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Tag: Secret Service

  • Government Agencies Hack REvil Ransomware Group, Taking It Offline

    Government Agencies Hack REvil Ransomware Group, Taking It Offline

    A group of government agencies have gone on the offensive against the REvil ransomware gang.

    REvil is one of the most notorious and prolific ransomware gangs. The gang is responsible for the Kaseya attack, believed to be the largest ransomware attack in history. REvil was also behind the JBS Foodsattack, and its associates were responsible for the Colonial Pipeline attack. The group went dark shortly after the Kaseya hack, before reappearing some time later.

    According to Reuters, a group of US agencies, in cooperation with other countries, have hacked REvil, significantly disrupting its operations.

    “The FBI, in conjunction with Cyber Command, the Secret Service and like-minded countries, have truly engaged in significant disruptive actions against these groups,” said Tom Kellermann, VMWare head of cybersecurity strategy and adviser to the U.S. Secret Service. “REvil was top of the list.”

    One of REvil’s leaders, “0_neday,” confirmed the group had been attacked.

    “The server was compromised, and they were looking for me,” 0_neday wrote on a cybercrime forum. “Good luck, everyone; I’m off.”

    Reuters reports that 0_neday is notable as one of the individuals who helped the group resume operations after the Kesaya attack, and inadvertently led to its demise. Following the Kesaya attack, law enforcement was able to obtain a decryption key and gain access to some of the group’s servers. After REvil’s websites went offline, 0_neday evidently restored the websites from backups, unaware the backups were made after the group’s servers had been compromised. This once again opened the door for law enforcement to mount their offensive.

    It’s too soon to know if REvil has been dealt a fatal blow, but the disruption is certain to be a welcome respite.

  • Trump Secret Service Protection Not Requested, Says Department of Homeland Security

    Donald Trump does not currently have secret service protection, and has been making comments about how he should, comparing his own candidacy to President Obama’s.

    Trump spoke out about the matter in an interview with The Hill, which shares these quotes from him:

    “I want to put them on notice because they should have a liability,” he said. “Personally, I think if Obama were doing as well as me he would’ve had Secret Service [earlier]. I have by far the biggest crowds.”

    …

    “They’re in no rush because I’m a Republican. They don’t give a shit,” Trump said jokingly. It was an off-the-cuff remark he later clarified. “Of course I don’t think they’d want anything to happen. But I would think they should be very proactive and want protection for somebody like me that has 20,000 people at any time,” Trump said. “You would think that they would want to be very proactive, but we have not heard from them.”

    Unbelievable crowd in Dallas!

    A photo posted by Donald J. Trump (@realdonaldtrump) on

    The Hill also talked to a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security, which told the publication that it had not received an official request for protection, and that if one is received, a determination would be made after an advisory committee consultation, which includes House and Senate leaders from both parties.

    The New York Times reported on May 4, 2007, that then Candidate Obama had been placed under Secret Service protection the day prior as his “crowds at political rallies across the country have often numbered in the thousands.” That was the earliest the Secret Service had ever issued a security detail to a candidate, the paper said.

    Then and current Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton had also been receiving protection at the time, but that was through her role as former first lady, according to a spokesperson for the Secret Service.

  • Malia Obama: Who Taught Her How to Drive?

    Malia Obama: Who Taught Her How to Drive?

    Malia Obama didn’t go to a nearby Washington, D.C. driving school when she became old enough to drive. Instead, people from the Secret Service taught President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama’s older daughter to drive.

    Michelle Obama shared that little tidbit of information when she taped an interview with Rachael Ray for The Rachael Ray Show. The episode aired on Thursday.

    “The Secret Service [taught her], actually, because they wouldn’t let me in the car with her,” Michelle Obama said.

    On Monday, the first lady visited with Kelly Ripa and Michael Strahan on Live! With Kelly and Michael and shared that Malia recently asked her a question about parking in a public lot.

    “I barely know now too so I have to check with other sources,” she said.

    Surprisingly, Malia Obama goes out driving on her own.

    “She always has security around. But in order for her to learn how to drive, she had to drive on her own. So once she was legally permitted to drive on her own, she gets in her car,” Michelle Obama said.

    The president and first lady allow Malia Obama to go out driving as part of their effort to allow their daughters as much normalcy in their growing up years as possible. It must be frightening, however.

    “Driving for Malia, I think, gives her a sense of normalcy, like the rest of her friends are doing. And my kids have got to learn how to live in the world like normal kids,” the first lady said.

    Surely Malia Obama is never far from the eyes of the Secret Service. If they taught her how to drive, they’re probably following along fairly close behind while she heads out on her own.

    Do you think it’s nearly as frightening for Malia Obama to go out driving solo as it is for her parents to allow her to do so?

  • George W. Bush Attending Naperville Book Promotion

    Forty-third President of the United States George W. Bush is set to make two appearances next week in DuPage County, Illinois in promotion of his new book, 41: A Portrait of My Father. The biography details the life and career of George H.W. Bush, the forty-first U.S President.

    41: A Portrait of My Father was released on November 11, and George W. is scheduled to appear in Naperville, Illinois at 2 p.m. on December 1, at the downtown Anderson’s Bookshop. The same day, Bush is scheduled to attend a private charity event hosted by Daniel L. Goodwin, chairman and CEO for the Inland Real Estate Group of Companies.

    Roughly 1,000 people are expected to attend the Naperville book store appearance, and Anderson’s spokeswoman Candace Purdom commented, “this is really a big deal. We’re very honored they’ve allowed us this opportunity.”

    Purdom said the store plans to hand out roughly 1,200 wristbands, as proof an attendee purchased the book. All copies are pre-signed, and Bush won’t be signing any personalized autographs.

    Bush takes the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge:

    All former U.S. Presidents are under lifetime protection of the U.S. Secret Service, and security will be tight. Purdom noted that fans will not be allowed to bring in cameras, cellphones, purses, backpacks, briefcases, beverages or other such items.

    Purdom remarked, “If people try to bring in anything else we’ll ask them to return to their cars and put it away. We need to have things as simple as possible.”

    In an excerpt from the book, George W. relates his father’s reaction as his son defeated Al Gore in the 2000 Presidential election – “I saw a couple of shots of George and Laura holding hands. I saw in his posture, in the way he walked, in his smile the same mannerisms and expressions we have known ever since he was a little boy. As the camera focused on George and Laura walking into the chamber my body was literally wracked with uncontrollable sobs. It just happened. No warning, no thinking that this might be emotional for a mother or dad to get through – just an erup­tion from deep within me where my body literally shook.”

  • Julia Pierson Resigns After Multiple Security Lapses

    Julia Pierson, the director of the U.S. Secret Service, resigned earlier this week after mounting criticism of her handling of security breaches at the White House and allegations of misleading public statements.

    Hours after an appearance before the House of Representatives government oversight committee, Pierson submitted her resignation to the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the Secret Service.

    “Today Julia Pierson, the director of the United States secret service, offered her resignation, and I accepted it. I salute her 30 years of distinguished service to the secret service and the nation,” said the Homeland Security secretary, Jeh Johnson, according to The Guardian.

    Joseph Clancy, who retired from the Secret Service in 2011, was appointed as interim acting director.

    Pierson’s resignation followed multiple security lapses, including a situation in Atlanta where an armed contractor with a criminal record was allowed to enter an elevator with President Obama and an incident where a man jumped the fence surrounding the White House and entered the White House before being apprehended in the East Room.

    “The president concluded that new leadership of the agency was required,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said at a press briefing on Wednesday. “In the light of reports … legitimate questions were raised.”

    “I think it’s in the best interest of the Secret Service and the American public if I step down,” Pierson said in an interview with Bloomberg News. “Congress has lost confidence in my ability to run the agency. The media has made it clear that this is what they expected.”

    In addition to the security lapses, allegations have been made that Pierson misled the public in her statements about the fence-jumping incident, where it was implied that the intruder was unarmed and tackled at the front doors. Later reports indicated the intruder carried a pocket knife and made it into the East Room.

    “As I told Ms Pierson in our phone call earlier today, we appreciate her 30 years of service to our nation, to the secret service, and to multiple presidents,” Elijah Cummings said in a statement.

    “I absolutely respect her decision, and now we have to ensure that we focus on the difficult work of fully restoring the secret service to its rightful status as the most elite protective service in the world. I am pleased that Secretary Johnson has agreed with our suggestion to establish an independent panel of outside experts to begin to review these issues, which is a critical step.”

  • Joe Biden Swims Naked, Upsets Secret Service?

    A controversial new book that claims to have insider information about the goings-on of Secret Service details is turning some heads in Washington. The book is called “The First Family Detail: Secret Service Agents Reveal the Hidden Lives of Presidents” and is written by Ronald Kessler.

    Kessler used to write for the Washington Post and has written other books about Secret Service details, a biography of Joseph Kennedy, and another book about supposed secrets of the FBI.

    In this book, Kessler quotes unnamed Secret Service sources as saying that Vice President Joe Biden likes to swim in the nude, much to the chagrin of any females on his Secret Service detail.

    “Agents say that, whether at the vice president’s residence or at his home in Delaware, Biden has a habit of swimming in his pool nude. Female Secret Service agents find the behavior offensive,” Kessler writes.

    “Biden likes to be revered as everyday Joe, and that’s his thing,” an unnamed agent said. “But the reality is no agents want to go on his detail because Biden makes agents’ lives so tough.”

    Kessler goes on to credit these sources with telling him that the Vice President is careless with his own security detail, cutting back on the number of agents he uses at his Delaware home out of concern for his neighbors.

    “What’s going to happen is either you’re going to have a dead vice president in Delaware or you’re going to have agents killed in Delaware because Secret Service management refused to stand up to (Biden),” Kessler quotes one agent as saying.

    What irks some is that Kessler uses this book as an opportunity to take shots at Hillary Clinton, writing that the Biden security detail is considered only the second-worst for an agent. The worst, Kessler claims, is being assigned to Hillary.

    Image via YouTube

  • Dermot Mulroney Scar Explained, ‘Crisis’ Role Examined

    In a very detailed interview with actor Dermot Mulroney, one question that came up was in reference to the 50-year-old’s lip scar.

    The scar, located below his right nostril, has been a noticeable physical feature since the start of his acting career.

    Like any other nosey person, I too have wondered how the scar got there, and it’s rather interesting to hear the story behind it.

    “It was a long time ago, so I’ve always had it,” he told the Chicago Sun Times magazine, Splash. “I was 3½ and I was carrying a dish for our pet rabbits. And I tripped and it broke, and I fell on it. I definitely remember that day, even though I was 3 years old. I don’t think about it or see it, but it’s always been there.

    The About Schmidt star surely appears to be unashamed of his perfectly imperfect flaw-especially since he never conceals it.

    “It certainly has its place on my face, right below my right nostril. That’s where it belongs.”

    Mulroney, who is also recognized for last year’s featured roles in New Girl, is currently in Chicago working on the new television drama Crisis.

    He adds that filming the series in Chicago brings back fond memories of the movie My Best Friend’s Wedding, which he shot with Julia Roberts in 1997.

    “Coming back here to shoot [‘Crisis’], I’ll go by a stairway to an L where I know we shot a scene, or by a nightclub where we filmed. I’m always happening upon these locations that I shot at 16, 17 years ago, and I remember them like it was yesterday.”

    The premier episode aired last week for the first time on NBC.

    The actor explains that portraying secret service agent Thomas Gibson is quite out of his element, but he still welcomes the idea of exploring a daring and hostile character.

    “I’ve finally understood what people mean when they say, ‘The character got under my skin.’ I’m exploring the psychology of a man who has elements in his personality unchecked by conventional thinking. I’ve had some dark thoughts these days.”

    Mulroney mentioned that he does, however, admires his character’s intelligence.

    “But the thing that most impresses me about Gibson is how truly genius he is. It’s fun to play a character that is vastly more intelligent than I am, to be frank. It made me feel really smart.”

    Crisis will air Sundays at 10 p.m. on NBC.

    View a sneak-peek to this week’s episode below:

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • $7 Million Shoplifting: One Family Went Wild In Multiple Stores Over Several Years

    It is hard to imagine how one family could go on a $7 million shoplifting spree without being caught first, but somehow the Bogdanov family was able to do it. The family was finally arrested earlier this week at their Northbrook home, a suburb of Chicago.

    The shoplifting by the Bodanov family lasted for over a decade, and they were finally caught after multiple stores including Barnes & Noble and Toys R Us made contact with the secret service with a complaint that described a “huge loss of merchandise.”

    Branko Bogdanov, 58, Lela Bogdanov, 52, and their 34-year-old daughter, Julia Bogdanov, are charged with one count each of interstate transportation of stolen property. They made their initial appearances in court on Wednesday in Chicago, but did not enter pleas. They will remain in detention at least until their hearing next week, which will determine who much time they will each serve.

    Lela Bogdanov was able to conceal many of the items that she stole in her clothes, and she would often wear and long skirt with an inner lining that could hide several items.

    After leaving from their home in Chicago, the three hit business around the country that included Maryland, Tennessee, and Florida. Their big loot is said to have contained a variety of items including toys, dolls, cosmetics, and other valuables.

    During the $7 million shoplifting spree, the family would collect all sorts of items that they did not plan to use themselves, and took them to eBay to sell the merchandise for cash. On their own, the Bogdanov family sold more than $690,000 in merchandise through eBay.

    In addition to their sales on eBay, they had help from another unnamed cooperating witness, who bought items from them at their home. Years later, authorities traced stolen items to the online trading account of the cooperating witnesses, who, in turn, agreed to help in the investigation of the Bogdanovs.

    A conviction of interstate transportation of stolen property, the crime that the Bogdanov family has been charged with, can carry a sentence of up to 10 years. How did they keep it going for such a long time before getting caught?

    Image via Youtube

  • JFK Assassination Changed Secret Service

    JFK Assassination Changed Secret Service

    Times have changed for the Secret Service since the ill-fated day of November 22, 1963, when John F. Kennedy was shot. Riding in the back of a convertible is absolutely unthinkable these days, after numerous assassination attempts since JFK have made it impossible for a president, or even a candidate, to be unprotected during appearances.

    When Kennedy was shot, his bodyguards were powerless to help him, according to Yahoo. There was nothing they could do. “It isn’t something that we’re marking. It wasn’t a good day for us or for the country,” Secret Service spokesman Brian Leary said. “It was a dark day.”

    That “dark day” began round after round of changes in order to do the absolute most that the Secret Service could do to protect our country’s leader. It began with JFK. After his assassination, there were obviously no more convertibles. As the years went by, and Robert Kennedy was killed, followed by an attempt on President Reagan, things have become very, very different for the Secret Service.

    Now, Obama rides around in a limousine-shaped fortress, called “The Beast” that is reportedly outfitted with its own oxygen supply, as well as blood transfusion supplies. Just in case. The fuel tank is sealed in foam so that it won’t explode. It’s also sealed against biological or chemical attack and the doors weigh as much as those on a Boeing 757!

    “The Beast” is never alone. There can be dozens of vehicles in the presidential motorcade, and the arrangement changes all the time, depending on the Secret Services perceived threat. He could be absent from the motorcade altogether, in a helicopter above, for example.

    Of course, there are times when a president just wants to step out and wave to the people, like Obama did on Inauguration day in January. A past member of the Secret Service said their “collective blood pressure spikes” during those surprise moments.

    Image via wikimedia commons

  • Edward Snowden’s Russian Adventure: ‘Fearful’

    Edward Snowden’s Russian Adventure: ‘Fearful’

    Edward Snowden is, to some, the most interesting man in the world for a variety of reasons. Yet Snowden is made infinitely more fascinating by his mystique; whatever opinions one might hold about him, nobody really knows anything about how he’s going to carry on now that the secrets are out. What, exactly, is this traitorous coward/heroic whistleblower’s life going to be like now that he’s escaped the grasp of the United States?

    According to the AFP, who spoke with Snowden’s lawyer, he’s as paranoid as Walter White. His address is secret, he’s guarded most of the day, and although he comes out of his house sometimes, he’s in disguise when he does.

    Anatoly Kucherena, a high-profile legal advisor to Vladimir Putin working pro-bono on Snowden’s case, has become his unofficial spokesperson since Snowden arrived in Russia, determined to avoid the media: “I am his only link with the outside world at the moment. Even his contacts with his parents are carried out through me,” the lawyer said.

    Although reporters pressed, Kucherena refused to say anything substantial about Snowden’s lifestyle. Regarding his disguise, Kucherena said “He would walk past you and you wouldn’t recognize him… It’s a question of clothes and small alterations to his appearance… He really does walk freely around on the streets.”

    Kucherena did let slip one interesting piece of information: Edward Snowden can now speak Russian. “He is an extremely fast learner as far as the Russian language is concerned… He only needs a few hours or days to learn the ropes and start speaking,” Kucherena said.

    Snowden’s father is expected to come to see his son in Russia, although Kucherena refused to confirm when it will happen or what Snowden may do: “the question of his future activities will be discussed at a family council… I can’t give you certain dates but soon he will come to Russia and meet with his son.” Snowden’s father will most likely bring his mother and a grandparent with him.

    Snowden’s lawyer said that the family trip is a risk because U.S. intelligence officials could try some dirty tactics to find the Russian hideout. To cover security risks, Snowden has been paying a private security firm out-of-pocket, but is considering opening up a bank account to use donated funds since his personal wallet seems to be growing thin. Kucherena: “As long as the US side retains its grievances against Snowden, nothing can be ruled out.”

    When asked about his morale, Kucherena said that as isolated as Snowden’s new lifestyle might be, he maintains no regrets and is not “disappointed… He believes he did everything right.”

    [Image via Wikimedia Commons]

  • White House Firecracker Exploded In North Lawn

    Sometimes a prank can go too far. A firecracker exploded in the north lawn of the White House around the same time as when the tragic Navy Yard shooting happened on Monday, September 16, 2013, which has led authorities to question the potential connection between the two events.

    While the exact reason behind the firing is not known, the man responsible for setting off the firecracker, Alexander Sahagian, has been apprehended by police. The firecracker incident occurred at 6:30 in the morning only a few miles from the shooting where the fifty-two-year-old Sahagian lighted the firecracker and then threw the soon-to-erupt firecracker over the fence into the north lawn.

    Many streets were closed down as a precautionary measure in response to the the firing including one block on Pennsylvania Avenue as well as two blocks on 17th Street NW. The popular Lafayette Park, nestled across from the White House was also closed.

    Initial concerns sparked several rumors about guns firing near the White House as a result of the firecracker explosion, however a representative for the Secret Service put these concerns to rest. Ed Donovan of the Secret Service said, “There have not been shots outside the White House.”

    It has not been released what type of charges Alexander Sahagian will face as a result of firing the firecracker. However, what is known focuses on the abilities of the authorities involved. The speedy response of the Secret Service members as well as the orders these law officials shouted to tourists and people passing by the location shows how efficient the law enforcement representatives were in being able to handle the situation and contain any potential escalation of danger.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBoy5gVmR7c

    [Image Via Wikimedia Commons And Courtesy of the U.S. Department of Defense]

  • Dollar Counterfeiting: Peru is #1 Worldwide Producer

    In a heavily reprinted AP story out of Lima, a 13-year-old boy was arrested during a raid on a large counterfeiting operation. The boy was caught with almost three quarters of a million in fake dollars and euros; this led to the revelation that Peruvian counterfeiters were finishing each bill by hand.

    The Secret Service claims that, through cheap criminal labor, counterfeiting gangs in Peru have overtaken Columbia as the number one producer of bogus bills in the world. The Service has had to open its fourth permanent office in Latin America to counter the Peruvian counterfeiters; over 50 individuals have since been arrested for counterfeiting.

    The Secret Service estimates the amount of fake money seized from Peruvian counterfeiters at $103 million, and the Peruvian counterfeiting process is often more convincing because they finish each bill by hand. Speaking about one of the seized notes, a Secret Service officer from the U.S. Embassy (who spoke on a condition of anonymity) said that the bill was “a very good note… they [Peruvian counterfeiters] use offset, huge machines that are used for regular printing of newspapers or flyers… [then] once a note is printed they throw five people [at it] and do little things, little touches that add to the quality.”

    The Peruvian bills go just about everywhere, including the States, Argentina, Ecuador, and Venezuela. The United States gets counterfeit $100’s, while the rest of the nations get the fake $10’s and $20’s. The chief of the Peruvian police fraud division, Col. Segundo Portocarrero, has said that Peru became attractive to counterfeiters with the United States’ constant interference with Colombian politics through drug interdiction.

    “[Counterfeiting] is more profitable than cocaine,” one of the investigators working for Portocarrero said, an ironic statement considering that Peru has possibly also overtaken Colombia as a cocaine producer.

    If you want to know more, like how Peruvian counterfeiters create their fake income, click here for the NBC News reprint of the AP story.

    [Image via a Youtube video about funny money]

  • John F. Kennedy Assassination

    Many people will never forget the date, November 22,1963; the day the beloved president, John F. Kennedy, was assassinated. This year, just weeks before the 50th anniversary of his assassination, a television network will take another look into the historical killing through a documentary/drama that suggests a Secret Service agent was actually responsible by accidentally firing one of the bullets that hit Kennedy.

    The show “JFK: The Smoking Gun” will appear on ReelzChannel and will be based on the work of a retired Australian police Detective Colin McLaren and the book “Mortal Error: The Shot that Killed JFK”, by Bonar Menninger. The two-hour docudrama will air on November 3, 2013 in the United States, Canada, and Australia.

    “JFK: The Smoking Gun” suggests that an agent, George Hickey, fired one of the bullets that hit Kennedy. Hickey, who is now dead, was amongst those riding in the car behind Kennedy’s limo that day. The official story has always claimed that John F. Kennedy was killed by a single gunman by the name of Lee Harvey Oswald.

    It is believed, by McLaren, that Hickey accidentally pulled the trigger when his car came to an abrupt stop once Lee Harvey Oswald had fired the first shot on the president. McLaren and Menninger also believe that the ballistic profiles show that there were two different types of bullets that hit JFK. One of the bullets, a 6.5mm Mannlicher-Carcano, came from Lee Harvey Oswald’s gun while the other bullet hole was believed to be caused by an AR-15; the same gun that Hickey was carrying that day.

    “We don’t suggest that he was in any way involved in a conspiracy,” McLaren said about Hickey. Hickey recalled the shooting, in his original statement from 1963, stating that, “At the end of the last report I reached to the bottom of the car and picked up the AR 15 rifle, cocked and loaded it, and turned to the rear. At this point the cars were passing under the over-pass and as a result we had left the scene of the shooting. I kept the AR 15 rifle ready as we proceeded at a high rate of speed to the hospital.

    The docudrama’s producers have said that the advances in forensic science and the documents that were released during the Clinton administration have added credibility to Menninger’s theory. McLaren told the Television Critics Association on Sunday, “What we’re saying is that we believe it was a tragic accident in the heat of that moment.”

    Our documentary is going to be the only one that has opened the case forensically and looked at the evidence from the beginning and examined everything that happened that day in Dealey Plaza.
    Michael Prupas, the film’s executive director

  • Secret Service Scandal: Criminal Charges Will Not Be Filed

    The Secret Service scandal in Colombia earlier this year exposed a history of misconduct on behalf of the President’s personal protection force, which, as once can imagine, does not reflect well on the country or it’s military. Although seven Army soldiers and two Marines have received administrative punishment for their contributions to the incident, none of them will face criminal charges for their actions. Additionally, one member of the Air Force was also punished as a result of the scandal, while two Navy sailors are currently awaiting their fate.

    These individuals were assigned to support the Secret Service during President Obama’s trip to Cartagena, where he was to appear at a Latin American summit. Before the President’s scheduled arrival, several men partook in the some questionable activity, which, apparently, has happened more than once in the past. However, when one of the agents got into a dispute over money with a hooker, the whole sordid affair quickly came to light.

    As a result, over a dozen Secret Service officers, including several agents and supervisors, were implicated in the ensuing scandal. Following an investigation into the matter, eight individuals lost their jobs, while three were cleared of any wrongdoings. According to Fox News, a few former employees are currently attempting to get their jobs back.

    The U.S. military rarely discloses details of administrative punishments. Officials spoke to the news organization in the condition of anonymity since results of this investigation have not been made public. Congress is expected to speak with military officials regarding the scandal shortly.

  • Jotform.com Is Back In The Hands Of Its Rightful Owner

    Jotform.com Is Back In The Hands Of Its Rightful Owner

    The Jotform.com domain was returned today. The only problem is that the feds still aren’t saying what caused the suspension in the first place.

    You may remember yesterday when we reported that Jotform.com was suspended by the federal government for apparently no reason. When the Jotform team attempted to contact the Secret Service as to why their Web site had been taken down, they were told that the government was too busy to look into it.

    It’s a good thing then that the Jotform.com domain was returned today. The business can keep operating under their original domain and everything can go back to normal.

    Hold on there, not everything can go back to normal just yet. Techdirt requested comment from the Secret Service as to why Jotform.com was taken down. What a great response they got:

    “We are aware of the incident and we’re reviewing it internally to make sure all the proper procedures and protocols were followed.”

    In response to this, a post went up on Hacker News that details what U.S. Web sites can do to protect themselves from the overreaching arm of the U.S. government.

    Today’s sysadmin todo list:

    0. Get corporate membership with EFF.

    1. Identify all applications with user-generated content.

    2. Move all associated domains to a non-US based registrar.

    3. Migrate DNS, web serving and other critical services to non-US based servers.

    4. Migrate yourself to a non-US controlled country.

    I’m sorry for US sites and users. Your government is hell-bent on turning the internet into a read-only device like TV, easily regulated and controlled. The population will be required to sit quietly and keep their eyes glued on the screen so they don’t miss the ads, with any infringers deemed terrorists and pedophiles and thus deserving of summary punishment by DHS squads.

    Hopefully the internet will route around the damaged segment, and the rest of us can continue to enjoy the amazing interactivity it has brought our society.

    Is it a little extreme? Yes, but it highlights what is slowly becoming reality in the U.S.

    The United States keeps on saying that it wants to help startups and small companies succeed, but you can see with the example of Jotform that the government can take whatever they want when they want.

    Are you a small business owner who uses the Internet? What do you think about the Jotform debacle? Will you be moving your business? Let us know in the comments.

  • JotForm.com Suspended By US Feds

    The U.S. government is continuing its happy-go-lucky censorship of Web sites for reasons blown way out of proportion.

    It was revealed yesterday that JotForm.com had its domain suspended. The reason behind the suspension was not exactly clear. Aytekin Tank took to the JotForm.net blog to explain exactly what had happened and what users can do to retrieve their documents.

    What Tank calls an “ongoing investigation about content posted in our site” is the cause behind the JotForm.com domain being suspended by the U.S. government. The company claims to be “fully cooperating” with the authorities, but doesn’t have a clue as to when the site will be back up.

    For those who don’t know what JotForm is, it’s a service that allows users to create various forms for use on their Web sites. It allows users to create anything from application forms to bug reports.

    This is likely the cause for the criminal investigation. Tank recently updated the situation on Hacker News to say that it was most likely people creating phishing forms using their service that led to the suspension.

    It doesn’t make it any better to know the cause, however, when the Secret Service refuses to work with your company. He says that he called the Secret Service agent in charge of the case and was told that it would be a few days before he could get them to look at his case. While he’s waiting to hear back, hundreds of thousands of users are locked out of their forms.

    Tank does offer some form of respite in the form of their .net domain. He says that any user can just change the URL of their form to .net from .com to get any forms up and running again.

    At the end, he issues a word of warning to any Web site that allows user created content. He says to contact your most active users quickly after any URL take down or similar actions to let them know what went down and what they can do to retrieve their files.

    The case raises some striking similarities to the MegaUpload case. Both sites depended on user generated content as their primary business. While illegal content was present on the site, it didn’t make up the majority of the content. It was primarily used by legitimate users who are now being punished by a government that doesn’t know the difference between an IP address and a DNS.

    We’ll keep you updated on this and other stories of Web sites being supended for little to no reason.

  • Officer’s Facebook Photo Shows Obama Shirt With Bullet Holes

    It has been reported recently that the Presidential secret service is investigating an Arizona police sergeant who recently posted a rather disturbing photo to his facebook page. The photo depicts a number of young boys standing in a row, a few holding guns with one particular boy holding an Obama T-shirt nearly torn to shreds with bullet holes.

    The officer, Sergeant Pat Shearer, posted the photo to his personal facebook profile. Shearer was quoted as to saying it “was used for target practice”. A spokesperson from the secret service recently said that the matter was being taken very seriously. The spokesperson, Max Milien had this to say according to POLITICO.

    “Any time information is brought to our attention where an individual or a group of individuals expresses unusual direction of interest in one of our protectees, we conduct appropriate follow-up”

    Sergeant Shearer had this to say:

    “I don’t think the shooting of that T-shirt is that big of a deal, it’s not like they were going to go out and shoot the president.”

    If the Presidential secret service finds the picture posing a real threat, serious repercussions may follow. The officer, who has not been placed on leave as of yet, does face several violations of the departments policies on electronic media.

  • Secret Service Twitter Clowns Fox News

    Secret Service Twitter Clowns Fox News

    Social media is, quite obviously, the gift that keeps on giving, especially from a content point of view. Whether it’s professional athletes showing their ignorance of current events, or techie CEOs who post pictures of dead elephants, or some racist rant from someone who immediately realizes the error of their ways, social media is simply a fount of wonderful content.

    Granted, the signal-to-noise ratio isn’t always great, especially on Twitter, but if you can sift through the chaff and locate the wheat, many times it’s well worth the effort. Take, for instance, the following tweet issued by the Secret Service. Apparently, one of their understudies had access to the recently-launched Twitter account and during the course of the evening, they let their thoughts be known about Fox News — in a far and balanced manner, of course. Naturally, such an “offending” opinion was removed, but not before someone snatch a screenshot of it, as seen here:

    Secret Service Tweet
    Hat-tip to Boing Boing for the capture

    As indicated, the tweet has been removed and the Secret Service’s feed has returned to its antiseptic “Meet our recruiters at such-and-such’s career day” type of tweets. They also issued a statement concerning the post, saying:

    “An employee with access to the Secret Service’s Twitter account, who mistakenly believed they were on their personal account, posted an unapproved and inappropriate tweet. We apologize for this mistake, and the user no longer has access to our official account. Policies and practices which would have prevented this were not followed and will be reinforced for all account users.”

    Oh, boo. Live a little, guys. Think about the discourse that potentially could’ve taken place between Fox News’ minions and your agency. It could’ve been epic. Instead, we, the people, have been denied by the high road. Furthermore, Fox News didn’t respond on their Twitter, meaning we’ve truly been denied a chance to witness a great moment in social media history. Again, boo.

    As for the Secret Service’s Twitter account, they currently have over 20 thousand followers, but they haven’t been so kind as to follow anyone in return. Um, shouldn’t they be following President Obama? I mean, that’s their job, right?