Corruption of LOL

Local officials along the U.S.-Mexican border welcome a new federal crackdown against border violence despite concerns that it will create lines of idling cars through neighborhoods and deter crossover traffic.

[From U.S. tightens security at Mexico border - USATODAY.com]

—-

Well, it’s too bad that it’s come to this, but there are no alternatives.

The situation in Mexico is out of control, and the United States needs to take measures to protect its people.

I’ve spent most of my life living very close to the border, and danger is very real. It’s in your face everyday.

Protect yourself, protect your family

Unfortunately, it really has come to the point where people living within any reasonable proximity to the border need to start looking after themselves. The violence follows the drugs. Where there’s drugs, there’s violence. Steer clear of it all as best you can, and make sure your family is educated. If you have children, know where their minds are at when it comes to drugs. The act of buying the drug might be more dangerous than the act of taking the drug.

Don’t live in fear, but keep in all in mind. Do your best to avoid any situations before you find yourself in the middle of one.

Self protection value AND it’s free?! What now?!

Now, this isn’t exactly a secret to Google Voice users, but it’s something that you might not think of right off the bat.

The following can be an invaluable tool for anything from productivity to maintaining your personal safety. Constantly having the capability to make phone calls wherever you are is an extremely important concept in personal security.

Please keep in mind, however, that Google Voice does not allow 911 access, so it’s also a very good idea to keep the local numbers for authorities in your contacts. (Mmm, I smell another article topic =p )

Think about it: you can now have a FREE (yes, it’s absolutely, completely, and in all other ways, FREE) internet phone wherever you have internet access within the United States. This can be of use if your particular location does not have good cell phone reception, or simply if you want to use your existing internet connection (or your neighbor’s, hehe) instead of a landline or cell phone minutes that you have to pay for.

Do it like this.

1. Get Google Voice (it’ll be public soon enough if you don’t already have an account).
2. Sign up for Gizmo5.
3. Follow this Google tutorial.

Basically, you now have the equivalent of SkypeIn (which costs money), SkypeOut (which costs money) as well as additional features that not even Skype has–such as the ability to make calls right from the browser.

That means that you can make calls from anybody’s computer! Even public computers!

Explore the possibilities for yourself, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Also, let me offer my apologies for being so in love with Google Voice. Deal with it. It’s worth it. Trust me.

Until next time, my motivated ass offers you your complimentary OORAH! Free of charge. Take it home with you.

When using public or other unsecured wifi, it becomes much easier for hackers and sniffers to root out your private information, compromising your privacy, and maybe even your identity.

And just for your information (not that I would ever condone this , this technique can also bypass internet blocks enforced by companies, schools, etc.

I’ll provide the Mac instructions, but the same is possible on a PC using an SSH client, such as OpenSSH.

Manual Instructions

1. Get (or use your existing) web hosting that supports SSH. Unlimited bandwidth is preferred. My recommendation: Bluehost.
2. Set up your SSH, remembering your passwords and usernames.
3. Open Terminal
4. Type in the following code: ssh -ND 9999 yourusername@yourwebsiteaddress.com (You will be prompted for your password. Enter it. The terminal window will appear to freeze up; this is what you want, and means that you have successfully connected. This opens port 9999, connects through SSH to your server, and stays open until you terminate it; it’s basically a secure tunnel that you’re going to route your internet traffic through.)
5. Open Firefox, then Preferences, then the Advanced tab, and click Settings (how Firefox connects to the internet).
6. Choose Manual Proxy Configuration.
7. Under SOCKS Host, type localhost and under Port, 9999. Under No Proxy for, type localhost, 127.0.0.1. Select SOCKS v5.
8. Click OK.

If you’ve done everything correctly, Firefox will appear to work as usual, but perhaps slightly slower.

Congrats! You are using secure internet!

When you are done using your secure connection, change Firefox preferences back to No Proxy, and terminate your Terminal. DO NOT just close Terminal–you are likely to remain connected. Select Terminal and press Apple-Period (Cmd-.), then quit.

Using AppleScript (Creating a Secure Internet Application) – Apple only

I’ve made the instructions pretty straight-forward, but you might need to be a little tech-savvy to figure this one out. This will combine all the steps above into an application that will give you secure internet access.

1. Download and install NPS AskPass (for Tiger–it works with 10.4 and above, including Leopard)
2. Open Terminal and type /Applications/Firefox.app/Contents/MacOS/firefox -ProfileManager
3. Create a Firefox profile called “secureaccess”
4. Open your new Firefox profile, and follow steps 5-8 above. Close Firefox when you’re done.
5. Open Script Editor and create a blank script.
6. Save it as “proxysetup.app” (application bundle) to your desktop.
7. Open Finder, go to Firefox, right click and hit “Explore Package Contents.” Open the Contents folder, then create a folder called “securessh.”
8. Drag your proxysetup.app from your desktop into your newly created folder within Firefox.
9. Back in Script Editor, enter the following into your proxysetup file:
   do shell script “ssh -ND 9999 yourusename@yourwebsiteaddress.com &> /dev/null &”
10. Save proxysetup.app and close it.
11. DOWNLOAD MY PRE-COMPILED APPLICATION HERE. You must have followed all previous instructions EXACTLY or it will not function. Open the application with Script Editor if you need to make any changes to tailor it to suit you.

When you run the application, it should do three things, in no particular order:

1. Open a dialog box indicating to click OK to close the connection. Put this off to the side, and only click OK when you are done. (After you click this, a dialog will appear saying something like “Can’t get end.” Don’t worry, that just means that your connection is closed. That is what you want.
2. Open your “secureaccess” Firefox profile with the proxy settings all ready to go!
3. Open a password dialog box. Enter your server’s password to connect to the proxy. Firefox will then be able to connect to the internet in a secure fashion!

Congratulations! You now have a secure internet application!

BONUS: If you want it to have my custom and cool-looking golden Firefox symbol (as seen above) just save the image file, make an icon out of it with Pic2Icon, and then place it over the existing icon (hit Cmd-I on both files, and drag the icon over).

Enjoy!

Perhaps a more appropriate quote for yesterday would have been another by Voltaire: “Common sense is not so common.”

Lets face it, people do stupid things on a daily basis, and sometimes it costs them their lives. (Darwin Awards, anybody?)

Examples:

• Illuminating your car’s gasoline tank with a Zippo
• Flipping off gang-bangers
• Looking down the barrel of a gun
• Looking down the barrel of a loaded gun
• Looking down the barrel of a loaded gun and then pulling the trigger
• Standing on a rooftop and yelling “watch this!”
• Practicing knife-fighting with your friends
• Practicing gun-fighting with your friends
• Crossing an intersection diagonally with or without a vehicle
• Planning a summer getaway to Somalia
• Planning a summer getaway to Somalia on your yacht

There are many more examples, but past a certain point, I’m afraid I’m giving out more ideas than anything else.

Seriously, though, think about what’s generally a dangerous thing to do, and then consider whether or not you really need to do whatever it is.

More specifics to come about this later… I’m too snarky today to write anything of value. (Can you tell?)

Even I am guilty of buying into this but, hey, better safe than sorry.

Last night (18March2009) there was an elaborate rumor/hoax that spread across the nation, widely via text message, that there were going to be “gang initiation shootings” at Wal-Marts across the nation.

There were many variations of the hoax nationwide–the one that concerned me was out of Tucson, Arizona and threatened that the gangs were going to murder three women at local Wal-Marts that night.

But, alas, the scare was largely a hoax, with no real threat behind it. See the LA Times story here.

However, it is very important to realize that once a threat like this has been so widely publicized, it is a very real possibility that there will be “copycat criminals” who will get ideas from the threat and, in the worst of scenarios, carry them out themselves.

Remember the Columbine school shootings? And the huge number of similar shootings in the following weeks?

If you’re a Wal-Mart shopper, don’t stop shopping there–that’s being ridiculous–but keep your eyes open and maintain your situational awareness. Wal-Mart may not be as safe as it used to be.

One of the best ways to keep yourself safe is to know what types of crime occur most commonly in your area.

This way, you can tailor your techniques to what suits you and your situation!

My recommendation for finding detailed crime stats in your area is:

Narrow down by state, then city, or my favorite–BY UNIVERSITY, for all of us college students out there.

More to come regarding safety on college campuses!

I recently posted a link to Google Voice on my blog.

Upon reading about it further, it seems as though there are a number of people concerned with the privacy implications of using the service.

I, for one, will continue to use the service (due to its sheer usefulness) until it becomes abundantly clear to me that I am causing some sort of harm to myself by doing so.

However, consider this article from a computerworld.com blog: Google Voice: Press “1″ to invade your privacy.

I read that article, followed by Google’s official privacy statement concerning Google Voice.

However, it is important to realize how a Google Voice number can also protect your privacy as well, believe it or not.

Google itself will have greater access to more of your information, of course (call logs, SMSs, etc.) but for the most part (and hopefully the whole part) this will be limited to machines and computers mining for data rather than humans actually looking at it.

On the other hand, the people who call your Google Voice number will be put through additional layers of security–layers that are more likely to protect you than anything else. Google Voice numbers give you the ability to screen calls prior to picking them up, and even to block unwanted callers completely. This functionality, along with the simple fact that your real phone number is never revealed, balances out the potential risk of losing some privacy to Google.

It’s a give-and-take thing. Once it becomes open to the public, each person will have to decide for themselves whether or not it’s a tradeoff they want to make.

My recommendation: DO IT.

—-

[EDIT: There is a good overall analysis of the service here.]

Seems like it’s time for another article. Don’t worry though, this one is short and sweet.

As you’re reading, keep in mind, some parts of this technique should be used by everyone, while others may not be applicable to you in particular (e.g. guys named Bruce who live at Gold’s Gym). Adopt what you think will help you stay safe. Of course, take your gender, strength, and overall physical competence into account when deciding which of these techniques to adopt.

Background

Many people do the same thing over and over again on a daily, weekly, or other repetitive basis. This kind of behavior is what humans naturally resort to, and the bad guys know this. The best criminals (and even some dimwits for that matter) know that surveillance is key if they want to pull something off. They want to know what to expect and when to expect it.

What they are trying to do is eliminate any intentional or unintentional element of surprise that their prey might have over them.

If you incorporate easy and appropriate counter-surveillance techniques into your daily schedule, you are likely to either stay off the bad guys’ radar completely, or at least give yourself a leg up if something does happen.

One particular time when people are very vulnerable is when they are walking to or from their vehicles.

Approaching/departing your vehicle (mostly applicable at night time)

• Try not to use the same route to and from your vehicle – walk up one row when you are leaving your car; walk back down another row and cut over on your way back.
• When parking at your residence, use a private, locked garage if at all possible. If you do not have a garage, make sure you have motion-sensing flood lights that activate upon your arrival.
• If you live and park in an apartment complex, try not to always park in the same spot. Switch it up randomly, even if you have to walk further. (Use your judgement here.)
• If you have an assigned parking space, do not always drive straight to it, especially at night. Circle the complex and come back from the other direction, or pull into someone else’s spot, then back up and pull into yours.
• Always maintain a high level of situational awareness when entering or departing your vehicle.
• Do not display your keys for very long before or after you enter the vehicle. If at all possible, lock and unlock your vehicle with your keys still in your pocket.
• If you ever return to your car and find that you forgot to lock it, make sure it is unoccupied. If it is daylight, simply look inside. If it is night time, press your “panic” button (or activate approach lights if your car has them) prior to approaching the car. This will frighten and confuse anyone in the car, as well as draw attention from others nearby.

Driving your vehicle

• Become very familiar with your vehicle – know how it acts and handles at various speeds. Consider taking classes on advanced driving techniques. BE CAREFUL. Knowing your limitations and the limitations of your vehicle prior to practicing is very important. You are NOT a stunt driver. Don’t act like one.
• In city driving, keep your doors locked. This prevents entry into your vehicle while it is still.
• In highway driving, keep your doors unlocked. No one will enter your car while you are going 75. This will make it easier for rescuers to reach you should you be involved in an accident.
• Women only: at night and/or in isolated areas, do NOT stop if you are being pursued by a police car. Call 911 on your cell phone and ask the dispatcher if the car behind you is really a police officer. If you do not have a cell phone, drive (obeying all traffic laws, of course) to the nearest police station or well-lit public area and pull over. If on the highway, pull to the side of the road and continue at a slow (but not dangerously slow) rate of speed until you have confirmed that you are being pursued by a real police officer.
• Men, apply the technique above only in very special circumstances.
• Remember cars in your immediate area while driving.
• If you have reason to believe you are being followed, circle a block, drive to a police station, or call 911. Under no circumstances do you drive to your home or any other place that you frequent.
• If you are involved in a minor car accident, call the police immediately and drive to a public, well-lit area to pull over.
• If you are involved in a major accident (meaning that your car will no longer operate), make sure you are in a well-lit, public area before exiting your vehicle. If you are not in such an area, remain in your car with the doors locked until authorities arrive.

Thanks for reading! Questions or comments, post them here or email or call me.

Until next time, Semper Fi, folks.

One of my daily watches: check out Lauren Weinstein’s Blog.

New articles coming up!

Stay tuned, stay safe.

For now, just check it out yourself:

Google Voice

I’ll discuss potential uses for this type of service as related to personal security later, but for now, it’s just too cool not to post.