The Unsorted BBS Collection/thegreatunsorted.tar/thegreatunsorted/misc/cybrang2.txt

Text File | 2001-02-10 | 27KB | 497 lines

>[e-mail]
>Date--Tue, 14 Nov 1995 13:38:26 -0500
>Subject--NOVEMBER NEWSLETTER
>Apparently-To--<[e-mail]>
>
>CYBERANGELS
>INTERNET MONITORING PROJECT
>November 1995 Newsletter
>********************
>Hi!  And a special welcome to the many of you who are new on our newsletter
>mailing list this month.  SECONDLY - if you are on this list by mistake...our
>apologies. Our mailing list got damaged and we had to rebuild it from
>scratch!  Let us know (again!) if you wish to unsubscribe. Sorry!
>
>Firstly let me (Gabriel) introduce my colleague to you.  His name is Patrik
>Olterman, and he is originally from Sweden.  Like me he is a veteran Guardian
>Angel, and is now working with me coordinating the CyberAngels project.  FYI
>we are both based in Hollywood, CA.  No, not the nice part :)  Oh, and in the
>Guardian Angels he has a nickname.  We call him "Harlequin".
>
>The past month has been excellent for the project.  Firstly all thanks to
>SAFESURF - to Ray Soular and Wendy Simpson - for donating us a home page on
>the www.  This made our project global for the first time.  Safesurf and
>CyberAngels are working together as two concerned  groups, to help protect
>our cyberneighborhood.  Ray and Wendy are truly are good people.  THANKS you
>guys!  We encourage all our volunteers and newsletter members to check out
>Safesurf's home pages and to subscribe to their newsletter.  You can reach
>them via hyperlink from the CyberAngels home page at
>
>http://www.safesurf.com/cyberangels/
>or go directly to http://www.safesurf.com/wave/
>
>Read especially Safesurf's "Declaration of an Independent InterNet"  We
>support it 100% !
>
>By the way, if you have already visited our homepage, VISIT IT AGAIN! :)  We
>will be changing and developing it, and adding more links, as we develop our
>project.  We would certainly welcome your suggestions as to how we can
>improve things.
>
>Oh, before I forget...we wished everyone a Happy Halloween...but that message
>was written by Harlequin, who is Swedish, and he spelled it wrong! :(   He
>wrote "Haloween".  I guess he was thinking of Angels :)
>********************
>INTERNET AND COMPUTER EXPO IN FLORIDA
>
>We will be down in Florida for the 1,2 and 3 December, with a booth at the
>InterNet and Computer Expo '95.  This is thanks to a donation (worth $1000!)
>of space there by Frank Rocco, one of the organizers.  Thanks Frank!  FYI
>CyberAngels is an all volunteer project, coordinated from a Macintosh
>Powerbook 150 (honest!), and we do not have many resources.  But we need to
>spread the message, so help us in any way you can!  You can contact the I & C
>Expo on 1 305 941 2400, or 1-800-330-1900, or email to
>[e-mail].  The expo by the way will be at Broward County
>Convention Centre, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA.  We hope to meet some of
>you there!
>********************
>CYBERANGELS REACH AUSTRALIA
>
>One of the results of our global reach for volunteers, after Safesurf's www
>homepage donation, was that we started receiving volunteers from Australia.
> There also followed 6 radio shows all over Australia, and an article in the
>Sydney Morning Herald, explaining our work.  Child Pornography on the
>InterNet seems to be very much an issue of the day in Australia.  And so it
>should be - everywhere.  Welcome to all our new friends from Down Under!
>
>Check out especially: http://www.australia-today.com
>
>One of our new volunteers is running it :) Hi Hans!  Hans is very much
>involved in DOING something positive.  He wrote as follows (and Im quoting
>you Hans because this letter was public - hope thats ok):
>
>>I am no wowser, adult material does not faze me, but when I >see detailled
>instructions on how to rape a four year old, >together with photographs of
>the actual event, even I feel >that something needs to be done. Not to
>mention how to make >bombs, break into houses and cars and how to kill
>someone >efficiently with a knife.
>>I am not making this up - it's all there.
>>From your responses I know that many of you have seen this >material also.
>>Please keep in touch, we need concerned people like you to >keep these kind
>of excesses in check. Censorship is not the >answer. History shows this has
>never worked. Let us try to at >least shield our children from this sort of
>material, they'll >grow up soon enough.
>>Together we can make a difference, let's do it.
>>Hans von Lieven,  editor Australia Today.
>
>Please, everyone, visit Hans' website and write letters of support to him.
> Let him know how much we appreciate his standing up and making a  commitment
>to a safe Internet.
>********************
>INTERNET PATROLS LAST MONTH
>
>We have been DELUGED with information and education about what is happening
>all over the Net in the past month.  Special mention must go to one of our
>CyberAngels, whose userid is Techphob.  Tech has been patrolling all KINDS of
>dark alleys and dangerous cyberhoods, and the information he is accumulating
>earns him a special mention as our CYBERANGEL OF THE MONTH.  Not only has he
>been assembling huge lists of the red light area of the InterNet, and
>painstakingly researching them, which is not a pleasant task.  TECHPHOB, when
>you die you will go to CYBERHEAVEN. :)  Keep up the excellent work.  And if
>one person can do so much, think what we can  ALL do if we work together.
>
>We have reported a number of Child Pornographers (50) to Sysadmins this
>month.  This was done only after we received from them graphic images
>(unsolicited) of child pornography.  We forwarded the email, including the
>attached files, to respective ISPs with the question "Is this a violation of
>your TOS?  And if it is, what disciplinary steps will you take?"  Letters we
>have received back all share our concern and promise stern action.
>
>Child pornographers are claiming "freedom of speech / expression" to justify
>their evil trade.  Well we are claiming "freedom of speech / expression" to
>try and stop it!  Thank you to all our volunteers who did NOT look the other
>way but stood up and said NO.  Remember, each electronic image represents a
>real life destroyed.
>
>Many people are unsure when they find things whether to contact ISPs
>(InterNet Service Providers) themselves, by writing to relevant System
>Administrators, or to forward the information to us at CyberAngels Central -
>well do both!  We can not possibly investigate everything that you all find,
>so take the step and speak up if you feel there is a TOS (Terms of Service)
>violation.  Write to the ISP and explain the situation and ask the question
>"Is this a violation of your TOS?".   Remember, we will not report anything
>we do not investigate ourselves.  We do not operate on hearsay.   So if you
>find something, give us full information as to how we may find it.
>
>An educational story to finish this section.  One of our CyberAngels drew our
>attention last month to a very nasty posting in alt.teens on the Usenet. We
>checked itout and then wrote to the Sysadmin.  It was a posting from a 16
>year old girl and was extremely nasty (obscene).  Not only that but the
>userid indicated that the server was at a girls school in England.  I wrote
>to the Sysadmin and asked the question "Are you aware that one of your girls
>is posting this kind of material to this newsgroup?"  He investigated the
>matter, and it turned out apparently that the postings came not from a 16
>year old girl at all, but from an older, MALE, member of the teaching staff.
>********************
>FLAMES
>
>With global exposure, and an increasing number of online and offline
>magazines featuring CyberAngels, comes flames.  And we would like to take
>this opportunity to thank everyone who flamed us in the past month.  Some of
>your flames were extremely educational and helped us ENORMOUSLY.   We try to
>reply to all our flames (no matter how rude they are), because we find it a
>very educational activity.
>
>A copy of our FAQ was sent to CUDigest (an online magazine), and it started
>some serious debates via email.  We have so far received an equal number of
>flames and volunteers.   :)
>
>Special mention must go to an ongoing debate about anonymous remailers, which
>was an area where we were less informed.  Thanks to  [e-mail]
> for lots of very helpful suggestions.  For those of you interested in the
>debate about anonymity we have two suggestions:  firstly we have a HUGE FAQ
>on "Identity, Privacy and Anonymity on the InterNet", written by L.Detweiler,
>and if any of you want it, please write to us and ask for it (WARNING it is
>138k!)  Secondly you can write to [e-mail] for their FAQ on their
>anonymous service, which is also very educational.
>********************
>AN INTERACTIVE SECTION
>
>We need to learn more about "kill files".  Who knows about them and who is
>willing to share?  We will print whatever info we get in the next newsletter.
>
>Secondly, if any of you have ANYTHING relevant you would like to see printed
>in our next newsletter, then please submit it to us.  Let us know if you want
>your name on it or not.  Let's start sharing information and stories among
>our members.  Do you really want to listen to Gabriel month after month? ;)
>
>Send us press articles etc, especially translations from countries where
>english is not spoken, about the InterNet and what is happening.  Let's hear
>some good news about all the excellent organizations working for a safer
>InterNet!
>
>Another question - what is X-Band?  We think it is a game playing BBS, but we
>are not sure.  Anyway, no one on X-Band can receive email longer than 5
>lines.  So does anyone out there know what it is?  We have received several
>letters from X-Band inhabitants, and we are very interested in
>it...Someone...educate us!
>********************
>USEFUL INTERNET ORGANIZATIONS
>
>For those of you who want to learn more about the issues and arguments of
>cyberspace and censorship/regulation, we would refer you to the following
>groups (in addition to ourselves and Safesurf ) :
>
>1) Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), describes itself as "a non-profit
>civil liberties organization working in the public interest to protect
>privacy, free expression and access to online resources and information"
> They are at http://www.eff.org
>
>2) InterNet Society, at http://www.isoc.org
>
>For those of you interested in US legislation, you can obtain a list from the
>ACLU of recent government legislation relating to the Net (Thanks CyberAngel
>Anndell!).
>For a synopsis of all the online censorship bills passed or considered by
>American states this year, send a message to [e-mail] with "Update
>of State Bills" in the subject line of the message.
>
>For those of you outside the USA, please send us similar information from
>your countries!
>********************
>CYBERANGELS MOVING EMAIL ADDRESS SOON!
>
>We are busy right now setting up an account with Wavenet.com in Los Angeles,
>so will soon have a different email address (although we will maintain
>[e-mail]).  From the 20th November you can email us at
>
>[e-mail]
>
>and this is the email address we would prefer you to use.  Thanks!
>********************
>Below is an article many of you will not have read.
>
>CYBERANGELS
>In "Wanted" Magazine
>
>"I'm looking for pictures of girls 11 to 14.  Let's trade."  Starts the man
>the other men know only as Flesh.
>"Hey everyone trade with me".  Matt follows up.  "I always return hard to
>find, controversial pictures!"
>A guy known as Pedoman spoke next.  "Let's trade pictures I have ton's of
>hard ones".
>"If you got girls 11 - 14 I'm for trading".
>"I want 1 - 5".
>"Yum yum give me some".
>"Any good girl-girl action (under 16)? Adds a new party.
>"If people send me pics I'll return a movie".
>"I have some Preteen pics to trade"  This from Pedoman.
>"Tell me how young, and send me one first. I'll get you what you want".
>
>This is a real conversation that occurred on August 5th 1995 over computer
>phone lines in a live talk area of America On Line, (one of the most popular
>computer servers in the Nation).  The Guardian Angels recorded it as part of
>a new program to expose computer criminals, help the police keep an eye on
>cyber sickies and close down their deviant electronic town meeting/support
>group/strategy session.
>
>The Program is called Cyber Angels and like the Guardian Angel street patrols
>it's on the cutting edge.  Cyber Angels has a huge potential because it draws
>on an untapped source for it's members; ordinary Internet surfers.  It trains
>them to be observant while they "surf", looking for criminal or abusive uses
>of the computer network.  Hate crimes, pedophile networks, sexual harassment
>(stalking) and credit card fraud are just some of the crimes flourishing on
>the under secured Internet and fair game for the Cyber Angels.
>
>More than just an enforcement group the Cyber Angels will train Users to help
>look out for their own community; the computer community. Why shouldn't the
>same laws of human decency and respect for others apply to the Internet as
>well as any street in the U.S.?
>
>Strangely thousands of educated, non pedophiles are opposed to us trying to
>do this.
>
>4 million people already belong to America on Line's (A.O.L.) computer clan.
>  Hundreds more join every day as people succumb to the super glut of
>propaganda about the Information Superhighway and rush to find out what they
>are missing.  A huge family all right however so far it seems nobody wants to
>do anything about dirty Uncle Fester who's up in the attic panting and
>drooling over an X-rated picture of the "Little Rascals".
>
>In fact, based on the recorded conversation above, not only does the family
>turn a blind eye to Uncle Fester  they also let him use the den for a weekly
>game of poker with like minded friends using a deck of cards with a "kids and
>their loving pets" theme.
>
>Even worse, Mom and Dad sometimes let Uncle F. baby-sit the kids.
>
>Authorities have made sporadic attempts to lock up these computer pedophiles
>but the successes of these campaigns have just gone to show how blatant and
>widespread the problem is.    Like an exterminator who crushes a hundred
>cockroaches just by walking across the kitchen floor.
>
>Last year U.S. federal authorities served warrants on 35 men who had
>contacted a Danish computer service that provided pictures that were illegal
>in the U.S., of young kids having sex.   Out of the 35 men who were
>questioned and had their houses searched, 10 readily admitted to having
>molested children.
>
>Yet despite these successes the family continues to shelter Uncle Fester.
>When we tried to follow-up after we gave America On Line (A.O.L.) the
>recording of the conversation above, they informed us that not only were the
>identities of the conversants confidential, so was any details about any
>disciplinary action A.O.L. had or hadn't taken against them.    A.O.L. admits
>that there are many more cases of children being targeted for crimes and
>abuse through the computer that are unrecorded, still it refuses to
>reconsider it's promotional policy of providing any new user with 10 free
>hours.  This promotional tactic allows anyone to sign on with a fake credit
>card and have ten hours using or abusing the Internet with complete
>anonymity.  Because A.O.L.  sends out discs through the mail and distributes
>them through selected magazines there is no limit to the number of free 10
>hour trials computer abusers can get.
>
>But the Administrators of A.O.L. aren't the only obstacle.  It seems the
>Internet has it's own freedom fighters.  A fearless band of well meaning
>defenders who take a good idea to it's absurd extreme.  Like environmental
>granola terrorists who will injure loggers or bomb hunting retreats to save
>the spotted owl, these Champions of Cyber feel that freedom of speech as
>proposed by the founding fathers was intended to allow child rapists to hold
>public gab sessions, discuss their disgusting deeds and depraved desires and
>just generally work themselves up into a pedophilic lather.  Personally, I
>prefer a little preventative medicine, a little stitch in time that saves
>sending out the blood hounds to try and locate a snatched 5 year old before
>she ends up in a garbage bag in a dumpster.
>
>A private investigator who was upset by the use of the world wide computer
>network of computer pedophile predators assumed the identity of a teenage
>girl to show how simple it was to draw out the computer predators.  A Nevada
>man quickly fell into the trap not only sending explicit sexual messages to
>what he thought was a 14 year old girl but traveling to a Milwaukee motel
>room for an arranged sexual liaison where he was met and charged by federal
>authorities.
>
>At our own Web Site the Cyber Angels will act as public advocates, posting
>information about Users who commit cyber crimes or try to arrange physical
>rendezvous with children.  Just like Megan's law in New Jersey and similar
>laws in other states allow us to warn parents who and what to watch for if
>they want to keep their kids safe.
>
>Users who have witnessed or discovered some abuse of the 'Net can also visit
>our Web Site to find out what they should do with their concern.  Should they
>pass their information on to the Federal authorities?  Post it on our
>bulletin board?   And how about some instruction in how not to react?  On the
>street you can get shot for trying to get in the last insult of an argument,
>on the 'Net you don't run the risk of death but you are only motivating some
>hate nutcase if you do anything more than lodge your disgust and then ignore
>them.  Then there will be the Chicken Little cases that we need to reach;
>maybe someone enters a chat room where a discussion is being held between
>some gay men and nobody has ever told this guy that there is a difference
>between homosexual and child molester .  Well then our Web Site can let him
>know that the sky is not falling.
>
>We want to pressure computer system operators to better police their own
>service users.  A.O.L. needs to learn that it is partially responsible for
>what goes on in it's "house".  Hey, call me cynical but it's hard to have
>trust in A.O.L.'s  integrity and humanity when they assign their well paid
>corporate lawyers to answer our concerns about the 'Net.
>
>Less lawyers and more law.  So the Cyber Angel program will filter all the
>information that it receives from patrolling members and concerned Users and
>pass the useful information on to the authorities to act on.  Then we
>publicize the arrests because just building the reputation of the 'Net as a
>protected environment where the law applies just like everywhere else will go
>a long way in discouraging some guy with a new swastika tattoo from
>terrorizing some other User.
>
>Right now the Internet has a reputation.  A noticeable absence of Police and
>thousands of young potential victims or recruits left to wander by themselves
>by their parents.  Users and Abusers can operate with complete anonymity,  is
>it any wonder that pedophiles, racists and other criminals have approached
> the computer era with clammy hand rubbing glee?
>
>These Abusers with their Hitler salutes and baby oil got the computer jump on
>everybody but Bill Gates and now they are entrenched.  Cyber space is
>infested with "Aliens" who are lurking in not so dark corners, waiting for a
>victim to happen by and training the fledgling "Aliens" how to hunt.  The
>Cyber Angels are just recruiting the Sigourney Weavers.
>
>We have already attracted over two hundred recruits to our Cyber Angel
>program.  Like the original Guardian Angel program it has the power of
>algebra on it's side.  Basically there are more law abiding Users on the
>Internet then law breaking Abusers, it's just a matter of the good guys
>working as hard as the bad and the ugly.
>
>So should we bother?  Should we act on our disgust at the black polyester
>sock, pant and drool crowd that are soiling their fruit of the looms over
>traded photos of 8 year old children?  Or is this the kind of free speech the
>founding fathers meant to protect with the first amendment?  Should I be
>angry and try to stop the distribution of a video game where the object is to
>cram the most Jewish prisoners into my crematorium and win the "game"?
> Should anyone even be offended that the same "champions of the people", who
>brought you the Time magazine article on Cyberporn have now written their own
>get rich quick computer manual called "The Pornographers Handbook: How To
>Exploit Women, Dupe Men & Make Lots of Money."?
>
>Only if our principles have gotten lazy.  Just by definition we should be
>interested in anything that interests Pedophiles as much as the Internet.
> Where ever the sexually criminal play there should be watchdogs following
>them.  people should be vigilant so they can not befriend and then attack
>their little victim.  Hate mongers must have their twisted lies refuted and
>exposed to ensure that potential recruits get both sides of the story before
>they get sucked down that whirlpool of biased sewage.
>
>Maybe just as important, Users that "play" at crime on the Internet need a
>wake-up call.  The future of the 'Net is in their hands also.  They may be
>young and adventurous now but are they going to want their future children to
>encounter the kinds of "harmless" harassment, "fun and games" fraud and "it
>was just a joke until someone loses an eye" mail box bombing or computer
>virus campaigns?
>
>The Guardian Angels have adopted an old saying "All that is required for the
>triumph of evil, is that good men and women remain silent and do nothing".
>  That's as true today on the internet as it ever was anywhere else.
>
>Sebastian Metz
>********************
>HELP US!  WE NEED YOUR DONATIONS TO EXPAND OUR PROJECT!
>
>Listen...thanks to YOU this InterNet monitoring project has really taken off,
>and we are getting more volunteers every day.  That means more and more
>people around the world are taking the PROACTIVE step of patrolling your part
>of cyberspace and assuming a greater responsibility for the quality of your
>cyberhood.  That means WE ARE ALL MAKING A DIFFERENCE!  We are helping many
>people, especially kids, enjoy the wonderful creation that is the InterNet,
>in greater safety and security.
>
>NOW...we need to expand our resources.  There are now two of us working as
>fulltime volunteers to coordinate the project, and WE NEED YOUR HELP.
>
>Firstly we need two big fast applemacs with 28.8 modems.  If we can't find a
>donor, we will need to buy them.  If you can help us with these resources in
>any way, please email us.
>
>Secondly, we are a volunteer organization and we need money to help us to
>cover our increasing online bills, not to mention to develop our WWW home
>pages.  The great strength of our work together is that it is a team effort.
>E.g. if everyone on our mailing list sent us *$10.00*, this would enable us
>to expand the project to a higher level for 1996.  Please send any donations
>as checks or money orders (payable to "CyberAngels") to: CyberAngels, PO Box
>1102, Hollywood, CA 90078, USA. Thank you in advance for that particular
>help.  We really need it!
>
>We have designed a special CyberAngels T-shirt, and are offering it to our
>supporters for the sum of $25.00.  This is of course a donation to the work,
>but in this case you will receive an excellent T-shirt that you could not buy
>anywhere!  Details of this will soon be up on our Web page.  If you are
>interested, send that $25.00 to the above snail address. :)
>
>By the way, anyone sending in a donation of $50.00 or more will be listed on
>our home pages in our CyberAngels Supporters Hall of Fame.  Dig deep!
>
>BTW, anyone with a WWW site - you can help us enormously by putting a link
>from your page to ours...This way we spread the word faster!
>********************
>AND FINALLY
>
>>From Harlequin and myself (Gabriel), that's all until our next newsletter.
> We have a wonderful project going on here, that is really helping to change
>the InterNet.  Don't ever think that the Net is too big to change.  All it
>takes is individuals coming together with determination.  We thank you all.
> And keep those patrols going on!  And spread the word!  Get your friends
>involved too, and build this work!  Remember:
>
>CYBERSPACE NEEDS CYBERANGELS!
>
>Gabriel & Harlequin
>
David Smith               * "We truly believe that even though we live in an
evil
[e-mail]            *  world, if you can stand up with a stronger
will, then you
President, EFF-Austin     *  can't be beaten down. This is the true spirit
of the
Board of Directors, CTCLU *  EFF-Austin member"  -- John Woo


------------------------------

Date: Mon, 13 Nov 1995 23:59:03 +0100
From: Patrick C. Ernzer <[e-mail]>
Subject: File 3--Re: CuD, #7.89 - Govt & Net Censorship

just some thoughts that crossed my mind, and wich I thought I would
share with you.

there was a time when the US where great and wonderful to me (this was
when I was young and easily impressed by things as Silicon Valley and
the NASA).  Then came the time to keep up with news and such, and
gradually the US became in my view a place where the best, the worst
and especially the most silly things were possible (e.g. the sexual
harassment laws of the US, wich are laughably extreme in the views of
most Europeans). But now it has finally happened, a very powerful
group (The Religious Right) has clearly gone too far.

I don't mean to insult the US in general, but if the bill, the
Religious Right wants to pass, does pass, then the US risk to be left
out from the international community. IMHO (untill Europe imitates the
US, as always 10 years or so later) the US will simply left out from
the internet. Rather than risking having bigots laws on one's back and
being sued all the way to the end of the known galaxy, people will
IMHO just avoid the US.

Are those who want to pass the bill aware of this? I doubt it. I would
really miss all the people I am in contact with in the US, but then
again I don't want to get in trouble just because if my language or my
general moral views. (No, I'm not a child abuser, but the sense of
humor I inherited by living in France for many years will probably be
enough to get me into trouble. Just imagine telling a sick baby joke
with a sexual conotation to sb residing in the US will get me and my
ISP or university in deep trouble instead of just generating a "bah,
that was not really funny, you know.")

What will happen to the US if all major firms relocate to other
coutries because of the legislation being just laughably strict? I
don't want to paint gloomy end-of-world-scenes regarding the US, but
IMHO there is a danger of this.