Israel Reopens Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound; Palestinians Protest Killing of Shooting Suspect Kerry Condemns U.S. Official Who Called Netanyahu a “Chickens—t” ISIS Kills 150 Tribesmen in Iraq; Kurdish Forces Arrive in Kobani Syrian Bombings Kill 200 Civilians; Hagel Admits U.S. Strikes… Read More ›
Archive for October 2014
Three Spooky Ways You’re Being Spied on This Halloween
It’s that time of year when people don sinister masks, spray themselves with fake blood, and generally go all out for a good fright. But here at EFF, we think there are plenty of real-world ghouls to last all year-round…. Read More ›
The 90s and Now: FBI and its Inability to Cope with Encryption
Recently, FBI Director James B. Comey, along with several government officials, have issued many public statements regarding their inability to catch criminals due to Apple and Google offering default encryption to their consumers. We at EFF have been around long… Read More ›
October’s Very Bad, No Good, Totally Stupid Patent of the Month: Filming A Yoga Class
EFF recently learned about a patent that covered a method of filming a yoga class. We reviewed the patent and discovered that it was just as ridiculous as it sounded. Despite our familiarity with absurd patents and our concerns about… Read More ›
Civil Liberties Groups Tell Court that Government Should Not Be Allowed to Wipe Out Lawsuit on Vague Claims of Secrecy
Last year, Greek businessman Victor Restis filed a defamation lawsuit against United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), an advocacy group which, as part of a “name and shame” campaign, had accused his shipping company of doing business with Iran. Restis denies… Read More ›
Secret Manuals Show the Spyware Sold to Despots and Cops Worldwide
When Apple and Google unveiled new encryption schemes last month, law enforcement officials complained that they wouldn’t be able to unlock evidence on criminals’ digital devices. What they didn’t say is that there are already methods to bypass encryption, thanks… Read More ›
Report to U.N. Calls Bullshit on Obama’s ‘Look Forward, Not Backwards’ Approach to Torture
Months after President Obama frankly admitted that the United States had “tortured some folks” as part of the War on Terror, a new report submitted to the United Nations Committee Against Torture has been released that excoriates his administration for shielding… Read More ›
The Inside Story Of Matt Taibbi’s Departure From First Look Media
Matt Taibbi, who joined First Look Media just seven months ago, left the company on Tuesday. His departure—which he describes as a refusal to accept a work reassignment, and the company describes as a resignation—was the culmination of months of… Read More ›
Is Your Judge for Sale? Dark Money Groups Pour Millions into Judicial Races to Reshape Courts
With the 2014 midterm elections just days away, we look at how anonymous donors are reshaping judicial races by pouring millions of dollars in “dark money” into races. Some donors see giving to the campaigns of judicial candidates as a… Read More ›
“The Red Cross’ Secret Disaster”: Charity Prioritized PR over People After Superstorm Sandy
This week marks the second anniversary of Superstorm Sandy hitting the New York City region, becoming one of the most destructive storms in the nation’s history. A new joint investigation by ProPublica and NPR contends the American Red Cross bungled… Read More ›