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Hackers Use Fake Emergency Requests to Steal Data from Apple, Meta and Others
11 days ago
- Hackers tricked companies like Apple, Meta, and Discord into handing over user data using fake emergency data requests (EDR).
- Criminals exploit compromised law enforcement email accounts to send forged EDRs with real names and signatures, appearing legitimate.
- Companies often verify requests via valid domains but lack specific tools, leading to quick compliance (e.g., within 30 minutes).
- Discord, Apple, and Meta have been targeted since early 2021, with some complying despite later discovering the compromised accounts.
- A privacy service like Bitdefender's Digital Identity Protection can help users manage digital footprints and receive breach notifications.
LAPD lets contract with surveillance giant Flock expire
8 days ago
- LAPD will not renew its contract with Flock Safety due to civil liberties and privacy concerns.
- Flock's network includes at least 80,000 cameras that scan license plates for police and federal agencies.
- Other U.S. cities have also ended deals with Flock over privacy and surveillance issues.
- Flock cameras have faced backlash, including vandalism and unauthorized reinstallations.
- Errors with license plate readers have led to wrongful police stops, detentions, and arrests.
- Security lapses exposed Flock cameras and data, raising concerns about hacking and data privacy.
- Flock expressed surprise at the contract end, claiming it could address misconceptions.
Texas wins court order to suspend domain name for violating age-verification law
4 days ago
- Attorney General Ken Paxton secured a court order to cut off the pornographic website motherless.com's domain name operation for failing to protect children from harmful sexual content, setting a precedent for enforcing age-verification laws.
- In April 2024, Paxton sued the site's owner, Kick Online Entertainment, for violating Texas age-verification law, obtaining a default judgment and permanent injunction, but the company ignored it and continued publishing material accessible to minors.
- A court-ordered writ now directs Verisign to lock the domain, allowing release only if a $9.14 million bond is posted and age verification compliant with Texas law is implemented, along with paying civil penalties.
- Paxton stated this establishes a precedent to strip websites of domains for ignoring laws that harm children with pornography, emphasizing protection involves shutting down non-compliant sites and ongoing action against such websites.
- The writ shows Texas can hold foreign operators accountable beyond borders and will use legal mechanisms like domain attachment writs to enforce laws and prevent companies from profiting by exposing children to harmful content.
The Chickens and the Bulls (2012)
6 days ago
- In July 1965, Detective James McDonnell arrested John Aitken for impersonating a police officer at Grand Central Station, leading to a confession about a large-scale gay extortion ring.
- The extortion ring, known as 'Chickens and the Bulls,' involved impersonators posing as vice squad detectives who blackmailed closeted gay men, including prominent figures like a Navy admiral, generals, a congressman, and celebrities.
- The ring operated across the U.S. for nearly a decade, extorting over $2 million from thousands of victims by threatening to expose their homosexuality.
- Investigations by the NYPD and FBI, led by McDonnell and others, broke the ring in 1965-1966, with prosecutors like Robert Morgenthau and Andrew Maloney working to protect victims' identities and avoid public exposure.
- Key ringleaders included John Pyne, Sherman Kaminsky, and Edward 'Skull' Murphy, who later became a gay activist and community icon after cooperating with authorities.
- Victims often refused to testify due to fear of exposure, with some suffering severe consequences, such as Admiral William Church's suicide after being confronted.
- The case marked a shift in law enforcement, as authorities set aside homophobia to treat victims as crime victims, leading to convictions and the end of NYPD entrapment practices.
- Media coverage was discreet to avoid outing victims, though the New York Times highlighted the ring's scope in 1966, reflecting societal homophobia.
- Edward Murphy, after his arrest, became a Stonewall figure and AIDS activist, symbolizing the transformation in gay rights post-case.
- The ring's downfall resulted from police persistence, victim cooperation, and sensitive handling, with many perpetrators pleading guilty to avoid public trials.

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#law enforcement

Hackers Use Fake Emergency Requests to Steal Data from Apple, Meta and Others

LAPD lets contract with surveillance giant Flock expire

Texas wins court order to suspend domain name for violating age-verification law

The Chickens and the Bulls (2012)