Awesome project. Launch Tor from anywhere via USB Stick:

Link: Tor On A Stick

I know it’s been out for a bit now, but I wanted to give a short intro to this exciting project. Tor is an anonymnity network designed by the EFF. From the website:

Tor is a toolset for a wide range of organizations and people that want to improve their safety and security on the Internet. Using Tor can help you anonymize web browsing and publishing, instant messaging, IRC, SSH, and other applications that use the TCP protocol.

The tool works by bouncing all of your traffic through a set of encrypted links (called onion routers). The trick is that none of the hops know anything about the original source — they just pass the information along to the next link in the encrypted chain.

So if you ever find yourself desiring a system for communicating anonymously, do go check it out. Also consider giving as I do to the EFF in order to support projects like this one.

Here’s the overview page: http://tor.eff.org/overview.html

Here’s the download page: http://tor.eff.org/download.html

And here’s the documentation page: http://tor.eff.org/documentation.html

Edit: My buddy Ken told me eariler tonight that he’s sending his Skype traffic through Tor as well. Very cool; I’m all over it once I find the Skype proxy settings in the OS X client. :)

If you’ve been following my posts over the last few months, one of the main themes I’ve been touching on is the concept of giving back. This for me has equated so far to joining the Sierra Club and the EFF, but I intend to do much more than that.

Well, the EFF has a new program available now where professionals can volunteer to help with technical expertise. I think this is an outstanding opportunity for us all to lend a helping hand, and I encourage anyone who believes in what the EFF does to offer their help.

Here’s the link:

cooptechs@eff.org

Go here and sign the petition if you object to the Patritot Act and/or the proposed recent changes to it.:

The Patriot Act Petition

Well, I finally joined the Electronic Freedom Foundation. I’ve been wanting to do this for a while and I’m happy to have finally made good on the commitment.

I’m of the opinion that one’s right to bitch is directly proportional to how much they are doing to help change things, i.e. those who don’t vote can’t complain about who’s in office. In flow with this idea, I’ve decided to start contributing to a few select organizations that are actively trying to tackle the issues that matter to me.

Make no mistake — I don’t consider this doing something, but I do consider it better than doing nothing. I see it as at least offering some help to those who are fighting since I cannot currently for whatever reason. I think letting these organizations know that people care (while simultaneously assisting financially) is important.

Perhaps one day I’ll be able to help in more direct, satisfying ways, but for now I’ll settle for this. At any rate, I do encourage you guys to find a cause you believe in and get behind it as well.

From Slashdot:

“The Independent is reporting that the U.S. has asked the U.K. to use the same chips in their proposed identity cards as the ones in our proposed identity card. In effect, creating a trans-atlantic ID card system.” From the article: “The aim of getting the same microchip is to ensure compatability in screening terrorist suspects. But it will also mean that information contained in the British cards can be accessed across the Atlantic.”

I have a simple question — why is nobody panicking?.

Between this and RealID, we’re heading towards some very perilous territory. I personally don’t subscribe to the whole “government is evil incarnate” mode of thought; my belief is that it’s the lack of citizen participation in the system combined with beurocracy that causes the “evil” we see. Most people making stupid laws are decent people, so it’s the fact that they are uninformed that we need to address — not some mastermind plot to enslave the masses.

As for my part, I’m going to be joining the EFF and a couple of other groups in order to try and do my part. This sort of thing has to be head off at the pass, and what certain entities are banking on is the masses doing nothing until it’s too late. I for one will not be one of those masses.

My buddy Steve Friedl just blogged about the fact that his phone company sent him a piece of correspondence with his full social security number printed in the envelope window! (Screenshot)

Exactly how idiotic does an organization have to be in order to let this fall through the cracks?