I hope Defcon does not suck. When I go, I will definitely take pictures and report the cool stuff I see.
I went to Defcon 11 in 2003 and it was great even though the lines were ridiculous and some of the better events could only allow a certain number of people. The ideas and talent I was exposed to put me into a whole different way of thinking. I met up with a guy who claimed to work for the maphia! He wasn't happy about it and he said that his employer's didn't come out and say they were maphia, but he had very strong feelings that they were.
Being the only brotha at the defcon willing to drink a (highly, highly overpriced) beer with him, he'd singled me out. What is funny is this guy look A LOT like DMX. We hung out and met some GS (civilian government) employees that claimed to be too old to party. I could have crashed at his hotel (which was right in the center of it all) but I knew my wife would lose her flippin' mind if I didn't go back home (in laws house) and sleep with her.
I was there strictly for the briefings so I really didn't party too much. I do recall that some kid ODed, there was a very cool Hacker Jeapordy that was completely Hedonistic (i.e. naked women and Kevin Mitnick). It was out of control.
Before Defcon I saw all hacking as borderline or full blown criminal. But now I know that all “hacking” is not criminal (although most people believe different).
My love for technology and security were what drove me to check it out. I went on my own. Three years later with a degree and a high level of respect from my employers, I still can't get them to pay my way to Defcon. (what is funny is that it would probably be easier to get them to send me to Black Hat, which is like $2000 as opposed to $100 for the Defcon. Maybe I'll work that angle next year when they have more money).
I'm excited about going but I sincerely hope that it doesn't suck. It would be much more fun if I could participate in an event. But my skills are not even close to good enough.
When applied to call detail records, social network analysis can reveal patterns of connectedness.
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From SmartMoney.com:
Outsourcing to IndiaOnce a county's records are digitized, it's very easy — and incredibly cheap — for data compilers like Axciom and DataTrade to purchase the files and sell them to information brokers like Choicepoint, says Bloys. That's because under most states' Open Records laws, counties cannot charge more than the cost of copying the documents — which means a computer disk containing 10,000 records can be had for as little as a few dollars. What's more, Bloys explains, the companies that actually scan the documents for the county — the so-called wholesalers — often ship the images to foreign countries, like India or China, where outsourcers index the records much more cheaply than could be done in the United States. “[Our public information] is being distributed instantly all over the world,” says Bloys.
Smartmoney did an article featuring B.J. Ostergen. I've been trying to get an interview with B.J. But she is no doubt busy with the big boys.
Ostergren has made it her full-time job as the founder of Virginia Watchdog to alert legislators and the general public about what's out there. “It's dangerous, and it's just reckless of those clerks to have these records online,” she says. According to a November 2004 report by the Government Accountability Office, as many as 28% of U.S. counties post their records — including people's Social Security numbers — on the Internet.
No cries of outrage, not even a peep from the American public about this. More than likely it is because they don't know about it. I guess they'll find out when someone steals their Identity and destroys their credit.
Microsoft France suffered an attack by a Turkish group, going by the handle of TiTHacK. You can check TiTHacK “profile” over at Zone-H. By the looks of things, he has been really busy today.
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“Nearly every e-mail consumers receive — some 86 percent — is considered spam, either malicious or simply “unwanted content” today, a new study provided to TechNewsWorld demonstrates. As if that wasn't enough of a headache for corporate IT departments, instant messaging spam soared by 500 percent last month.”
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Depending on how you feel about Microsoft, its new Windows Live OneCare security service either amounts to a welcome helping hand or a particularly sleazy protection racket.
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