#source protection

[weetweetie]

It was. I got to shake Nelson Mandela's hand and see Boris Yeltsin falling down drunk. I was 40 feet away when Rabin shook Arafat's hand. https://t.co/zTgrV8helE

— Claude Taylor (@TrueFactsStated) 7 May 2017

[technariumas]

Security and source protection workshop for journalists

We’re excited to announce that Quinn Norton -- a journalist, writer, activist -- is coming to Technarium to give a two-day intensive training for journalists/activists on April 29th-30th, 28th-29th.  We changed the dates to accommodate the people with dayjobs.

Neither of us believes in ready-made security recipes (you know, the ”Use Signal. Use Tor” mantra), so we’ll start with the basic digital literacy -- how the networks work, what a network can see, how to avoid them seeing you, what is cryptography, malware, phishing, etc. Then we’ll move forward to the practical side -- we’ll play games, model situations, learn to use different tools. Most importantly, the participants will get an understanding of the threats they can face and confidence to decide on the right tools to use.

The event is in English and for registered participants only (we’ll have 10-20 places available). If you’re interested, please send us (opit(ą)technarium.lt, PGP:B89F16B5) your name and a couple of sentences of why such training might be meaningful for the work you’re doing.

The training is free of charge, given on a voluntary basis. On the other hand, if you or your organisation can contribute and help cover the travel costs/local expenses, any amount would be really appreciated.

More info: Quinn Norton is a writer who likes to hang out in the dead end alleys and rough neighborhood of the Internet, where bad things can happen to defenseless little packets. They are also places were new freedoms and poetries are born, and run riot over the network. She started studying hackers in 1995, after a wasted youth of Usenet and BBSing. These days, Quinn is a journalist, published in Wired, The Atlantic, Maximum PC, and more. She covers science, technology, copyright law, robotics, body modification, and medicine, but no matter how many times she tries to leave, she always comes back to hackers. Selected writings and talks by Quinn Norton: https://medium.com/message/seeing-like-a-network-114c5a13fe0d#.vlxsooey4 https://medium.com/@quinnnorton/the-problem-with-slack-854adeef9154 https://backchannel.com/love-in-the-time-of-cryptography-dd3a74193ffb https://medium.com/@quinnnorton/teen-vogue-on-message-security-2a46e8d41801

https://www.wired.com/2012/12/a-eulogy-for-occupy/ https://medium.com/@quinnnorton/source-protection-in-2017-a-starter-guide-d44b20f2af2d https://medium.com/quinn-norton https://www.wired.com/author/quinnnorton/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voA7Uz7uABE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkjrbK3DyRM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiE6aH_y7NU

[sameerpadania]

There is still contention over the definition of the word journalist, and concerns that any attempt to enshrine reporters' privilege could make those that don't fit precisely even more vulnerable. Republican Sen. John Cornyn and many conservative pundits have opposed the bill on the basis it could disadvantage bloggers and other non-traditional journalists. It also has an exception for situations involving future threats to national security. The news organizations supporting the bill note that it has a "safety valve" for bloggers and others who might slip through the cracks, because it allows a judge to declare someone a covered journalist. "This bill has judicial oversight, that extra person to say that if it quacks like a duck and walks like a duck, then it's a duck," Cuillier said.

Pressure, potential for a federal shield law - Journalism activists say protection for reporters is long overdue | Columbia Journalism Review

[sameerpadania]

If it's near impossible for sources to contact journalists securely because of mass surveillance – while already in a climate where whistleblowers are likely to be aggressively hunted down – we may see this flow of information between source and journalist run dry. Scandals like those that have emerged over the past year will never come to light, and we'll be kept in the dark as to what our governments are actually up to, with no opportunity to question or challenge their actions. This affects everyone, including those comfortable with mass surveillance.

The Future of Journalism in an Age of Government Surveillance | VICE

[sameerpadania]

By storing mass data for long periods, the NSA could develop the capability to recreate a reporter’s research, retrace a source’s movements and listen in on past communications, King warns. “It could soon be possible to uncover sources with such ease as to render meaningless any promise of confidentiality a journalist may attempt to provide – and if an interaction escapes scrutiny in the first instance, it could be reconstructed later.”

NSA actions pose 'direct threat to journalism' leading watchdog warns | World news | theguardian.com