Police Super-Database Prompts Liberty Warning on Privacy

A new super-database being built for the police represents a “grave” risk to privacy, a leading human rights group has said.

Liberty claims the government is glossing over concerns that the database, the largest built for British law enforcement, threatens civil liberties. The group fears it gives massive power to the state at the expense of millions of Britons.

The Home Office has had consultation meetings with groups and experts concerned about privacy ahead of the super-database becoming operational later this year. Liberty said it has quit them in protest, damaging government hopes of neutralizing civil liberties concerns.

Hannah Couchman, of Liberty, said: “Having enormous amounts of our personal information held on this super-database represents a grave threat to our privacy. While the collection of a few pieces of personal data can seem innocuous, combining it with other information can create an intrusive personal profile. (The Guardian, October 1, 2018)
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The above article from the Guardian expresses a concern about a UK system, but these surveillance databases exist everywhere. See the post concerning the Joint Analytic Real-time Virtual Information Sharing System (JARVISS) in the United States. A system being used to collect information about you today.

How would you feel if some government employee in a basement office somewhere was keeping files hidden about you on a government computer network?

Soldier Commits Suicide After Army Ignores Her Sexual Assault

According to KSTP 5 News, October 30, 2018: A Minnesota soldier died by suicide earlier this year after she was sexually assaulted and harassed on a U.S. Army base in South Korea. Pvt. Nicole Burnham's death in January prompted an Army investigation that revealed a series of failures by her commanding officers.

The report also shows Nicole was kept on the base for nearly three months after requesting to be transferred back to the United States. During that time, the 21-year-old from Andover, Minn. was housed in the same barracks as her attacker and was the victim of repeated harassment and cyber-bullying, according to military records. On social media, she was called a "slut, deserving of rape," records show.

Nicole's ranking officers, who were responsible for her safety, are accused of ignoring the harassment. The investigative report also shows they failed to report Nicole's suicidal ideations to commanders on the base.

A former military prosecutor said in an interview that the investigation shows command staff repeatedly violated policies after Nicole reported being sexually assaulted.
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Constant harassment and a hostile workplace can drive anyone to thoughts of suicide. When unit leadership ignores requests for help, or worse structures investigations to cover their own misconduct, suicide may seem to be the only alternative.

We say that there is always someone there to help, but that is not as true as we might hope...

 

For example, if you contacted 'Lifeline Chat' - Suicide Prevention Line on August 19, 2018 you would have found 71 people in line ahead of you.

 

If you needed help on September 11, 2018 and contacted the 'Lifeline Chat' - Suicide Prevention Line, there were 85 people ahead of you. Meaning that you would have to wait hours for help... all the while thinking about ending your life.

 

If someone says that they need help, counseling, or guidance because they are having thoughts of hurting themselves, see that they get that help today. Tomorrow may be too late.

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Sheriff David Clarke Breaks Down The Rise Of Antifa in Portland

Sheriff David Clarke Breaks Down The Rise Of Antifa in Portland (October 15, 2018)

 

A 'must see' YouTube Video.

 

 

 

Antifa Mob Terrorize City, Portland Police Stand Down While Law Abiding Citizens Can Go To Hell. It's another sad day in America when Americans have to patrol against the corrupt officials who swore an oath to serve and protect their people and their cities.

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Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

JBLM to Send Soldiers to Mexico Border

As thousands of people from Central America march toward the U.S., President Trump has ordered military troops to the U.S. - Mexican border. Some of those troops being deployed to the border are from Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM). On his visit to JBLM Wednesday, the Secretary of the Army, Dr. Mark Esper said troops will focus on logistical support to border patrol. The JBLM troops will be deployed for 45 days at the border or longer if needed.  (KOMO 4 News, November 2, 2018)

According to USA Today (October, 29, 2018):  President Trump wants to keep criminals out of U.S. In fiscal 2017 alone, the ICE-Homeland Security Investigations unit seized nearly 1 million pounds of drugs, including tons of the deadly opioids that are fueling the worst drug overdose crisis in U.S. history.

Stemming the flow of violent crime, much of it linked to MS-13 and other brutal transnational criminal gangs, is also impossible if we can’t control border crossings. Fully 74 percent of the 143,470 suspected illegal aliens ICE arrested for removal proceedings in 2017 had criminal records, including almost 10,000 sex offenders and more than 1,500 convicted killers.

Democrats and open borders advocates, though, want to abolish ICE, leave our weakened asylum system unreformed, and ignore the fact that foreign governments are enabling the mass invasion of American borders. They oppose Trump’s immigration agenda at every turn because they’re convinced that continued mass illegal immigration and, eventually, mass amnesty, will bring them an endless supply of liberal votes.

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Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

Portland Police Release Videos of Officers' Fatal Shooting of Patrick Kimmons

Oregon Live (October 31, 2018) reported that "Portland police Wednesday released video of the police shooting of Patrick Kimmons in downtown last month after a Multnomah County grand jury found no criminal wrongdoing by the two officers involved.

The grand jury met over two days and found the shooting by Sgt. Garry Britt and Officer Jeffrey Livingston was justified.

The officers said Kimmons, 27, was running toward them with a gun when they fired 12 shots. Kimmons was hit nine times and pronounced dead a short time later at OHSU Hospital, police said.

Prosecutors from the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office met with Kimmons' mother and other relatives Wednesday morning to show them video of the shooting. Police also met with community leaders they invited to North Precinct to play the videos and offer a private update on the shooting investigation.

"The verdict is not justifiable,'' said Kimmons' mother, Letha Winston, protesting outside the courthouse after the jury's findings were announced. "I'm gonna fight for my baby. How could you shoot a man after he already laid down flat."
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On October 7, 2018 I posted about protest in Portland over the death of Mr. Kimmons. The grand jury decision that Portland police were justified in shooting Mr. Kimmons will likely lead to further demonstrations and anti-police sentiment in Portland and elsewhere in the Pacific Northwest.

Now, as I look at the surveillance video released in the Oregon Live report on October 31, 2018 I see the two police officers upon hearing shots in the parking lot (Mr. Kimmons had just shot two people) run toward the sounds of the gun fire. They contact Mr. Kimmons who is running towards them with a gun in his had. The two officers shot Mr. Kimmons who was - according to witnesses - pointing a gun back toward them as he ran.

While the crowd was running away, the officers ran forward, putting their own lives at risk to protect their community, and stopped a man (Mr. Kimmons) who had just shot two people in a Portland parking lot.

Sgt. Garry Britt and Officer Jeffrey Livingston risked their own lives to protect the community.

Google Discloses Privacy-Security Flaw That It Kept Quiet Since March

According to Bloomberg (October 8, 2018) Google said it found a “software glitch” in its Google+ social network in March that could have exposed the personal data of as many as half a million users, but decided not to tell the public until Monday.

Google chose not to disclose the flaw out of concern it would trigger regulatory backlash, especially in the wake of criticism against Facebook Inc.

“This has been going on for too long,” said Marc Rotenberg, president of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. “Companies like Google experience these breaches. They don’t report them. They don’t suffer consequences.”

Google+ never caught on as a social network. Even so, many users still technically have a profile that has personal information on it. Google will shut it down over the next 10 months for consumers, but keep a version built for businesses open and operating.
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Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

ACP Lets DV Survivors Vote Without Their Address Becoming Public

For survivors of domestic violence, staying safe becomes their top priority. Their lives are often impacted in ways most don’t have to consider, like registering to vote when you want your whereabouts to be kept private.

When someone registers to vote in Washington state, the address they provide becomes public record and anyone can find it. For a domestic violence survivor, even providing general information during registration can potentially put their lives in danger.

With midterm elections quickly approaching, some survivors say voting can be dangerous but Washington state has a program that could help them. The state’s Address Confidentiality Program allows survivors to keep their public records closed, as long as they’re enrolled in a domestic violence survivor program.

What it does is route all mail to a post office box in Olympia, so that even the city where the survivor resides remains secret. There are some hassles involved. You can’t get packages, you can’t get magazines but it is a way to still correspond with the outside world and to vote. (Q13 News, October 26, 2018)
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Many states have address confidentiality programs to help protect victims of domestic violence and certain other crimes. These are good programs that should be supported, but they need to be expanded to include not just DV survivors, but anyone who wants to protect their personal privacy and keep their address from being entered into public records.

You shouldn't have to become a victim of a violent crime before being able to protect yourself from becoming a victim of a violent crime.

Whether you are the victim of domestic violence, attempting to avoid a stalker, or concerned that some out of control government employee is keeping secret files about you; you should be able to keep your address and other personal information from appearing in public records.

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

 

Civil Servant Who Watched Porn at Work Blamed for Infecting a US Government Network With Malware

A U.S. government network was infected with malware thanks to one employee’s “extensive history” of watching porn on his work computer, investigators have found.

The audit, carried out by the U.S. Department of the Interior’s inspector general, found that a U.S.
Geological Survey (USGS) network at the EROS Center, a satellite imaging facility in South Dakota, was infected after an unnamed employee visited thousands of porn pages that contained malware, which downloaded to his laptop and “exploited the USGS’ network.” Investigators found that many of the porn images were “subsequently saved to an unauthorized USB device and personal Android cell phone,” which was connected to the employee’s government-issued computer.

Investigators found that his Android cell phone “was also infected with malware.”

The findings were made public in a report earlier this month but buried on the U.S. government’s oversight website and went largely unreported. (TechCrunch, October 29, 2018)
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Suspect Named in Bomb Threats to Washington Government Agencies

Arrest Warrant Issued for Dr. Said Farzad in Connection with a Series of Bomb Threats on State Government Buildings.

A man suspected of phoning in several bomb threats to state government agencies over the past has been identified, but the investigation is complicated by the fact that he is believed to be out of the country, Washington State Patrol investigators said.

Said Farzad is suspected in 18 cases involving multiple agencies, including eight in the last month to state agencies in Olympia and Tumwater, investigators said. He's under suspicion of making threats to Idaho offices as well.

It's believed the calls stem from his psychiatry license being suspended in 2014, according to investigators. Farzad was accused of making numerous phone calls to Molina HealthCare threatening to kill employees and blow up their building because the insurance company rejected some of his patient's medical claims, according to the Department of Health.  (KOMO 4 News, October 31, 2018)
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Dr. Farzad's office address was listed as: 9601 Steilacoom Blvd SW, Lakewood, WA 98498

F@ck the Police - Shoot Back?

The Declaration of Independence states in part "Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it..."

The 2nd Amendment to the Constitution of the United States provides that "the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed", a right many claim was included in the Constitution to ensure that the people would have the means to defend themselves against a tyrannical government.

But we are faced with a dilemma... if you don't comply with the demands of government, the government will send its enforcers, the police, to arrest you. Now if that arrest is unlawful, some would argue that you have a right to resist with force.

The Constitution Society has argued, quoting Plummer v. State, that “Citizens may resist unlawful arrest to the point of taking an arresting officer's life if necessary.” A premise that was upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States in the case: John Bad Elk v. U.S., 177 U.S. 529.

So in using your 2nd Amendment rights to resist the government, the first people you will likely be resisting are the police officers in your local community.

Most right-thinking people will strongly object to shooting the police. Is there any possible time when it is acceptable to shoot at the police? Again, it is difficult to imagine anyone seriously arguing that it is ever acceptable to shoot the police. And yet, we claim that we have the right to bear arms to resist a tyrannical government.

When is a government so tyrannical that it may be resisted by force of arms? What action by government is the breaking point? When is it OK to say - I will not comply? And when is it OK to shoot the government agents that come to force you into compliance?

Or, perhaps as some claim, the 2nd Amendment is outdated. The idea of resisting oppressive government actions by force has no place in our modern society.

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

 



Feds Force Suspects To Unlock An Apple iPhone X With Their Face

It finally happened. The feds forced an Apple iPhone X owner to unlock their device with their face.

A child abuse investigation unearthed by Forbes includes the first known case in which law enforcement used Apple Face ID facial recognition technology to open a suspect's iPhone. That's by any police agency anywhere in the world, not just in America.

It happened on August 10, when the FBI searched the house of 28-year-old Grant Michalski, a Columbus, Ohio, resident who would later that month be charged with receiving and possessing child pornography. With a search warrant in hand, a federal investigator told Michalski to put his face in front of the phone, which he duly did. That allowed the agent to pick through the suspect's online chats, photos and whatever else he deemed worthy of investigation.

First came multiple cases in which suspects were told to unlock iPhones with their fingerprints, via Apple's Touch ID biometric login. The same technique was then used on dead subjects. Earlier this year, this publication uncloaked GrayKey, a $15,000-$30,000 tool that could break through the passcodes of the latest iOS models, including the iPhone X. Another contractor, Israel's Cellebrite, announced similar services.

Now Face ID is being used for the same purpose. Whilst the feds obtained a warrant, and appeared to have done everything within the bounds of the law, concerns remain about the use of such tactics.  (Forbes, September 30, 2018)
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5,000 US Troops to Deploy to US-Mexico Border to Stop Foreign Invasion

According to American Military News (October 29, 2018) the Pentagon is apparently set to deploy an additional 5,000 U.S. troops to the U.S.-Mexico border. The number is a sharp increase from the 800-troop deployment that was reported last week, as the migrant caravan that has built up to about 7,000 people heads through Mexico toward the United States. Troops would be sent from Texas, Arizona and California.

The caravan of approximately 7,000 migrants is trekking northward through Mexico with the goal of entering the U.S. Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico have failed to stop the caravan so far, prompting President Donald Trump to announce he would follow through with his threat and begin cutting foreign aid to those countries.

“The assault on our country at our Southern Border, including the Criminal elements and DRUGS pouring in, is far more important to me, as President, than Trade or the USMCA. Hopefully Mexico will stop this onslaught at their Northern Border. All Democrats fault for weak laws.
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Large groups of men marching to a border, led by a foreign flag, are not refugees seeking assistance but an invasion by a foreign Army.

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:

A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

At Least 46 Oregon Residents Have Been Ordered to Surrender Their Firearms

"At least 46 Oregon residents have been ordered to surrender their firearms as a result of a new law that allows for 'extreme risk protection orders.' These are the red flag laws... these protective orders will deprive citizens of their legally owned and legally purchased property even if it turns out that the petitioner had bad reasons for requesting it. Ripe for abuse and a total bastardization of due process." —Dana Loesch
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Jury Sides with Olympia Police in 2014 Excessive Force Case

According to the Olympian, October 25, 2018, a jury in Tacoma this week ruled in favor of Olympia police in a civil case alleging police used excessive force during a 2014 incident.

In May 2014, Tyrone Johnson of Spanaway was working late at CenturyLink on Martin Way East when police came in with guns drawn and put him in handcuffs, according to his claim. The claim accuses six Olympia Police Department employees of misconduct: Officers Ryan Donald, George Clark, Jonathan Hazen, Eric Henrichsen and Randy Wilson, and Sgt. Matthew Renschler. Donald is already under investigation in the shooting of Bryson Chaplin and Andre Thompson during a May 21 altercation. The two men were suspected of shoplifting from the west Olympia Safeway.

A police spokesman at the time said officers believed burglars were inside the building. But an attorney for Johnson, who is African-American, argued their actions were racially motivated and traumatic for Johnson.

“Here is an African-American man who had every right to be there,” Grant said. “He was dressed in his uniform and driving a company car, and he was still subjected to this. If my client had acted differently, he may not be alive.”

Johnson sued Olympia police and the city for $1 million, arguing the detention violated his civil rights. The case went to trial in federal court in Tacoma this month.

In its verdict Tuesday, the jury found that the officers’ actions did not constitute excessive force.
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The jury no doubt made the correct decision in this case, but we are left with the question of why this ended up in a suit against the department and the city in the first place. Was Mr. Johnson hoping for a large payday from the city? Maybe, or maybe he really did feel that the conduct of the police officers was excessive.

It can be difficult for a person who has done nothing wrong to understand why the police are pointing guns at him. Why he is being placed in handcuffs, and why after the police determined that Mr. Johnson had done nothing wrong did they treat it like it was no big deal.

The Olympia police officers in this case did nothing wrong, and the jury's decision confirms that. But, after being held at gunpoint by several police officers, it may have been difficult for Mr. Johnson, and others like him, to understand why the police did what they did.

In any case where there is a use of force by police (i.e. display of a firearm) against a person who has done nothing wrong, a follow-up call from the Chief (or other senior department official) to answer questions about the officer's actions and why they were necessary might just same a lot of time in the court room. (And maybe there was such a call, the article doesn't say. But, if you are a police officer, does your department have a policy on following up on use of force with the person against whom the force was directed?)

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

Missing Postmarks on Bombs Sent to Democrats. What Does It Mean?

 

 

 

 

In October 2018 there were multiple news reports about "bombs" being sent through the US Mail to prominent democrats and critics of President Trump. Some reports noted that the stamps on the packages were not canceled, and the Snopes web-site wrote that while it is USPS policy to cancel stamps on items processed by the USPS "Not every standard procedure is an absolute, especially when it comes to the U.S. Postal Service."  

 

Fair enough, if one of the packages supposedly sent through the mail failed to have canceled stamps, maybe the USPS just didn't follow procedure on that package. And, ABC News has noted that: “While some have made note of the fact that the devices were not postmarked, multiple officials have said this was not uncommon, and that because of the soft packaging they could not go through automated sorting machines to have their postage canceled.”

 

But, what does it mean when none of the packages have canceled stamps?  

 

(I recently received a couple of items in soft packages, with postage stamps on the plastic bag the items were sent in, and the stamps all had postmarks.)

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Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

Cop Stuck with Dirty Needle at Seattle Park, Fears Disease Diagnosis

A police officer was stuck in the foot with a dirty needle while walking through a Seattle park on patrol this past Monday. Now, he’s receiving intense treatment to protect him from diseases, including HIV and Hepatitis, renewing concerns over police and resident safety in Seattle parks.

“This officer was simply walking through the grassy field of a city park, near where children were playing, when he stepped on the needle, which was hidden in the grass,” said Sgt. Rich O’Neil, vice president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG). “The officer was taken to the hospital and is now undergoing ongoing, debilitating treatment to prevent HIV and other diseases.”

According to SPOG, the officer was on a routine walk through of Baker Park, a tiny residential park in the Crown Hill neighborhood. As the officer was walking, he felt a sharp pain between his toes that became so strong, he wasn’t able to stand.

Upon inspection, the officer saw a needle hub on the sole of his work boot. After removing the needle, the officer and his partner immediately traveled to a nearby hospital, along with the needle, so that it could be tested.

“The men and women of the Seattle Police Department put themselves on the line every day and one of the hazards of working in public safety is the risk of injury,” said Sgt Sean Whitcomb of the SPD.

Just weeks ago, former FBI operative and current Seattle City Council candidate Naveed Jamali, was walking in Seattle, near the waterfront, when his young children found needles and used condoms in the open.  (My Northwest, October 26, 2018)

Discarded needles from the use of illegal drugs is a significant problem in Seattle. There are an estimated 18,000-20,000 injection drug users (IDU) who live in King County. In Washington State, 10.7% of all adults are in need of substance abuse treatment, yet in King County, 69.6% of adults in need of treatment do not receive it. In the City of Seattle, it is estimated that 46-70% of homeless women and men report having substance abuse issues.
Information about the King County Needle Exchange program can be found here.

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.