Don't Let Google Close the Book on Reader Privacy

Image courtesy http://i.zdnet.com

Below is a brilliant action alert update on the online civil liberties group EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) regarding monitoring, database building and general loopholes in online privacy laws with regards to downloading of digital books (ebooks). If you are one of the many people (just like me) who absolutely love ebooks and want your downloading history and privacy to be protected, please go to https://secure.eff.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=433 and demand that the Google book search service should protect your privacy rights online.

Details given below from the EFF website:

Google is poised to radically expand its book service, monitoring the digital books you search, the pages you read, how long you spend on various pages, and even what you write down in the margins. Google could then combine your reading habits with other information it has about you from other Google services, creating a massive "digital dossier" about you, your interests, and your concerns. With numerous reports of government efforts to compel online and offline booksellers to turn over records about readers, the time is now for Google to pledge to protect reader privacy.

You shouldn't be forced to pay for digital books with your privacy. Tell Google it needs to develop a robust privacy policy that gives you at least as much privacy in books online as you have in your neighborhood library or bookstore. Google must:

• Protect your reading records from government and third party fishing expeditions by responding only to properly-issued warrants and court orders, and by letting you know if someone has demanded access to information Google has collected about you.
• Make sure that you can still browse and read anonymously by not forcing you to register or give personal information and by deleting any logging information for all services after a maximum of 30 days.
• Separate data related to Google Book Search from any other information the company collects about you, unless you give it express permission.
• Give you the ability to edit and delete any information collected about you, transfer books from one account to another without tracking, and hide your "bookshelves" or other reading lists from others with access to your computer.
• Keep Google Book Search information private from third parties like credit card processors, book publishers, and advertisers.

Email Google CEO Eric Schmidt TODAY and demand that the new Google Book Search service protect your privacy rights. Tell him that you won't pay for digital books with your privacy and that Google Book Search must include these basic safeguards to protect readers!




Again, please sign the online petition at https://secure.eff.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=433 and forward the same to Google CEO Eric Schmidt if you want Google to stop maintaining online user records permanently and using it for other purposes without our knowledge.

UPDATE: Apologies- it seems Google has already responded to the EFF report, here's the article:

Google Book Privacy Policy: Good Start, Much More Needed

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Oops!

It seems there's an html error when some click on 'Read Full Post' and the entire post appears not once, but twice.

I hope this hiccup will be dealt with asap- till then, please educate yourself and stay informed!

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Wake Up India

Why all Indians should say NO to the national biometric identification system proposed by the Government and Nandan Nilekani:

We are at a stage where our nation is witnessing a supposed ‘sweeping reformation movement’ insofar as the Government plan to introduce a mandatory biometric ID system to all 1.2 billion citizens is concerned.

This crucial moment must, in no way, go unnoticed and unquestioned for reasons other than national security; for it is this particular move by the current Government that could render us as the world’s largest and most populous surveillance society.





The biometric ID system plan, mooted by the ruling party and the former Chairman of Infosys Technologies Ltd. (now the Chairman of the new Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI)) Nandan Nilekani, was approved on the following grounds:

1. India’s legions of local bureaucrats currently issue at least 20 proofs of identity, including birth certificates, driving licenses and ration cards. None is accepted universally and moving from one state to the next can easily render a citizen officially invisible- a disastrous predicament for the millions of poor who rely on state handouts to survive. (Quoted from the Times of India article ‘India to issue all 1.2 billion citizens with biometric ID cards’ dated July 15, 2009.)
2. That the proposed biometric identification scheme would fight corruption, Government inadequacy/ies and various bureaucratic black holes and obstacles.
3. That the proposed identification system would curb illegal immigration, terrorism and criminal practices such as black marketing, smuggling, tax evasion and the like.
4. That this system would keep tabs on all citizens residing within India, thereby making it easier for the Government to monitor the movement of its billion plus citizens, whether within the nation's territories or outside.

Each biometric ID card will have a computer chip containing proof of identity, such as a fingerprint and iris/retina scan. Also contained within this chip will be any data pertaining to criminal records and/ or credit history, medical records, etc.

Mr. Nilekani has gone on record to say that all issued cards will be accessible from anywhere on the planet, courtesy an omnipresent online database containing our vital information.



An excerpt from the above mentioned Times of India article reads:

The danger, experts say, is that as one of the world’s largest stores of personal information, it will prove an irresistible target for identity thieves. “The database will be one of the largest that ever gets built,” Guru Malladi, a partner at Ernst & Young who was involved in an earlier pilot scheme, said. “It will have to be impregnable.”

Mr Nilekani will also have to mastermind a way of collecting trustworthy data. Only about 75 million people — or less than 7 per cent of the population — are registered to pay income tax. The Electoral Commission’s voter lists are thought to be largely inaccurate, not least because of manipulation by corrupt politicians.
He will also have to persuade as many as 60 government departments to co-operate. The Government has said that the first cards will be issued within 18 months. Analysts feel that it will take at least four years for the project to reach “critical mass”.

Such is the scale of the project that analysts believe India will have to develop a new electronics manufacturing base to supply information-storing servers, computer chips and card readers.

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I. Now, to explore the cold, hard facts:

Biometric ID cards and systems are NOT foolproof. Given below are online articles which demonstrate just how easy it is to misuse or hack into a ubiquitous online database:


(i) Biometric passport chips can be cloned in an hour, researcher warns

New microchipped passports designed to protect against identity theft by terrorists and criminals can easily be faked, it was claimed today.

Tests showed that personal information could be cloned and manipulated within an hour before being inserted into new chips, the Times reported.

The paper said it had exposed “security flaws” in the passport system by asking a researcher to clone the chips on two British passports and implant digital images of Osama bin Laden and a suicide bomber. The altered chips were then passed as genuine by reader software used by the UN agency that sets the standards for such e-passports.

The tests showed that bogus biometrics could be inserted in fake or blank passports, the Times alleged, saying the flaws also undermined assertions that 3,000 blank passports stolen last week could not be forged.

The identity and passport service at the Home Office remained confident, however, that the British biometric passport was “one of the most secure passports available”, saying no one had been able to demonstrate they could modify or change information contained in a chip, and that if they did, it would be obvious to the reader.

A spokesman added: “Continuing investment in biometric technology and enhanced security measures will help ensure that passport security is maintained now and in the future.”

The tests for the Times were conducted by Jeroen van Beek, a security researcher at Amsterdam university who can read, clone and alter microchips so they are accepted by the software recommended for use at airports by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.

Van Beek could not be contacted today, but the Times said he had used his own software, a publicly available programming code, a £40 card reader and two £10 radio frequency chips. Within an hour, he had cloned and altered chips so that they were ready to be planted in stolen or fake passports.

A baby boy’s passport chip was altered to contain an image of Bin Laden, and that of a 36-year-old woman was changed to hold a picture of Hiba Darghmeh, a Palestinian suicide bomber who killed three people in 2003. The identities had been chosen deliberately to demonstrate that neither van Beek nor the Times was trying to fake viable travel documents, the newspaper said.

Van Beek was quoted as saying: “We’re not claiming that terrorists will be able to do this to all passports today or that they will be able to do it tomorrow. But it does raise concerns over security that need to be addressed in a more public and open way.”

The Times said its tests also raised questions about the £4bn identity card scheme, which relied on similar technology. The plan could open more opportunities for criminals to match real information about clients , including fingerprints and pictures, with stolen identity details.

An international system exists under which faked chips could be spotted at border points because they would not match key codes when checked against an international database. However, only 10 of the 45 countries with e-passports have signed up to the system, and only five are using it.

The Home Office says it will use the code directory from the end of this year, but the Times claims fakes from countries that do not share key codes could go undetected.

by James Meikle
Wednesday August 06 2008 11:49 BST

(Source: http://www.infiniteunknown.net/2008/08/06/biometric-passport-chips-can-be-cloned-in-an-hour-researcher-warns/)





(ii) Researcher raises alarm about biometric hacking with "biologger" tool

While attempts to bypass biometric security measures are certainly nothing new, a researcher from London-based Information Risk Management is now raising an alarm about a new area of biometric hacking, and he's even gone so far as to release the source code for proof-of-concept tool to really drive the point home.

As PC World reports, IRM's Matthew Lewis has demonstrated what he describes as a "biologging" system, which actually intercepts and captures biometric data as it passes between the biometric scanner and the processing server, during which time it apparently isn't encrypted on many systems.

That, Lewis says, opens up the possibility of so-called "man-in-the-middle" attacks," although there is the slight problem that the biologger needs to actually be inserted into the network in order to do its thing. Even so, Lewis says that such dangers do exist, and he's hoping that the release of the tool will encourage manufacturers to beef up their security.


(Source: (http://www.engadget.com/2008/04/03/researcher-raises-alarm-about-biometric-hacking-with-biologger/)





(iii) Firms' biometrics records 'can be hacked'

…But will soon be as big as any national ID scheme.


By Computerworld UK
Published: 08:58 GMT, 19 March 08

The growing use of biometrics to identify individuals is "insecure and in need of immediate attention," according to an IT systems company.

Fujitsu Siemens said biometrics is increasingly being used in the business world to verify whether individuals really are who they say. By 2013, Fujitsu Siemens predicts biometric identity technology will be so widespread in the private sector that the number of people included would rival that of the proposed national ID schemes.

Within five years, 95 percent of the UK population will be identifiable through biometrics and other means.

But the tracking and monitoring of people could be a risk if security controls were not tightened up, the IT company said.

"From a security perspective, we have already seen that criminals can create a number of different personae for themselves and more methods of identification means more openings for them. Whether it's issued by a company or a government, once an individual can associate their biometric characteristics with an identity, they effectively own that identity," said David Pritchard, senior technology analyst.
"People are already carrying around several identifying documents or artifacts – car keys, passports, driving licences, bank cards," said Pritchard.

"Biometrics are being added to these items, making them uniquely identifiable and traceable to the individual."

The government recently commissioned a report in which former banker Sir James Crosby said that within five years people were likely to be carrying several biometric identifiers. In the report, Crosby called on the government to work with banks to create a universal ID assurance scheme, led by the private sector, which would result in a more secure system.

(Source: http://news.techworld.com/security/11748/firms-biometrics-records-can-be-hacked/)

This argument may well apply to any web based or computer system and not just biometrics, but does go to show that the biometric identification system can in no way be rendered foolproof.

If a central database is open to attacks from unknown sources, thus comprising personal security, why should the citizens of a nation agree to have themselves monitored via this system which cannot, again, guarantee complete safety of private records?

(iv) Researchers Hack Faces In Biometric Facial Authentication Systems

Feb 12, 2009 | 01:23 PM
By Kelly Jackson Higgins
DarkReading


A Vietnamese researcher will demonstrate at Black Hat DC next week how he and his colleagues were able to easily spoof and bypass biometric systems that authenticate users by scanning their faces.

The researchers cracked the biometric authentication embedded in Lenovo, Asus, and Toshiba laptops by spoofing the biometric systems with everything from a photo of the authorized user to brute-force hacking using fake facial images.

They successfully bypassed Lenovo's Veriface III, Asus' SmartLogon V1.0.0005, and Toshiba's Face Recognition 2.0.2.32 -- each set to its highest security level -- demonstrating vulnerabilities in the systems that let an attacker cheat them with phony photos of the legitimate user and gain access to the laptops.

These Windows XP and Vista laptops come with built-in webcams that work with the facial-recognition technology. This form of authentication is considered more convenient than fingerprint scans and more secure than traditional passwords. The software scans the user's face and stores the images and facial characteristics. Then the user can log in by scanning his or her face, which is then matched against the image data.

The researchers were able to bypass the authentication system not only by using a photo of the authorized user, but also by creating multiple phony facial images. "The mechanisms used by those three vendors haven't met the security requirements needed by an authentication system, and they cannot wholly protect their users from being tampered," the researchers wrote in their paper on the hack.

One of the researchers, Nguyen Minh Duc, manager of the application security department at the Bach Khoa Internetwork Security Center at Hanoi University of Technology, will demonstrate the hack at Black Hat, as well as the tool he and his colleagues developed.

"There is no way to fix this vulnerability," Duc says. "Asus, Lenovo, and Toshiba have to remove this function from all the models of their laptops ... [they] must give an advisory to users all over the world: Stop using this [biometric] function."

An attacker can edit and adjust the lighting and angle of a phony photo to ensure the system will accept it, according to the researchers. "Due to the fact that a hacker doesn't know exactly how the face learnt by the system looks like, he has to create a large number of images...let us call this method of attack 'Fake Face Bruteforce.' It is just easy to do that with a wide range of image editing programs at the moment," they wrote in their paper.

"One special point we found out when studying those algorithms is that all of them work with images that have already been digitalized and gone through image processing. Consequently, we think that this is the weakest security spot in face recognition systems, generally, and access control system of the three vendors, particularly."

II. Treat the cause, not the symptom:

One of the excuses put forth by the Government and by Nandan Nilekani to support the formation of a national biometric ID system is that it will serve as an adequate means to fight corruption.

This is NOT the solution to the problem.

To fight corruption, the Government should not permit any member with a criminal record to become a Member of Parliament (MP). All politicians that violate any law under the Indian Constitution should be dealt with in the right manner and be punished for his/her wrongdoing. Corruption cannot be stopped by way of enforcing a centralized, national ID system and comprising the privacy and security of over a billion Indians.

To tackle the corruption menace, we must solve the problem in the initial stages itself. Prevention is better than cure, and the culmination of a police state is not an apt cure at all.

There are several politicians in the Government today who have been charged with crimes ranging from bribery to murder; yet, only a few are given a sentence for their crimes- after which, most are released from prison after using their political might to conduct further gross injustice and misuse their freedom/s under law.

We do not believe a biometric state will curb Government corruption. Rather, this will only keep it under wraps and give citizens a false sense of security.

III. Violation of the Rights to Privacy, Freedom, and Liberty:

As the civil liberties and anti-biometric site NO2ID (http://www.no2id.net/index.php) puts it:


"The 'database state' is what we call the tendency to try to use computers to manage society by watching people. There are many interlocking government plans that do this. Together they mean officials poking into your private life more than ever before.

Biometric devices violate privacy. This is a plain and simple fact.

After all, biometric identifications are only as fair and objective as the political intentions behind them.

Constant surveillance is one aspect of this so called ‘unique identification system’ that cannot be ruled out, because we will not have access to this online database ourselves. A Government body will monitor this central system. The argument can be made that the government does not have the right to the information that our bodies reveal about us, and that their databases are permeable. Civil rights advocates, unions and groups worldwide have protested the formation of a global biometric network on these grounds.

Moreover, once in Government hands, the information can be used for a wide variety of purposes and even be used by the private sector. The ‘information gathering process’ would include individual checking and numbering of the population, marking many personal details as "registrable facts" which are to be disclosed and constantly updated- connecting it to a central database which would be ‘open’ for use across the private and public sectors.

In short, this amounts to data-sharing between organisations on an unprecedented scale.

The propagation of Worldwide Biometric Identification Systems and their blatant invasion on privacy and liberty have been vilified by civil liberties advocates as the next step towards the formation of a covert totalitarian society, a la George Orwell’s 1984."



In the West-

Despite recent developments in the area of biometric border crossing and travel document applications, there is almost no legislation in the United States specifically addressing requirements for privacy in biometric systems. In some cases, biometric data is treated as a type of personal or sensitive information, and thus is subject to existing privacy regulation. In such legislation, however, biometrics may not even be explicitly mentioned.

In the European Union, the EU Data Protection Directive, enacted in October 1995, states that individuals have the right to control the collection and use of their personal data. It also requires all EU member states to protect the privacy of its citizens by passing legislation that regulates the way organizations can collect, use and share personal data.



As an article on http://www.rfidgazette.org/2005/03/rfid_privacy_is.html states:

"As technology advances, the potential for privacy infringement does as well. A more recent development is a study which reveals that RFID (Radio Frequency Identification, which is already prevalent in some nations; RFID tags are small computer chips connected to miniature antennae that can be placed on physical objects. The chips have enough memory to hold unique identification codes for all manufactured items produced worldwide. Separate RFID readers allow retailers to quickly read the tags to streamline the shipping and inventory process) already has the capability to determine the distance of a tag from the reader location.

With such technology already available, it is not difficult to imagine a situation in which retailers could determine the location of individuals within their store, and thus target specific advertisements to that customer based upon past purchases. In effect, that store would be creating a personal log of your past purchases, your shopping patterns, and ultimately your behavioral patters.

While such information gathering would be considered intrusive enough by many consumer's standards, the danger that such information could be sold to other retailers, (similar to the way such profiles are currently sold regarding Internet commerce), could create potentially devastating information vulnerabilities.

While some RFID critics have pointed out that the technology could lead to some sort of corporate "Big Brother," there is a more widespread concern that allowing RFID to develop without legal restrictions will eliminate the possibility for consumers to refuse to give such information to retailers."




The Indian Government has no plans to install an RFID system as of new, but the possibility cannot be ruled out. We are already stepping in a surveillance society, what’s next?

The Government has NOT made a case.

There is no evidence the system will produce the stated benefits. Less liberty does not imply greater security.

Below are relevant points as put forth by the movement NO2ID which debate arguments favouring biometrics, and explain why a national biometric database would not serve the greater good of the people-

IV. Terrorism

ID does not establish intention. Competent criminals and terrorists will be able to subvert the identity system. Random outrages by individuals cannot be stopped. Some Ministers in the USA agree that ID cards will not prevent atrocities.

A blank assertion that the Government would find it helpful is not an argument that would be entertained for fundamental change in any other sphere of government but national security.

Where is the evidence?

Research suggests there is no link between the use of identity cards and the prevalence of terrorism, and in no instance has the presence of an identity card system been shown a significant deterrent to terrorist activity. Experts attest that ID unjustifiably presumed secure actually diminishes security.

V. Illegal Immigration

People will still enter India using foreign documents- genuine or forged- and ID cards are no deterrents to people smugglers than passports and visas. Employers already face substantial penalties for failing to obtain proof of entitlement to work, yet there are only a handful of prosecutions a year.

VI. Unchecked Executive Powers

The Government seeks wide discretion over the future shape of the scheme. There are several types of regulatory power for future Ministers that would change the functions and content of the system ad lib. The scope, application and possible extension are extra-parliamentary decisions, even if nominally subject to approval.

Data entered into the Central Database is arbitrarily presumed to be accurate. Meanwhile, the Government gets the power to enter information without informing the individual; however, there is no duty to ensure that such data is accurate, and no criterion of accuracy has been established yet.

Personal identity is implicitly made wholly subject to state control.

Even during the so-called "voluntary phase", the Government can add any person to the Register without their consent, and categories of individuals might be compelled selectively to register using powers under any future legislation. Anyone newly applying for a passport or other "designated document", or renewing an existing one, will automatically have to be interviewed and submit all required details. This is less a phased introduction than a clandestine one.

There is to be no choice.

As proposed, the National Identity Scheme Commissioner would have very limited powers and is excluded from considering a number of key issues. He would not even report directly to Parliament. The reliance on administrative penalties means severe punishments may be inflicted without a judicial process. The onus is on the individual to seek relief from the courts, at a civil standard of proof. Those who most require the protection of a fair trial are the least likely to be able to resort to legal action.

Without reference to the courts or any appeals process, the Government may cancel or require surrender of an identity card, without a right of appeal, at any time. Given that the object of the scheme is that an ID card will be eventually required to exercise any ordinary civil function, this amounts to granting the Government the power of civic life and death.

The requirement that all those registered notify all changes in details risks creating the means of tracking and persecution through improper use of the database.

A variety of persons have good reason to conceal their identity and whereabouts- for example: those fleeing domestic abuse; victims of "honour" crimes; witnesses in criminal cases; those at risk of kidnapping; undercover investigators; refugees from oppressive regimes overseas; those pursued by the press; those who may be terrorist targets, and so forth.

The seizure of ID cards (like benefit-books and passports now) could become a means for extortion by corrupt officials, politicians, gangsters, and others who could misuse such information for their benefit.

VII. Specific, ‘new’ threats arising from the formation of a national, central computer database:

There have been vapid ‘assurances’ made to the citizens of India that, in fact, underlines the potential for threat.

The system offers a ready-made police-state tool for a future government less trustworthy than the current one. The individual in charge of this database could create classifications of individuals to be registered as he/she sees fit, introducing onerous duties backed by severe penalties for fractions of the population. Religious or ethnic affiliation, for example, could be added to the Register by regulation- or be inferred by cross-referencing other information using a National Identity Register Number or associated data.

ID cards in practice would provide a pretext for those in authority- public or private- to question individuals who stand out for reasons of personal appearance or demeanour. This is likely to exacerbate divisions in society.

Is there not a great risk that those who feel at the margins of society- the somewhat disaffected- will be driven into the arms of extremists?

By making ordinary life dependent on the reliability of a complex administrative system, the scheme makes myriad small errors potentially catastrophic. There's no hint from the government how it will deal with inevitably large numbers of misidentifications and errors, or deliberate attacks on or corruption of what would become a critical piece of national infrastructure.

A failure in any part of the system at a check might deny a person access to his or her rights or property or to public services, with no immediate solution or redress- "license to live" withdrawn.

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Please do not laugh this off as a ridiculous conspiracy theory. Let me assure of you one thing: the day you will either become nothing more than a biometric ID card is the day you will remain under the watchful eye of the Indian Government. 24/7; since microchipped IDs are very easily traceable, they will know where you are, what you are doing (very probable), how much money you spent, what you spent it on, what you are shopping for, and yes- whether you are protesting against the Government.

This is not something to brush off; and neither am I trying to scare anyone reading this. Please note that seemingly harmless measures taken by the Government more often than not lead to more stringent policies, and a slow but sure formation of a police state- which will eventually lead our freedoms and basic human rights being infringed upon and misused.

Do realise that in order to complete this mammoth project, the Government is wasting crores of taxpayer money- money that belongs to you and me, to monitor its citizens and seek a solution that is not infallible in the first place.

Solutions to the problems plaguing the Government can be dealt with on a smaller scale, by addressing said issues and ‘nipping the bud’, instead of allowing the problems to escalate and covertly breach the rights all of us are born with.

I request you to familiarize yourself with George Orwell's ‘1984’ if you haven’t already read it- simply because it is an eerie precursor to what is already happening in countries across the world, and it's astonishing as to how blind we have all become and have failed to realise that fiction is actually becoming fact.

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VIII. REFERENCES:

For the skeptics, cynics and naysayers, I have compiled a list of must-read links which explore the truth behind the biometric/microchipping agenda:


1. The following are resources on electronic privacy issues-


Advocacy Organizations:

Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC)
http://www.epic.org/

Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) : Privacy
http://www.eff.org/Privacy/

Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) : Guide to Online Privacy
http://www.cdt.org/privacy/guide/

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) : Privacy Technology
http://www.aclu.org/privacy/

Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial Email
http://www.cauce.org/

Consumers Against Supermarket Privacy Invasion and Numbering
http://www.nocards.org/


General Privacy and Security:

Federal Citizen Information Center : Privacy Resources
http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/privacy_resources.htm

U.S. Public Interest Research Groups : Financial Privacy and Security
http://www.uspirg.org/financial-privacy-security

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) : Kidz Privacy
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/kidzprivacy/index.html


RFID:

Spychips : RFID Privacy Issues and News
http://www.spychips.com/

Radio-frequency identification (Wikipedia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RFID



Identity Theft:

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) : Identity Theft
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/

Consumer Sentinel : ID Theft Data Clearinghouse
http://www.consumer.gov/sentinel/idtchart.htm

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse : Identity Theft Resources
http://www.privacyrights.org/identity.htm


Real ID:

ACLU's Real Nightmare
http://www.realnightmare.org/

REAL ID Act (Wikipedia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/REAL_ID_Act

FAQ: How Real ID will affect you (CNET News.com)
http://news.com.com/2102-1028_3-5697111.html?tag=st.util.print

National ID and REAL ID Act (EPIC)
http://www.epic.org/privacy/id_cards/



2. The following are articles and videos gathered from the internet. These give us a better perspective on the global biometric and RFID microchip phenomenon-

Microchip Mind Control, Implants And Cybernetics: http://www.rense.com/general17/imp.htm

Why advocates and lawmakers are concerned about involuntary chipping: http://www.antichips.com/is-the-threat-real.htm

Microchip Cancer Report: http://www.rense.com/general79/micro.htm

Spychips & Biometrics: How Major Corps and Govt. Plan to track your every move: http://www.spychips.com/

The NWO Observer Blog: http://nwoobserver.wordpress.com/tag/microchips-in-humans/

NOT SO SAFE AFTER ALL- Biometric passport chips can be cloned in an hour, researcher warns: http://www.infiniteunknown.net/2008/08/06/biometric-passport-chips-can-be-cloned-in-an-hour-researcher-warns/

Biometrics Explained: http://www2.ministries-online.org/thenewworldorder/

Welcome to the Cashless Society Control Grid (and other must read articles): http://www.infowars.com/cashless_society.htm

List of microchip-Big Brother-biometrics related articles for you to read in detail: http://www.illuminati-news.com/microchip.htm

Katherine Albrecht- Online Radio Host who actually makes a difference: http://www.katherinealbrecht.com/

Biometric Scanners for Kiddies: http://infowars.net/articles/September2006/050906Scanners.htm

Media Propaganda about Verichip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-PIyL3ke24&mode=related&search=

The IBM - Third Reich and Verichip Connection with Suspense music Soundtrack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2udoNmQkR4

CNet News: http://news.com.com/Patients%2C+doctors+staying+away+from+implantable+RFID+chips/2100-11746_3-6158701.html?tag=nefd.top

SlashDot Blog Entries: http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/06/02/1514252&tid=158
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/06/02/1514252&tid=158
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/06/02/1514252
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/08/06/1452259

Blog Entry (Spanish): http://www.eltiempo.com/participacion/blogs/default/un_articulo.php?id_blog=3263466&id_recurso=450003583

http://www.enter.com.co/ente_secc/ente_actu/noticias/ARTICULO-PRINTER_FRIENDLY-1002460-1779811.html


Colombian immigrants affair( Spanish): http://www.anncol.org/es/site/doc.php?id=2022




3. Facebook groups around the globe which protest biometric and/or RFID ID systems-

-UK Citizens against BioMetric Cards and RFID

-Say NO 2 National Biometric Database in Israel

-I'll go to prison before I agree to a biometric ID card

-Manchester says NO to ID cards...

-Say NO to ID cards.

-World United Against VERICHIP / NO AL VERICHIP

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Keeping tabs around the world-

• Compulsory national identity cards are used in about 100 countries including Germany, France, Belgium, Greece, Luxembourg, Portugal and Spain

• ID cards are not used in the US, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, the Irish Republic or Nordic countries
• German police can detain people who are not carrying their ID card for up to 24 hours

• The Bush Administration resisted calls for an identity card in the US after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001

• In Australia street protests in the 1980s forced the Government to abandon its plans for a card

• Plastic cards are favoured over paper documents because they are harder to forge

• Most identity cards contain the name, sex, date of birth and a unique number for the holder

• South Korean, Brazilian, Italian and Malaysian ID cards contain fingerprints. Cards in some countries contain information on any distinguishing marks of the holder

• Objections to card schemes have focused on the cost and invasion of privacy

• In the European Union some cards can be used instead of a passport for European travel.

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WHO WATCHES THE WATCHMEN?

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Obsessive Twitterism

Image courtesy alntv.wordpress.com

As part of my copy test given by Leo Burnett, I was asked to come up with a New Age religion or philosophy.

Since my brain dead self couldn't come up with anything serious, the remnants of my now passive creative mind conjured up a religion aptly named Obsessive Twitterism.








Loosely based on real life incidents, this religion is by far the most dangerous New Age movement taking over our hapless human brothers and sisters with the maximum number of converts.

By the time you've read this crap, Twitter would have had at least 3 new brainwashed recruits.

Beware, the wrath of the Blue Fucking Bird named Tweet- Tweet- Twitter.


(note: the people who were supposed to 'judge' this apparently loved it, so if you have a problem with this post shove something up your ass- now).

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I. Introduction to Obsessive Twitterism:

Obsessive Twitterism is a religion which has become increasingly popular since its inception in 2006 and is witnessing a massive fan following of devotees, worshippers and blind followers who succumb to mass brainwashing, conformism and the need for the development of a larger-than-life internet persona which compensates for an otherwise dull, purposeless and tasteless life.

Twitterism as a movement was founded by a Supreme God or Creator simply named Jack Dorsey, who in his earthly form masquerades as a software engineer and ‘entrepreneur’ and is otherwise symbolized in popular culture as a saccharine sweet, innocent looking blue bird who resides in the heavens and feeds off the energy emanated via the vast, tentacled global internet network of his minions.

Image courtesy http://michaelfoody.com

Lord Twitter (Jack Dorsey) promotes ritual worship and blesses discontent, depressed and hapless souls by enabling them to communicate with like individuals and himself in 140 characters or less in his abode http://twitter.com/ . This is the most important feature of Twitterism, as Lord Twitter is a God that does not have the time, patience or empathy to read billions of heartfelt prayers, ramblings and musings which would otherwise flow on endlessly- paragraph after paragraph, page after page.

Keep it short and sweet, he insists.

Twitter as a service has opened its arms and its heart to worldwide SMS services, blogs, other social networking (read rival religion) sites and basically the whole internet, thereby subtly coercing and encouraging people to pour their deepest, darkest feelings, troubles, opinions and daily lessons in an easy-to-use, and even easier to access manner in case they are unable to place themselves at his feet in his virtual abode. Followers can take part in an outreach program and support one another (friends, family and even strangers) by posting both relevant and irrelevant ruminations, thus boosting their sense of false security and carefully moulding their self confidence and morale in the virtual world.

Lord Twitter encourages people to ‘look deep within themselves’ and tap their psyche by simply answering a profound, universal question:

What are you doing?

As devotees struggle to find answers in their quest for deliverance or Moksha, they find that this question has seemingly different answers with each passing second, minute, hour, day and week. However, if a devotee ceases to answer Lord Twitter’s question for over a week, he/ she is deemed blasphemous and detrimental to the Obsessive Twitterism movement, where enlightened, awakened souls are found to be those who devote every ounce of their energy and being into updating their Twitter space, even sacrificing basic human needs such as food, sex, sleep and shelter.

Contrary to what its name might imply, Obsessive Twitterism is not disadvantageous to the general well being and happiness of its huge devotee base; rather, the more you give yourself to Lord Twitter and your fellow human beings in the Twitter abode, the more you will be blessed and given a Demi God status by the great Supreme Being himself.

This Demi God status is achieved once Lord Twitter sends you his wishes and blesses you with the love, gratitude and unconditional love and respect of over 500 ‘followers’. These minions follow, observe and look up to every move you make and thrive on eagerly awaiting your next update, as you sermonize and preach to the world about your heartfelt feelings, thoughts and current state of being.

II. Features and/or Requirements:

1. To become an Obsessive Twatterer (the name given to those who follow the Twitter religion and worship Lord Twitter unconditionally, blindly and endlessly), you must first enroll yourself in the Twitter Temple or abode, which exists at the domain http://twitter.com/ . After you sign up to receive the blessings of the Supreme Being, you must vow never to exceed your daily prayer/post limit which has been finalized by the Lord himself at 140 characters only.

2. Twatterers must then update the Lord and let their fellow devotees know exactly what they are doing- whether they are shaving their beards with the newest Philips electric power razor, having a bad hair day, throwing up on their best friends couch, eating toxic waste, shopping for all things pink, or just secretly spying on their friends in the Twitter universe. Failure of posting constant updates will decrease your chances of becoming a Twitter Demi God, which will be a big blow to your online persona in the long term.

3. You must visit a celebrity (read Advanced Demi God) Twitter page at least once in your Twitter life and get addicted to their daily musings, giving in to the irresistible urge to ‘know’ these superior souls who you otherwise cannot have access to owing to your useless life in the real world.

4. Business people, entrepreneurs, media people and just anyone with basic common sense must use the Twitter religion to promote their business, product, show, service and offerings shamelessly, urging non believers to ‘Follow them NOW!’ on Twitter, thereby ensuring that the Lord God gets more clueless individuals to worship him and his blessed space while secretly fortifying their wannabe Demi God status.

This practice is metaphorically known as ‘killing two Twitter birds with one stone’.

That actually killing any Twitter bird will be met with immediate spiritual and emotional death is another matter altogether.

5. When you have absolutely nothing to say or add to the cosmos in real life, say it on Twitter! Lord Twitter is an accepting, benevolent God who sees not what you say or do- just as long as you put it out there.

Example: “OMG OMG OMG! I’m gonna crap now! RIGHT NOW! At 8:15 in the morning! That’s sooooo cool! I’m usually a night crapper and this hasn’t happened to me in AGESSSS! Will update you guys on the consistency of my poop in a sec!”

6. Obsessive Twitterism has no room for those who view it as just another fad that will pass in due course of time. Those who believe so are met with blank stares, societal disapproval and humongous truckloads of pity, which later translates into cold shouldered disregard for said individual.

7. Obsessive Twitterism constantly, tirelessly and admirably promotes the notion of conformism and the need for approval in the virtual sphere, uniting human beings and making them one in their quest for oneness with the one true God, Lord Twitter. This unity is becoming more prevalent as the Twitter tentacles reach out to hundreds of nations across this vast planet, silently endorsing the veneration of a one true God and diluting people’s belief in other religions and spiritual ways of life. Obsessive Twitterism is indeed, monotheistic in nature.

8. This new religion welcomes people of all kinds- whether vegetarian or non-vegetarian, Satanist or Muslim, Goth or Bubblegum inspired, winner or loser, rich or poor, employed or unemployed, silent or over the top- there is room for everyone here, provided you bow down to the ways of this movement and chant ‘Twitter, Twitter’ or ‘Follow me!’ at least a hundred times in your short life, whether in reality or on the internet.

9. If the Twitter Temple seems to have hit a brick wall and ‘crashes’ or experiences a ‘down time’ either due to Lord Twitter’s unbridled anger at some sinners, the ‘laziness’ of the internet or the inability of the domain to carry the burden of over a billion ‘tweets’ and Twatterers, disciples are to mourn the momentary slaughter of their support program even if it is for a brief moment, contemplating on what they must have done to cause this devastating loss to their beloved way of life and subjecting themselves to temporary depression, uncontrollable rage and a submission into the abyss of doom, gloom and hysterical tears.

Candlelight vigils are to be held in such a case, with human beings consoling one another and observing at least a minute’s silence.

Image courtesy http://blissfullydomestic.com

10. Once you have been welcomed into this virtual Garden of Eden, you must live, breathe, work, eat and sleep Twitter, allowing the blood of Obsessive Twitterism to run through your otherwise parched veins and jeopardize your social, professional, and family life- thereby giving your Higher Self to a greater purpose in life:

A life blessed with the goodness and wholesomeness of a religion that feeds your constant need for appreciation.

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