Citizen Concepts announced PatriotApp, an iOS application aimed to assist citizens become more informed and more involved in government. The app allows users to easily download and report (complete with video and photos) information to the government. The company says the app will launch September 11 (9/11). The app provides links to National Security, suspicious more »

We reported earlier this week on the case of Blogetery, a small Toronto based blogging service that was knocked offline by its hosting provider, Burst.net after the FBI contacted them about an investigation. The agency was looking into claims that the service was serving as a home for al-Qaeda operatives and materials. The loss of more »

Over 70,000 people lost their blogs after the service’s host booted them. The loss of service to Toronto-based Blogetery happened after their host Burst.net discovered they were under investigation by the FBI. Earlier this month Burst was asked for information about Blogetery by the FBI, who were investigating allegations that the blogging service hosted instructions more »

A Dallas security guard charged with hacking the computer system of the hospital he worked for was busted by a fellow hacker, but didn’t help his case when he posted videos of his exploits on YouTube. Jesse McGraw, known by the hacker name GhostExodus, posted videos to YouTube in which he claimed to be breaking more »

On Thursday, the FBI and other law enforcement agencies were forced to shut down their systems as a precaution against an unknown virus affecting their computers. The shut down was a security measure to ensure that none of the data on the systems were compromised. As an extra preventative measure, the U.S. Marshals disconnected their more »

Law enforcement officials in the UK have shut down an underground website that specialized in helping cybercriminals commit their crimes. The site, called DarkMarket, was kept secret and access was granted by invitation only. Its forum allowed cyberthieves to buy and sell stolen banking details and credit card numbers obtained via phishing scams and website more »

You have FaceBook and MySpace and YouTube…..and now…A-Space. Only unless you have top level clearances, you won’t be joining this social networking site. Well, let’s hope that’s how it really goes down. (Kind of scary that the government thinks the internet is secure when you really think about it).

The soon to be launching A-Space program is a site for analysts working within the 16 US intelligence agencies. “It’s every bit Facebook and YouTube for spies, but it’s much, much more,” said Michael Wertheimer, assistant deputy director of national intelligence for analysis. “It’s a place where not only spies can meet but share data they’ve never been able to share before,” Wertheimer said. “This is going to give them for the first time a chance to think out loud, think in public amongst their peers, under the protection of an A-Space umbrella.” Ummm….an A-Space umbrella? I sure hope it can weather a decent storm.

“The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to five years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.” So says the warning on all movies released since early 2004. Well, granted many get a bit of a chuckle every time they pop a movie into their player and see that flash across their screen knowing they’ve just downloaded it from somewhere on the ‘Net, but still…it’s the thought that counts. And apparently, the thought of RealNetworks is that they want to make it a little easier for their customers to burn those dvds; since they are coming out with a new product called RealDVD which allows users to burn a digital copy of the movie of your choice…ummmm..legally? Guess that remains to be seen. Because there hasn’t been enough chatter about the whole piracy/fair use thing lately.

It doesn’t look like the participants in the McAfee S.P.A.M. Experiment have received grand jury summonses in their inboxes yet, but it’s something they can look out for. According to the FBI’s press release about the email,

“At first glance, the e-mail appears authentic. It contains a court case number, federal code, name and address of a California federal court, court room number, issuing officers’ names, and the court’s seal. The spammer directs recipients to click the link provided in the e-mail in order to download and print associated information for their records. If the recipient clicks the link, a malicious code is downloaded onto their computer.The e-mail also contains language threatening recipients with contempt of court charges if they fail to appear. Recipients are told the subpoena will remain in effect until the court grants a release. As with most spam, the content contains multiple spelling errors.”