Downshift

Do What's Right.

Category: Security (Page 3 of 8)

US intelligence agencies are buying corporate location data instead of obtaining court authorized search warrants to track Americans and citizens of other countries

2023-07-29 /

Dell Cameron, writing in Wired »

Officials at the National Security Agency (NSA) have approached lawmakers charged with its oversight about opposing an amendment that would prevent it from paying companies for location data instead of obtaining a warrant in court.

Introduced by US representatives W

arren Davidson and Sara Jacobs, the amendment, first reported by WIRED, would prohibit US military agencies from “purchasing data that would otherwise require a warrant, court order, or subpoena” to obtain. The ban would cover more than half of the US intelligence community, including the NSA, the Defense Intelligence Agency, and the newly formed National Space Intelligence Center, among others.

The House approved the amendment in a floor vote over a week ago during its annual consideration of the National Defense Authorization Act, a “must-pass” bill outlining how the Pentagon will spend next year’s $886 billion budget. Negotiations over which policies will be included in the Senate’s version of the bill are ongoing…

Good Trouble » Ukraine’s Olga Kharlan disqualified from World Fencing Championships for refusing Russian competitor’s handshake

2023-07-27 /

BBC »

Kharlan, the first fencer to face a Russian or Belarusian since the former’s full-scale invasion of her homeland, won 15-7 in Milan.

Good for Kharlan. She has honour, strength, and dignity.

“My message today is that we Ukrainian athletes are ready to face Russians on the sports field but we will never shake hands with them,” Kharlan said afterwards.

Another Ukrainian hero.

Meanwhile » Le Monde » Russians are bombing wheat silos and historic buildings in Odessa, Ukraine

From July 19 to 24, 2023, the major Black Sea port city and surrounding region were subjected to five successive nights of bombardment, the most violent attack since the start of the Russian invasion.

NY Times |

The era of global warming has ended and “the era of global boiling has arrived”

2023-07-27 /

The Guardian »

“Climate change is here. It is terrifying. And it is just the beginning,” Guterres said. “It is still possible to limit global temperature rise to 1.5C [above pre-industrial levels], and avoid the very worst of climate change. But only with dramatic, immediate climate action.”

Guterres’s comments came after scientists confirmed on Thursday that the past three weeks have been the hottest since records began and July is on track to be the hottest month ever recorded.

UN | VoA |

Canadians have the world’s 7th-most valuable passport – up from 8th in last year’s rankings

2023-07-24 /

According to the much respected Henley Passport Index, which ranks the world’s passports based on official data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), 🇨🇦 Canadians can claim the world’s 7th-most valuable passport this year – up from 8th last year. Canada had been ranked 8th since 2021.

In a bit of a shakeup, 🇯🇵 Japan has been knocked off the top spot on the Henley Passport Index for the first time in five years and bumped into 3rd place. 🇸🇬 Singapore is now officially the most powerful passport in the world, with its citizens able to visit 192 travel destinations out of 227 around the world visa-free. 🇩🇪 Germany, 🇮🇹 Italy, and 🇪🇸 Spain all move up into 2nd place with visa-free access to 190 destinations, and Japanese passport holders join those of six other nations — 🇦🇹 Austria, 🇫🇮 Finland, 🇫🇷 France, 🇱🇺 Luxembourg, 🇰🇷 South Korea, and 🇸🇪 Sweden — in 3rd place with access to189 destinations without a prior visa.
Continue reading

As Earth sizzles, climate denialists rearrange deck chairs

2023-07-23 /

Eve Ottenberg, Counter Punch »

The problem is known. It has been known for generations, to scientists and to the oil, gas and coal companies who researched and then concealed the lethal effects of their product. Simply put, our social and political economy, structured around burning fossil fuels, heats the earth. The chief culprits in this profligate burning are wealthy countries and their massive organizations like the American military. Small, poor countries have small carbon footprints. This deadly pollution cannot be blamed on them or their so-called excessive birth-rate.

The economy is doing much better than the far-right scaremongers told you it would be

2023-07-23 /

Axios »

Why it matters: Last week’s great reports on weakening U.S. consumer inflation, slowing wholesale price increases, falling import prices and lower-than-expected claims for jobless benefits helped send the surprise index to the highest level in two years.

Flashback: It was almost exactly a year ago that the index was blaring alarms that a sharp slowdown was in the works, as the Fed sharply raised rates while inflation stayed stubbornly high.

The Economist names Vienna the world’s most liveable city for 2023

2023-07-22 /

Vienna has retained its crown as the world’s most liveable city, according to Economist’s annual index.

The 2023 Global Liveability Index quantifies the challenges presented to an individual’s lifestyle and standard of living in 173 cities worldwide. The 2023 Economist Intelligence Unit’s annual ranking has also included three Canadian cities among the worlds top 10 most liveable. Australia and Switzerland each have 2 entries. Denmark, Japan, and New Zealand each had one city in the top rankings.

1. Vienna 🇦🇹
2. Copenhagen 🇩🇰
3. Melbourne 🇦🇺
4. Sydney 🇦🇺
5. Vancouver 🇨🇦
6. Zurich 🇨🇭
7. Calgary 🇨🇦 (tie)
7. Geneva 🇨🇭 (tie)
9. Toronto 🇨🇦
10. Osaka 🇯🇵 (tie)
10. Auckland 🇳🇿 (tie)

The Global Liveability Index 2023: optimism amid instability

Note: Clicking the above image will load and play the video from YouTube.

The Economist »

How do Chinese citizens feel about other countries?

2023-07-19 /

Visual Capitalist »

Chinese Sentiment Towards Other Countries in 2023

Chinese Sentiment Towards Other Countries in 2023

The survey also found that 39% of Chinese people get their information on international security from Chinese state-run media (mainly through TV), with an additional 19% getting information from government websites and official social accounts. Conversely, only 1.7% get their news from foreign websites and foreign social media, partially due to the Great Firewall.

When asked about different international security issues, the biggest shares of Chinese citizens ranked the following as their top three:

  • Pandemics (12.9%)
  • Disputes over territory and territorial waters (12.9%)
  • China-U.S. relations (12.0%)

Google is restricting online access for its own employees to decrease risk of cyberattacks and increase online security

2023-07-19 /

So, if the internet is not safe for super-smart Google employees, who is it safe for?

CNBC »

The company originally selected more than 2,500 employees to participate, but after receiving feedback, the company revised the pilot to allow employees to opt out, as well as opening it up to volunteers. The company will disable internet access on the select desktops, with the exception of internal web-based tools and Google-owned websites like Google Drive and Gmail. Some workers who need the internet to do their job will get exceptions, the company stated in materials.

…

Last week, Microsoft said Chinese intelligence hacked into company email accounts belonging to two dozen government agencies, including the State Department, in the U.S. and Western Europe in a “significant” breach. Google has been pursuing U.S. government contracts since launching a public sector division last year.

Gizmodo | TechSpot |

The heat index reached 67℃ (152℉) at the Persian Gulf International Airport in Iran — near the limit for human survival

2023-07-18 /

Persian Gulf International Airport in Iran reported a heat index of 152°F (66.7°C) today at 12:30 pm.

Scott Dance, Washington Post »

In recent days, China set an all-time high of nearly 126 degrees Fahrenheit, while Death Valley hit 128 degrees, two shy of the highest reliably measured temperature on Earth. Phoenix experienced a record-breaking 19th consecutive day at or above 110 degrees Tuesday. And in the Middle East, the heat index reached 152 degrees, nearing — or surpassing — levels thought to be the most intense the human body can withstand.

Facebook » Instagram » Meta’s newest social media platform Threads collects so much sensitive and personal data, that it’s a ‘hacker’s dream’

2023-07-18 /

Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press »

Threads falls under Meta’s wider privacy policy that covers its other social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram. That policy details how Meta captures everything from the information you give it when you sign up for accounts, to what you click on or like, who you befriend online and what kind of phone, computer or tablet you use to access its products.

It also keeps tabs on what you’re doing on your device, like whether the app is in the foreground or if your mouse is moving, messages you send and receive and details on purchases you make, including credit card information.

Threads also has its own supplemental privacy policy, which says “we collect information about your activity on Threads, including the content you create, the types of content you view or interact with and how you interact with it, metadata about your content, the Threads features you use and how you use them, the hashtags you use, and the time, frequency, and duration of your activities on Threads.”

The privacy policy Threads has embedded in Apple’s app store shows it may collect, and link to your identity, data including your health and fitness, financial, browsing history, location and contact information, along with the broad category of “sensitive information.”

Canada, China, and other nations require more immigrants to counter shifting demographics

2023-07-18 /

The Desjardins report confirms that our aging demographics makes the case for increased immigration if we want to grow Canada’s economy.

The Canadian Press via National Observer »

Canada’s population grew by more than one million people last year, a record for the country. Its total population grew by 2.7 per cent, the fastest rate since 1957.

The strong population growth comes as the Liberal government eyes higher annual immigration targets, which would see the country welcome 500,000 immigrants per year by 2025.

Proponents of higher immigration argue that the labour market is able to absorb more workers, and the country needs more working-age Canadians to support the tax base as more people retire.

“We need immigration at a relatively high rate, actually, in order to offset the economic impacts of aging _ to be able to pay for the health care that Canadian seniors are going to need,” Bartlett said.

Meanwhile » China too needs immigrants

China is entering a severe demographic crisis.

For several centuries, the Asian nation has been the most populous country in the world. But it is now shrinking. In 2022, the country registered more deaths than births, and it will soon be surpassed by India in total population size – indeed, many demographers believe this has already occurred.

Increasing monopoly power poses a threat to Canada’s post-pandemic economic recovery

2023-07-16 /

The Conversation »

The grocery industry is dominated by five major players — Loblaws, Metro, Empire (the owner of Sobeys), Walmart and Costco. These five companies account for over three-quarters of all food sales in Canada.

The Bureau recommended four policies to encourage competition in the sector. These include establishing a grocery innovation strategy, encouraging new independent and international players, introducing legislation for consistent unit pricing and limiting property controls.

Canada’s safest cities

2023-07-15 /

A new report by Rentol.ca calculates that Ontario has some of the safest urban areas in the entire country, with Barrie securing the top spot. In fact, eight Ontario cities made up the top ten, according to the report.

The analysis looked at a number of different factors in order to compile the ranking, including the number of citizens per police officer, crime severity, the amount of violent and non-violent crimes, and the crime-solving rate.

Saint John, New Brunswick was the highest ranking city outside of Ontario, ranking in 5th overall.

Lethbridge, Alberta was the only other city outside of Ontario to rank in the top 10.  Alberta’s next safest cities, were Calgary in 20th, followed by Edmonton in 21st overall.

The reviewers concluded that while Québec City exhibits the lowest crime rate, it scored lower as “a significant portion of the crimes committed within the area are of a violent nature, and the ratio of its police force to the area’s population remains relatively small. Therefore, when compared to Lethbridge, which possesses the highest crime index, Québec City appears less secure.”

While Lethbridge has the highest crime rate among all Canadian metropolitan areas, “the majority of the offenses perpetrated are classified as non-violent.” The report goes on to state that, “Lethbridge maintains a sufficient number of police officers to ensure a high rate of crime detection.”

Continue reading

Only 1 in 10 Americans give high ratings to the way democracy is working in the U.S.

2023-07-14 /

AP »

Majorities of adults say U.S. laws and policies do a poor job of representing what most Americans want on issues ranging from the economy and government spending to gun policy, immigration and abortion. The poll shows 53% say Congress is doing a bad job of upholding democratic values, compared with just 16% who say it’s doing a good job.

The findings illustrate widespread political alienation as a polarized country limps out of the pandemic and into a recovery haunted by inflation and fears of a recession. In interviews, respondents worried less about the machinery of democracy — voting laws and the tabulation of ballots — and more about the outputs.

« Older posts Newer posts »

Downshift.ca is not responsible for content of external Internet sites and no endorsement is implied.

 

© 2024 Downshift

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑