Tag: FBI
If You Bought a Smart TV on Black Friday, the FBI has a Warning for You
Your brand-new smart TV might have all the latest technology, but it’s still vulnerable to hackers.
It’s hard to imagine that simply doing something that hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people did over this weekend would be worthy of a warning from the FBI, but if you bought a smart TV you might want to read on. The FBI says your new TV might be the thing hackers use to break into your home. Yes, that FBI.
As if there weren’t already enough online threats to worry about, the Federal Bureau of Investigation is trying to ruin your excitement over the amazing deal you got on that brand new 65″ 4K television destined for the wall in your living room. Talk about a buzzkill. Can it really be that bad?
Yes it can. As the FBI warns:
“Beyond the risk that your TV manufacturer and app developers may be listening and watching you, that television can also be a gateway for hackers to come into your home. A bad cyber actor may not be able to access your locked-down computer directly, but it is possible that your unsecured TV can give him or her an easy way in the backdoor through your router.”
Most of us, if we’re paying attention, at least try to practice good cyber-hygiene when it comes to our laptops or smartphones. We turn on features like FaceID or TouchID. We activate two-factor authentication for important online accounts. We don’t share passwords.
Wait, you share your passwords? Be careful, Netflix isn’t cool with that anymore.
But I digress.
None of those best practices exist on a smart TV. Even though they are connected to the internet, and many are equipped with cameras and microphones, they’re remarkably un-secure. That means many of us just added a camera and microphone to our living rooms–or even worse, bedrooms–many of which can be hacked with very little effort.
Look, the reality is that your Smart TV is probably not the most likely target of a hacker. In fact, even the FBI admits that attacks like this are rare. Then again, it’s reasonable to wonder whether most of us would even know if our TV microphone was hacked.
There’s a general rule that applies here. Actually, I have no idea if it’s really a rule, but it’s certainly something worth thinking about: The more technology improves your life, and the more you come to depend on it, the greater the potential it has to cause you harm.
The FBI suggests regularly updating the security software on your TV, but if you’re worried, there’s always MacGyver’s favorite solution–black tape over the camera (which is actually the FBI’s recommendation).
I have a better idea–save yourself the money and just buy one without a microphone and camera. Who really needs those in a TV anyway? Considering every laptop, smartphone, and smart home device already has one or both, do you really need another in your TV? Or, even better, just skip the Smart TV and buy one without an internet connection. That might be the smartest solution of all.
Article via Inc
Feds Launch Sex Abuse Probe Of Pennsylvania’s Roman Catholic Church
The Department of Justice has launched an investigation of child sex abuse within Pennsylvania’s Roman Catholic Church, sending subpoenas to dioceses across the state seeking private files and records to explore the possibility that priests and bishops violated federal law in cases that go back decades, NPR has learned.
In what is thought to be the first-ever such inquiry into the church’s clergy sex-abuse scandal, authorities have issued subpoenas to look into possible violations of the federal Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations statute, also known as RICO, according to a person close to the investigation who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The source did not elaborate on what other potential federal crimes could be part of the inquiry, which could take years and is now only in its early stages.
RICO has historically been used to dismantle organized-crime syndicates.
Officials at six of Pennsylvania’s eight dioceses — Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie, Scranton and Harrisburg — have confirmed to NPR that they have recently received and are currently complying with federal subpoenas for information. The two remaining dioceses did not return requests for comment.
A Justice Department representative in Washington, D.C., would neither confirm nor deny the existence of the investigation.
Legal experts said accruing enough evidence to build a RICO case against the Roman Catholic Church — basically treating the influential institution as a crime syndicate — will be a burdensome task.
Hamilton of Child USA, for one, said she thinks using federal RICO as a weapon against the church would be a stretch, since the 1970 law is not designed to deal with problems such as sex abuse and other personal injury cases. Instead, she said, most RICO cases involve financial crimes. “I hope that they can find a way to make it fit, but it will be challenging,” she said.
However, Hamilton said a federal statute called the Mann Act, which prohibits moving people across state lines for the purpose of illegal sex acts, could be a more promising legal avenue.
“As we know, there have been plenty of priests who took children across state lines,” she said.
Tobias, the law professor who specializes in federal courts, said whatever comes of the investigation, the issuing of the subpoenas has likely sent a jolt across the country. If the inquiry of the Pennsylvania church results in criminal charges, it could be used as a road map for federal prosecutors hoping to pursue abusers in other states.
“Pennsylvania might be the first state where the federal government does this,” Tobias said. “But then they build on the lessons they’ve learned there, as DOJ often does when they have a national issue, and go to the other states and use that template again.”
Article via NPR
Man Considered FBI’s First ‘Black Identity Extremist’ Speaks Out After Being Jailed, In Part, Over Facebook Post
“I hope to live in a society where the federal government will actually work in the best interest of the people, and not work in interest of oppressing people.”
Article via: Blativity.com
The feds labeling outspoken black activists as terrorists is nothing new. Malcolm X, Huey P. Newton, Martin Luther King Jr. are just a few civil rights leaders who were closely monitored and penalized by the government for exercising their first amendment rights.
More recently, Rakem Balogun was targeted by the FBI, labeled a terrorist and yanked from his home in December 2017 as he and his 15-year-old slept — all because of a Facebook post.
In response to Micah Johnson’s July 2016 rampage, in which he shot and killed five Dallas officers following the deaths of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling, Balogun took to Facebook to share his sentiments.
According to an interview with Mic in episode 1 of the “Mic Dispatch” Facebook series, he wrote, “One man named Micah X brought the whole Dallas pig department to its knees, protesting police terrorism, and I stand with him.”
Balogun, whose real name is Christopher Daniels, was held in jail and denied bail over a period of five months. He was released in May when the case flopped, as prosecutors were unable to prove the activist is a terrorist. Because, innocent.
Michael German, a fellow with the Brennan Center for Justice, told Mic, “the only evidence prosecution and the judge would have had to justify holding him, was his political activity and online rhetoric, which seemed to be punishment for him, rather than an attempt to protect the public.”
The Texas activist is reportedly the first person prosecuted under the name Black Identity Extremist, according to The Guardian.
BIE was initiated in a U.S. government assessment following Johnson’s deadly rampage.
Little did the social justice warrior know, utilizing his freedom of speech (as a black man) would lead to a series of unfortunate events and run-ins with law enforcement. This would not only cause him to lose his house, car and job, but also his peace of mind.
“Ever since that moment, we have not been able to gain our peace back,” Balogun told Mic.
Mic✔@mic
The police arrested Balogun in a late-night raid on his home, and the event has taken a toll not just on Balogun but also on his family. http://bit.ly/2JwybtU pic.twitter.com/BcX12PcIYI
Mic✔@mic
“You know I’ve lost my job, my apartment, my car, you know, I lost the cohesiveness of my family and my children. And so, you know, every day it’s just a day of me trying to slowly regain that.” — Rakem Balogun http://bit.ly/2LrKglV pic.twitter.com/UoARoIjNnl
In his interview, Balogun tries to clear up the intent behind his support of Johnson.
“I can see why people would misconstrue that,” he said. “I do have the first amendment right to express my opinion — I have the first amendment right to support someone who possibly killed somebody, and I have the right to not empathize with the dead, just like everyone else in this country.”
While this is all true, it’s even more important to understand he has the right to not be racially profiled. What the label BIE does, and what many black activists fear, is it can spark a ripple effect of the persecution of outspoken, black community leaders.
Balogun is the co-founder of two local Texas organizations: Guerrilla Mainframe and the Huey P. Newton Gun Club; both fight against police brutality, and for the rights of black gun owners. Ultimately, a black man fighting for his rights, is a threat to our government.
But justice will eventually prevail, and we will never be silenced, because as Balogun said: “We’re going to keep our foot on the gas and keep moving forward.”
Judge: FBI agent charged after backflip shooting can carry gun
An FBI agent who is accused of accidentally shooting a man while performing a backflip in a bar can have his gun back, a judge has ruled.
Chase Bishop, 29, was off-duty when he was filmed dropping his gun while dancing. As he picked it up he fired one shot, seriously wounding a man.
Video of the 2 June incident in a Denver nightclub led to his arrest.
On Tuesday a county judge in Colorado – where he is facing a second-degree assault charge – issued the ruling.
During the court appearance in Denver Mr Bishop’s protection order was amended to allow him to resume carrying his service pistol both while on and off duty, a spokesman for the Denver District Attorney’s office told the Denver Post.
Image copyrightCBSThe judge issued the ruling “so long as it is done in a manner pursuant to FBI policy,” said the spokesman Ken Lane.
Mr Bishop, who lives and works in Washington DC, was off duty and on vacation when he was filmed at Mile High Spirits, a distillery and dance club in Denver.
Mobile phone video shows him dancing in a circle of people. A gun falls out of his waistband while he does a backflip, and goes off as he picks it up from the floor.
Image copyrightDENVER POLICE DEPARTMENTA lawyer for Mr Bishop told the judge that the man who was shot in the leg, Tim Reddington, 24, and his family did not object to the agent continuing to carry his gun.
In an interview less than a month after the shooting, Mr Reddington, who had recently moved to Denver from Chicago, said he did not blame the agent.
“I don’t want to blame anybody, throw anybody under the truck,” he told ABC’s Good Morning America programme.
Dancing FBI agent charged after shooting
Mr Bishop’s drug and blood alcohol tests, which will not be released, do not warrant any further charges, prosecutors told the Denver Post.
Colorado law prohibits anyone from carrying a gun while under the influence of alcohol.
Lawyers say that a plea deal is being negotiated to settle the assault charge, but did not disclose any details.
According to the FBI website, “agents are to be armed at all times”.
Article via: Judge: FBI agent charged after backflip shooting can carry gun
White Man Dressed in Blackface Sought After Attempting to Rob Bank in Corona
Authorities are searching for man who attempted to rob a Wells Fargo bank in Corona while dressed in blackface on Friday.
The man entered a bank in the 11700 block of De Palma Road around 2 p.m. and passed a note to the teller, according to the FBI Los Angeles division. He then threatened the employee with a gun, FBI officials said.
The robber is described as a 5-foot, 8-inch man who weighs between 180 and 190 pounds.
He was last seen on security footage wearing brown makeup on his face and hands, a dark blue hat and a dark colored shirt.
There are no known links to other robberies in the area, authorities added.
via: http://ktla.com/2017/08/18/man-dressed-in-blackface-sought-after-attempting-to-rob-bank-in-corona/