Nov 26, 2008

More Stupid Cyber Security Tricks

Frank,
This popped up on my computer today. A certificate issued by our own cyber security team is marked as untrustworthy....
--Anonymous

Are we having fun yet?

Posted by at

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

The US intelligence community took a different route than LANS, with its; "A-Space," for boosting their data- and information sharing between and within their agencies.

Short summary of "A-Space" from Wikipedia.org:

US intelligence community A-Space

The United States Intelligence Community A-Space is a project from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence´s (ODNI) Office of Analytic Transformation and Technology to develop a common collaborative workspace for all analysts from the USIC. That is accessible from common workstations and provides unprecedented access to interagency databases, a capability to search classified sources and the Internet simultaneously, web-based email, and collaboration tools accredited to the HUMINT Control System and Gamma Information Handling (HCS/G). The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) is the executive agent for building the first phase of A-Space. Initial operational capability was scheduled for December 2007. A-Space will go live on the government´s classified Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System Sept. 22, 2008.

A-Space is part of what the Director of National Intelligence has identified as a critical piece of "Analytic Transformation":

Analytic Transformation seeks to change how we approach analysis, how we interact with our customers and each other, and is one of the principal priorities of the Director of National Intelligence. US Intelligence is engaged in a fundamental transformation of the Analysis mission at the national level.

Within the analytic transformation program, there are several initiatives under the way in three areas:

1) enhancing the quality of analytic products,
2) managing the mission more effectively at a Community level, and
3) building more integrated analytic operations across the Intelligence Community (IC).

For contrast, see perceived limitations of CIA information technology at CIA Information Technology.

Contents [short summary]

1. Assumptions about improving collaboration among analysts.
2. Security.
3. Content.
3.1 Content management.
3.2 Content contribution.
3.2.1 Initial CIA contribution.
3.2.2 Tactical user needs.
3.2.3 Defense Intelligence Agency initial contribution.
3.3 Social Networking.
4. Cost.
5. References.

/---/

(//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US_intelligence_community_A-Space)

(Time´s [50] Best Inventions of 2008:

1. The Retail DNA Test.
5. The Large Hadron Collider [LHC].
10. The World´s Fastest Computer [Roadrunner, LANL, IBM.].
32. Facebook For Spies [A-Space].
[51.] Hyperion Power Module (HPM, Nuclear "battery," Dr. Otis "Pete" Peterson, LANL, Technology Transfer Division, HPG.))

11/26/08, 6:18 PM
Anonymous said...

The so called cyber security team at LANL is missing the easiest way to dissuade the Chinese and others from phishing and hacking. Create a huge number of virtual computers that are filled with disinformation. Flood the hackers with crap. They will soon give up, we'll be able to restore e-mail and web access, and LANL staff will be able to get back to work. As it is now, we sure aren't working efficiently, so what's to lose?

11/27/08, 7:08 AM
Anonymous said...

LANL has become a house of mirrors. Nothing is as it seems and an air of impermanence seems to permeate the place.

Who can you trust? Certainly not Bechtel. Not LANS. Not even NNSA. Maybe not even your own Division leaders.

Who can you trust? No one but yourself at this present moment. The lack of any sign of good leadership at LANL during this period in time is immense and profoundly disturbing. If you are not concerned about all this sad situation, then you are not paying attention.

11/27/08, 11:39 AM
Anonymous said...

We were told in a meeting to be aware of fake memos and emails, and an example was shown. The spelling and grammar had a few mistakes, and this was the tell-tale indicator that something wasn't right. One problem is,that some of the memo's and announcements on email to all-employees have similar bad grammar or spelling, so how are we to know??? If they can't spell, or make things readily understandable, my own policy is to delete first.
They must be fakes.

Few days ago, the government web link that is guiding the badge transition changed links, just after everyone was told to allow the old link through their filters from outside crap. Brilliant!

11/28/08, 11:49 AM
Anonymous said...

Aftet the recent "lans-llc.com" scheme, I think LANS is telling the employees to follow a new motto:

"Trust no one, not even us!"

However, this new motto isn't necessary because most LANL employees have already lost all trust in LANS.

11/28/08, 12:17 PM
Anonymous said...

Is there a mechanism in email to tag a message as "Refused, return to sender?" I can think of several internal email addressess I would like to automatically reflect back to them as refused

12/2/08, 7:47 PM
Anonymous said...

Now that all our PCs are made in China, could it be possible that there is a hidden "back door" into the system? How about a "phone home" feature? Would our cyber-security whizzes ever catch on? I don't think so.

For a variation on this theme, try Clancy's "The Bear and The Dragon," a good yarn, but too obvious in it's outcome.

12/2/08, 7:56 PM

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