a point, EphesiaNZ, that this could have some long-term implications. I personally have nothing to fear about the NSA, so I feel no need to do whatever it is the original poster said, but you're making a good case for why its actions are problematic on a larger scale.

I do disagree with you, searchingforapostolicity, on this view of yours, though:

And representative democracy only causes an increase in the size of government over time (the USA is a great example), so it's a waste of time. The best way to bring about a society in which all human interaction is voluntary is to get people to understand, embrace, and choose voluntaryism. You can't force voluntaryism on people through government (by definition), the people must choose the voluntary society.

How is contacting representatives a waste of time? When SOPA was being considered, a number of websites blacked themselves out, and Wikipedia encouraged its visitors to sign a petition, contacting representatives about why we didn't want it passed. Ultimately, the people contacting their representatives managed to defeat SOPA. I don't see how this, and other forms of action that involve actively contacting our representatives, is a total waste of time.

 

[EphesiaNZ]

Well going forward from my post citing a possible decline is the US IT industry as a result of the NSA fallout, I have just seen this article showing that Cisco have posted a 10% drop since last year in which they blame the NSA fallout as a factor. No doubt that 10% loss has possibly been picked up by foreign companies (not good for US) and by open source companies.

You only have to look at the comments on that article to see the level of confidence in the US tech sector at this moment in time. I have noticed here that the quantity of used Cisco equipment is at a level 2-3 times that of about 2 years ago and a lot of the stuff I'm seeing isn't old and clapped out either plus, the resale value seems to be down too - another indication maybe?

I would expect other US Techs to start reporting a loss before long.