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- From: Cu-Digest (tk0jut2@mvs.cso.niu.edu) <TK0JUT2%NIU.BITNET@UICVM.UIC.EDU>
- Subject: Cu Digest, #5.46
- Date: Wed, 23 Jun 1993 23:50:18 CDT
- Message-ID: <1993Jun23.235018.18753@chinacat.unicom.com>
- Organization: the Computer Underground Digest gateway
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-
- Computer underground Digest Wed June 23 1993 Volume 5 : Issue 46
- ISSN 1004-042X
-
- Editors: Jim Thomas and Gordon Meyer (TK0JUT2@NIU.BITNET)
- Archivist: Brendan Kehoe
- Shadow-Archivists: Dan Carosone / Paul Southworth
- Ralph Sims / Jyrki Kuoppala
- Ian Dickinson
- Copy Editor: Etaoin Shrdlu, Seniur
-
- CONTENTS, #5.46 (June 23 1993)
- File 1--Re: File 6--Course on "Politics and Technology"
- File 2--A public experiment in how private our lives really are
- File 3--AB1624/Calif Legislature Computer Access -- Full Text
- File 4--Summercon Synopsis & Playful Precis
- File 5-- Defense Contractor Attacks Full Disclosure (Reprint) (#1)
- File 6--The "Offending" Full Disclosure Story (#2)
- File 7--The Harris Letter Threatening Litigation against FD (#3)
- File 8--The Full Disclosure Atty's Response to Harris (#4)
-
- Cu-Digest is a weekly electronic journal/newsletter. Subscriptions are
- available at no cost electronically from tk0jut2@mvs.cso.niu.edu. The
- editors may be contacted by voice (815-753-6430), fax (815-753-6302)
- or U.S. mail at: Jim Thomas, Department of Sociology, NIU, DeKalb, IL
- 60115.
-
- Issues of CuD can also be found in the Usenet comp.society.cu-digest
- news group; on CompuServe in DL0 and DL4 of the IBMBBS SIG, DL1 of
- LAWSIG, and DL0 and DL12 of TELECOM; on GEnie in the PF*NPC RT
- libraries and in the VIRUS/SECURITY library; from America Online in
- the PC Telecom forum under "computing newsletters;"
- On Delphi in the General Discussion database of the Internet SIG;
- on the PC-EXEC BBS at (414) 789-4210; and on: Rune Stone BBS (IIRG
- WHQ) 203-832-8441 NUP:Conspiracy
- CuD is also available via Fidonet File Request from 1:11/70; unlisted
- nodes and points welcome.
- EUROPE: from the ComNet in LUXEMBOURG BBS (++352) 466893;
- In ITALY: Bits against the Empire BBS: +39-461-980493
-
- ANONYMOUS FTP SITES:
- UNITED STATES: ftp.eff.org (192.88.144.4) in /pub/cud
- uglymouse.css.itd.umich.edu (141.211.182.53) in /pub/CuD/cud
- halcyon.com( 202.135.191.2) in /pub/mirror/cud
- AUSTRALIA: ftp.ee.mu.oz.au (128.250.77.2) in /pub/text/CuD.
- EUROPE: nic.funet.fi in pub/doc/cud. (Finland)
- ftp.warwick.ac.uk in pub/cud (United Kingdom)
-
- COMPUTER UNDERGROUND DIGEST is an open forum dedicated to sharing
- information among computerists and to the presentation and debate of
- diverse views. CuD material may be reprinted for non-profit as long
- as the source is cited. Authors hold a presumptive copyright, and
- they should be contacted for reprint permission. It is assumed that
- non-personal mail to the moderators may be reprinted unless otherwise
- specified. Readers are encouraged to submit reasoned articles
- relating to computer culture and communication. Articles are
- preferred to short responses. Please avoid quoting previous posts
- unless absolutely necessary.
-
- DISCLAIMER: The views represented herein do not necessarily represent
- the views of the moderators. Digest contributors assume all
- responsibility for ensuring that articles submitted do not
- violate copyright protections.
-
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- Date: Mon, 21 Jun 93 14:00:26 EDT
- From: phyland@ESSENTIAL.ORG(Paul Hyland)
- Subject: File 1--Re: File 6--Course on "Politics and Technology"
-
- CPSR distributes for $10 (I think) a list of Course Syllabi on
- Computers and Society, written by Terry Winograd and Batya Friedman.
- Ordering information can be obtained in the file cpsr.books at the
- info server cpsr.org (listserv/ftp/gopher/wais), or write to the
- national office at cpsr@cpsr.org.
-
- There are many other files there that chould be helpful to you in the
- preparation of your class materials.
-
- Paul Hyland phyland@gwuvm.gwu.edu or essential.org
- Moderator, CPSR List cpsr@gwuvm.gwu.edu
-
- ------------------------------
-
- Date: Mon, 21 Jun 93 14:41:58 -0700
- From: gnu@TOAD.COM
- Subject: File 2--A public experiment in how private our lives really are
-
- A reported has asked me for help in finding people who will help to
- penetrate the privacy of four volunteers, for a major newspaper story.
-
- Any takers? Contact the reporter:
-
- Reporter for major metro paper is interested in help finding out
- anything there is to find on four prominent people who have
- volunteered to have their privacy breached.
-
- Financial fundamentals. Lives of crime. Aches and pains. How rich
- they are, where they vacation, who they socialize with. You name it,
- we're interested in seeing if it's out there.
-
- All for a good cause.
- If you're willing to advise this computer-ignorant reporter, or dig
- in and get the dope on these volunteers, please contact him at
- tye@nws.globe.com
- Or call at +1 617 929 3342. Soon.
-
- Thanks.
-
- Feel free to forward this far and wide.
- --
- John Gilmore gnu@toad.com -- gnu@cygnus.com -- gnu@eff.org
- Creating freedom, rather than longer chains, bigger cages, better meals, . . .
-
- ------------------------------
-
- Date: Tue, 22 Jun 1993 03:54:09 GMT
- From: kiddyr@GALLANT.APPLE.COM(Ray Kiddy)
- Subject: File 3--AB1624/Calif Legislature Computer Access -- Full Text
-
- Well, it has changed and it is definitely an improvement. so, without
- further ado, the full text of AB1624.
-
- AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 17, 1993
- AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 18, 1993
- CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE--1993-94 REGULAR SESSION
-
- ASSEMBLY BILL No. 1624
-
- Introduced by Assembly Member Bowen
- (Principal coauthor: Senator Torres) (Coauthors: Assembly Members
- Areias, Bornstein, Goldsmith, Isenberg, Johnson, Karnette, Katz
- Mountjoy, Nolan, Polanco, Speier, and Vasconcellos)
- (Coauthors: Senators Dills, Hayden, Killea, Morgan, and Rosenthal)
-
- March 4, 1993
-
- An act to add Section 10248 to the Government Code,
- relating to the Legislature;
-
- LEGISLATIVE COUNSELUS DIGEST
-
- AB 1624, as amended, Bowen. Legislature: legislative
- information: access by computer network.
- Under existing law, all meetings of a house of the Legislature
- or a committee thereof are required to be open and public, unless
- specifically exempted, and any meeting that is required to be open
- and public, including specified closed sessions, may be held only
- after full and timely notice to the public as provided by the
- Joint Rules of the Assembly and Senate.
- This bill would make legislative findings and declarations that
- the public should be informed to the fullest extent possible as to
- the time, place, and agenda for each meeting.
- This bill would require the Legislative Counsel, with the advice
- of the Joint Rules Committee of the Senate and Assembly, to make
- available to the public, by means of access by way of the largest
- nonproprietary, nonprofit cooperative public computer network,
- specified information concerning bills, the proceedings of the
- houses and committees of the Legislature, statutory enactments,
- and the California Constitution.
- Vote: 2/3 majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
- State-mandated local program: no.
-
- The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
-
- 1 SECTION 1. Section 10248 is added to the
- 2 Government Code, to read:
- 3 10248. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that
- 4 the public should be informed to the fullest extent
- 5 possible as to the time, place, and agenda for each
- 6 meeting of the houses and committees of the Legislature.
- 7 The Legislature further finds and declares that it is
- 8 desirable to make timely information regarding these
- 9 proceedings available to each member of the public,
- 10 irrespective of where he or she resides, for the least cost
- 11 possible.
- 12 (b) The Legislative Counsel shall, with the advice of
- 13 the Joint Rules Committee, make all of the following
- 14 information available to the public in electronic form:
- 15 (1) The most recent Assembly Daily File and most
- 16 recent Daily Senate File.
- 17 (2) The text of each bill introduced in each current
- 18 legislative session, including all amended forms of the
- 19 bill.
- 20 (3) The bill history of each bill introduced and
- 21 amended in each current legislative session.
- 22 (4) The bill status of each bill introduced and
- 1 amended in each current legislative session.
- 2 (5) All bill analyses prepared in connection with each
- 3 bill in each current legislative session.
- 4 (6) All vote information concerning each bill in each
- 5 current legislative session.
- 6 (7) Veto messages concerning each bill, when issued,
- 7 in each current legislative session.
- 8 (8) The California Codes.
- 9 (9) The California Constitution.
- 10 (10) All uncodified statutes enacted on or after
- 11 January 1, 1993.
- 35 (11) Documentation that is available to the public and
- 36 maintained in computerized form by the Legislative
- 37 Counsel which describes the computerized digital
- 38 formats of the files containing the information specified
- 39 in this subdivision.
- 40 (c) The Legislative Counsel shall automatically
- 1 transmit copies of files of the information specified in
- 2 subdivision (b) by way of the largest nonproprietary,
- 3 nonprofit cooperative public computer network upon
- 4 receiving any computerized request for the files. These
- 5 files shall be made available in this manner immediately
- 6 after they are transmitted to the Office of State Printing.
- 7 The files shall contain all of the text and formatting
- 8 information transmitted to the Office of State Printing. In
- 9 the event that a technical malfunction prevents these
- 10 files from being transmitted immediately after they are
- 11 transmitted to the Office of State Printing, the
- 12 Legislative Counsel shall report that fact to the Joint
- 13 Rules Committee within one business day.
- 14 (d) Any file that is available pursuant to subdivision
- 15 (c) shall remain available to the public upon request by
- 16 electronic digital data transmission until it is updated.
- 17 When a file is updated, a copy of the file without the
- 18 updated information shall remain available to the public
- 19 by electronic data digital transmission for at least 90 days
- 20 after the update.
- 21 (e) The Legislative Counsel may not control which or
- 22 how many files are available to a person who requests the
- 23 files nor monitor or keep any records about those persons
- 24 who request files, except for the purpose of assuring the
- 25 quality of computer operations. No fee or other charge
- 26 shall be imposed as a condition to public access to any files
- 27 that are made available to the public pursuant to this
- 28 section.
- 29 (f) No action taken pursuant to this section shall be
- 30 deemed to alter or relinquish any copyright or other
- 31 proprietary interest or entitlement of the State of
- 32 California relating to any of the information made
- 33 available pursuant to this section.
-
- ------------------------------
-
- Date: Tue, 22 Jun 93 15:17 CDT
- From: rejones@SEABASS.ST.USM.EDU
- Subject: File 4--Summercon Synopsis & Playful Precis
-
- Presenting :::
-
- SummerCon 1993 in Review !!!
-
- Hacking Tales and Exploits by the SotMESC
-
- Additional Activities by the GCMS MechWarriors
-
- -()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-
-
- The weather was right, too right. Something was foul in the
- air. It was akin to that mythical 'Calm before the Storm' scenario
- that is dreaded by so many. But, Scribbles and I boarded the
- Techno-Laden SotMESC compact and took off down the Highway to our
- ultimate goal . . . Hacker Heaven in Summertime Fun - SummerCon !!!
-
- Instantly, weather was seen brewing in the Caribbean. Hints
- of Hurricanes echoed through the towns we drifted through. To
- alleviate any anxieties, massive quantities of Jolt! were obtained
- in the infamous town of Hatties-Gulch, a small town taken over by
- the virulent filth called College Students.
-
- The trip continued, over hill and over dale. Dale was quite
- considerate not to press charges. Colleges were passed in a blink
- of the eye. Nothing was going to stop us. We were on a mission
- from the Church. But, that's another story.
-
- After locating that famous arch, a beeline was made at speeds
- over 100 MPH through St. Louis until our destination came into
- view: The St. Louis Executive International (800-325-4850). We
- came to meet our nemesis and friends at the fest hosted by the
- Missouri Programming Institute. Brakes were quickly applied
- as the car appeared to be going off the off-ramp and into the ditch.
-
- From the lobby it was obvious, there were unusual people here.
- These were the kind of people that you fear your daughters would
- never meet. The kind of people that kicked themselves into
- caffeine frenzies and would become infatuated with virtual lands.
- Yes, these were my kind of people.
-
- Now, the adventure may start . . .
-
- ( More to come after I get out of the shower real quick )
-
- -Frosty, ilKhan of the SotMESC
-
- =========================================================================
-
- The continuing story of Hackers gone astray in the big city =:)
-
- For those of you that were waiting, we apologize for the delay.
- But, nobody can interrupt an original episode of ST:TNG and the
- discovery of the latest 2600 'zine.
-
- Oh, and in response to A-Gal on pg 30 of 2600, Scribbles says
- she's the sexiest hacker on the nets. Hmmmmm, I'm inclined to agree
- with that. I'm sure Control-C will agree too, especially after he
- trailed her for half of SCon.
-
- Now, we all know that Friday is the warm-up day on what we can
- expect to see at SCon during the main saturday drag. It was no
- surprise to find the main junction box rewired, pay-phones providing
- free services, rooms rerouted and computers running rampant down the
- hallways. But, the traditional trashing of Control-C's room this
- early signaled that more would be needed to top the night. The maid
- was definitely not pleased.
-
- For a list of those that attended, maybe KL can provide us
- with that information. There were too many faces for my fingers
- to lap into. And, there were quite a few new faces. I believe
- that Weevel was the youngest hacker at 16, and Emmanuel was the
- oldest, although he didn't give his age.
-
- -()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-
-
- THE CONFERENCE
-
- -()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-()-
-
- Let's get to the meat of the matter. The conference had
- a nice spacious central area with tables neatly lining alongside
- the wall. Between the tables and the walls were many hacks packed
- as tightly as they could get. Why didn't we think of moving the tables
- closer together ???
-
- KL took control and ran the conference smoothly. dFx panned
- everyone on his digital camcorder. Several cameras were around
- to provide us with gifs later. And the conference took off . . .
-
- First up was Stewart from SRI ( Stanford Research Institute ).
- He elaborated on SRI's being involved in research, engineering and
- design. From studies done around the world with hackers and those
- associated, malicious hacking can not be stopped. There is no
- evidence, though, that the current hackers are interested in bringing
- the networks down at all. Concern was given to new hackers that may
- be emerging with financial gain and maliciousness occurring. The top
- security hole with system was noted as being the infamous social
- engineering technique. SRI did note that many places did not utilize
- the security that they even had in place. It was also noted that laws
- against malicious hackers, and probably any hacker, should be fair and
- just. The most malicious hacks that are turning up have been spotted
- in the following named countries: Holland, Scandinavia countries, very
- possibly soon in the UK, Australia, Israel, the former USSR, and
- Bulgaria ( noted for virii writers ).
-
- A voice made mention of Operation Rahab, hackers in German
- Intelligence.
-
- Next up was Count Zero from cDc/RDT to talk about packet radio.
- His talk included information about the IESS and handed out a flyer on
- America 2000 ( school under 1984 regimes ). Maybe someone will
- provide us with a copy of this. A packet radio modem at 1200 can be
- obtained easily for $50. TCP/IP packets are already being send over
- the bandwidth along with other network protocols. The usefulness of
- all this is that the information is broadcast and it is virgin
- territory. The baud limitation is due only based upon the bandwidth
- you are operating at and the number of collisions occurring. On a
- band you can see every packet that is being transmitted if you wish.
- All this is located on a 2 meter band. Currently the FCC forbids
- encryptions on the airwaves, although this is noted as being virtually
- impossible to enforce. It also takes 5 months to get an amateur
- radio license, and your personal info is recorded in a book easily
- obtained at libraries. The problem with going around the FCC is that
- there exist vigilante HAMs that monitor the bands and have nothing
- better to do than filter info and whine to the FCC. Bandwidths are
- decreasing though. This is due to an increased interest overall by
- communications in these areas. Unless you do something major the FCC
- will not give you much interest. The book on preparing yourself for a
- Tech Class can be obtained from Radio Shak for $9.
-
- Next up was dFx. He was promoting the HCon and Tone-Loc t-shirts
- that were for sale. Merchandising was getting pretty high. He also
- gave out a few Mitsubishi 800 disks. He was also recognized as the
- ONLY and LAST member of the Neon Knights, a club that had a wide range
- of comedy names generated. The word was put out the HCon '93 will be
- in December 17-19 with a hint that it could also wind up being in
- Austin. Then the conversation turned to Lord Byron's bust, which we
- should here more information on any day this week. The conversation
- reiterated the government narc that was at the AA meeting that was
- pressuring Byron. Byron was also noted as having rejected a plea
- bargain the courts offered him. And lastly, it is going to happen
- soon so get them while you can. The FTP site at eff.org will be
- dropping its CuD directory due to a conflict of interest with EFFs
- major contributors, mainly the RBOCs and other interest groups that
- don't like us.
-
- Erik Bloodaxe took the table next to talk about what was
- happening with his involvement with Phrack and some interesting info
- about Agent Steel. As for Phrack, the Email list is being with-held
- by Tuc. The mailing list has been refused at Mindvox due to files
- missing mysteriously at that site. And, no organization registered
- for Phrack #42 since it was copyrighted with a nice and lengthy
- preamble, except for one company from Midar. Currently Phrack #43 is
- in limbo and is estimated at 1 Meg long. Going onto the info about
- Agent Steel, basically he's a narc. Lord Havok from Canada is trying
- to restart the LOD under some unknown logical rationale that since LOD
- is defunct, anyone can reclaim the name. Lord HAvok, aka Cameron, has
- been going around trying to get documentation to put together an LOD
- technical journal #5. Supposedly there is a skin-head group in Canada
- that is now tracking Cameron down.
-
- Someone next came up and gave us an update on Codec. Two weeks
- after the last SCon, Codec was pulled over while on the run from the
- law for speeding and then arrested for burglary, resisting arrest, etc
- . . . He is estimated to be out of jail in 1995 and still has time to
- serve in a few other states. Mail can be sent to him at this address:
- codec@cypher.com. Maybe Crunch can give Codec some hints on how to
- get by in prison?
-
- From the CPSR, Eric Nielson took the table. He elaborated on
- the CPSR and ran a Q&A period. Basically, the CPSR files many FOIA
- requests and sues the government. Their focus is on the workplace
- computing. Elaboration was given on the Clipper Chip and computer
- ship security. The CPSR is staffed with lawyers and takes their
- funding from dues and grants. They are not sponsored by any
- corporations.
-
- From the far side of the table came the infamous Emmanuel
- Goldstein from 2600. He stated how he had testified at congress and
- gave them a live demonstration of bandwidth scanning and redboxing.
- While he was there, the inquisition started against him on the issue
- of 2600. Emmanuel then tried to explain the culture to our
- representative that it is bad to classify all hackers as criminals.
- Goldstein then went on to talk about the DC 2600 bust and how it has
- resulted in 2600 meetings springing up all across the country. A
- review of several films on software piracy at the office, disaster
- recovery and viruses from Commonwealth Films was given. And, to
- hilight everything, 2600 has purchased an AT&T van that they plan to
- take to assorted conventions and
- start a fleet of these up.
-
- Pst, BTW, on pg 43 of 2600 the intersection should be a jump =:)
-
- Last up was Errath Ackby, a Certified Netware Engineer. He
- explained that the only upgrade in Novell 4.0 is the disk compression.
- He also informed us that the supervisor and guest accounts generally
- have default passwords. TO hack into this Net, you should use a PC
- with full alt and functions keys. The supervisor p/w is on the
- RConsole in a file called autoexec.mcf on version 3.11. Netcrack
- will not work on a system with Intruder Lock-Out. Non-dedicated
- netware must boot from a floppy. Best of all, you can dial out
- by using cubix-quarts, which are PC with modems on the system.
-
- Thus we have come to the end of the conference part of
- SummerCon. Part III will go into detail about several of the
- flyers that were floating about and the post-conference excitement
- that nobody there would ever forget !!!
-
- Below is a quick reprint of a paper that was recovered
- from Control-C's trashed room.
-
- Mrs Jarnagin,
-
- I would like to set up a meeting
- to discuss Kevin's progress in Social
- Studies and English. Please let
- me know when it would be
- convenient.
-
- Thank you
-
- ( Scribble , scribble )
-
- Dear Mr + Mrs Gormby,
-
- We would be happy
- to meet with you at
- 9:30 on Thursday, April
- 1st in Room 104
-
- Sincerely,
- M.Jarnagin
- &
- S.Dietrich
-
-
- Now, could this be Kevin Poulson ??? Naaa, no way.
- Amazing what technical data trashing will uncover. I guess
- I should throw this away now . . .
-
- THE ADVENTURE CONTINUES !!!
-
- -Frosty, ilKhan of the SotMESC
-
- ------------------------------
-
- Date: Wed, 22 Jun 1993 22:32:12 PDT
- From: Alex Zelchenko <alexz@well.sf.ca.us>
- Subject: File 5--Defense Contractor Attacks Full Disclosure (Reprint) (#1)
-
- ((MODERATORS' NOTE: Glen Roberts, editor of Full Disclosure, a gadfly
- hardcopy journal/newsletter, has been threatened with a lawsuit by
- Harris Corp. over a review of one of its products. As the experiences
- of 2600 Magazine illustrate, the threat of litigation by large
- corporations seems to be a way of silencing speech of those writing on
- cyber-issues.
-
- CuD readers will recall that Roberts and his co-gadfly Bill Vajk
- obtained and made available a number of sealed federal warrants and
- affidavits during the so-called "Hacker Crackdown" of the 1990s,
- including the Ripco BBS and Rich Andrews documents. Full Disclosure was
- also one of the first print media to attack the crackdowns and
- provided considerable information about the events to the computer
- community. Vajk and Roberts aggressively use the Freedom of
- Information Act (FOIA) to ferret out information. The generosity of
- Roberts and Vajk in sharing their information with CuD, amongst
- others, makes any threat to their enterprise a threat to our own
- information flow for two reasons. First, if media such as 2600 or Full
- Disclosure are silenced from legitimate pursuit and publication of
- information because of the chilling effect of intimidation, then a
- significant source of information is lost. Second, if large
- corporations or government agencies can threaten publications of which
- they disapprove into silence, it severely curtails the free flow of
- information and makes other media more cautious lest they also be
- targeted.
-
- Alex Zelchenko collected the basic documents related to this case. In
- this file, we reprint a (forthcoming) Full Disclosure piece
- summarizing the events. Second is the "offending" story that resulted
- in the threat of litigation. Third is the letter from Harris attorneys
- threatening the suit, and finally is the response of Full Disclosure
- legal counsel to Harris.
-
- ++++++
-
- DEFENSE CONTRACTOR ATTACKS NEWSPAPER EDITOR
-
- (CHICAGO) -- Harris Corporation, through its Electronic Systems
- Sector in Melbourne, Florida, has attacked Glen L. Roberts, Editor of
- Full Disclosure, the nation's #1 surveillance journal, threatening
- him with civil and criminal proceedings over his editorial review of
- one of their products.
-
- In 1991, Full Disclosure reported on the National Technical
- Investigators Assoc conference held Washington, DC. Harris, an
- exhibitor at the conference, was included in Full Disclosure's
- coverage.
-
- A Harris product called "Triggerfish," which the company promoted at
- the conference as a cellular phone interception system, was included
- in Full Disclosure's report. Harris now claims that this editorial
- review was an "apparently unauthorized advertisement," and that it
- constitutes a deceptive trade practice, violates its trademarks and
- may be a "felony."
-
- Roberts stated, "clearly, I have a First Amendment right to discuss
- the products or services of any company in my publication. The First
- Amendment has no requirement that I get 'authorization' to talk about
- what's being sold to the public, or law enforcement agencies."
- Further, Roberts said that this issue is especially important to the
- public and political discussions about privacy and surveillance
- technology. Roberts thinks that Harris has failed to learn the lesson
- of the "Pentagon Papers" case.
-
- "We're seeing laws passed relating to issues of privacy, and in
- particular cellular phone privacy, without informed public debate on
- the issue, by either the public, or our Congress." Roberts considers
- this action by Harris as an effort to prevent such public debate.
- Roberts said, "Full Disclosure was started to encourage debate and
- public knowledge of these topics."
-
- FULL DISCLOSURE, BOX 903, LIBERTYVILLE, ILLINOIS 60048. PHONE:
- (708) 395-6200. FAX: (708) 395-6022. TOLL FREE: (800) 235-1414
- : For sub a message left on 800-235-1414 will do it
-
- ------------------------------
-
- Date: Wed, 22 Jun 1993 22:32:12 PDT
- From: Alex Zelchenko <alexz@well.sf.ca.us>
- Subject: File 6--The "Offending" Full Disclosure Story (#2)
-
- Here is the original story as it appeared in "Full Disclosure." It
- will be followed by the text of a letter received by the publication.
-
- ++++++++
-
- NATIA Conference
-
- The following pages highlight some companies and products that
- exhibited at the 1991 National Technical Investigators Conference
- (NATIA) show in Washington, DC.
-
- NATIA is an organization of over 2300 law enforcement officers,
- communications and security managers assigned to support technical
- investigative activities in the major federal, state and local law
- enforcement and intelligence agencies.
-
- The NATIA membership is responsible for supplying all of the various
- audio, video, photographic, specialized electronic and investigative
- aids used in support of these sensitive bugging, wiretapping and
- intelligence activities.
-
- As with the 1990 show, there was a strong showing of covert video
- systems. Cellular phone interception systems are now becoming
- commonplace.
-
- The following information has been complied from product literature
- made available at the show. It should be remembered that NATIA has a
- law enforcement membership and some of the products are only available
- to such agencies. Additionally, some RF devices are not FCC approved
- and therefore, only available to Federal law enforcement agencies.
-
- Even though the sale of some devices may be limited to official law
- enforcement agencies, the technology is relatively simple. For
- example, the cellular phone monitoring equipment is sold only to the
- law enforcement market. However, anyone wishes to exert a little elbow
- grease can accomplish the same on their own. This should be taken as a
- stern warning to those who have an expectation of privacy when using
- their cellular phones. As the information shows, commercial units can
- record the calls, as well as tracking by mobile phone number,
- electronic serial number and also direction finding to physically
- locate an individual using a cellular phone.
-
- +++++++++++
-
- Harris Law Enforcement Products
-
- TRIGGERFISH has a number of cellular phone based applications:
- determining a suspects phone number, dialed number recorder, and
- wiretapping. According to Harris, ``for the first time, law
- enforcement is not at a disadvantage in tracking the high-tech
- criminal.'' Additionally, the unit ``collects and integrates all
- relevant data, including voice, directly from the ether.''
-
- Box 91000, Melbourne, FL 32902. Phone: (800) 442-7747, Fax: (407) 768-4005
- +++
- Reprinted from Full Disclosure, Box 903, Libertyville, Illinois 60048
- Phone: (800) 235-1414
-
- ------------------------------
-
- Date: Wed, 22 Jun 1993 22:32:12 PDT
- From: Alex Zelchenko <alexz@well.sf.ca.us>
- Subject: File 7--The Harris Letter Threatening Litigation against FD (#3)
-
- HARRIS
-
- May 26, 1993
-
- Mr. Glen L. Roberts
- Editor/Publisher
- Full Disclosure
- Box 903 - FD24
- Libertyville, Illinois 60048
-
- Dear Mr. Roberts:
-
- Your issue No. 24 of Full Disclosure has been brought to my attention
- because of an apparently unauthorized advertisement on page 8 for a
- Harris law enforcement product referred to as "Triggerfish." It is my
- understanding that the publication of this advertisement was not
- previously requested nor authorized by Harris. The unapproved use of
- this advertisement constitutes a deceptive trade practice, which
- would potentially subject you and your newspaper to civil liability.
- Further, you have used our trademarks -- Harris and Triggerfish --
- without permission.
-
- Lastly, you may have committed a felony under 18 USC 2512(1)(c)(i).
- This criminal statute prohibits the placement in a newspaper or
- magazine of an advertisement for an electronic product that is
- primarily useful for the purpose of surreptitiously intercepting
- electronic communications. Further, these actions on your part may
- have also subjected Harris Corporation to such liability under this
- statute.
-
- You are hereby instructed to immediately desist from placing
- advertisements or promotional material related to Harris electronic
- law enforcement products in your newspaper. Any further actions of
- this nature will be dealt with by filing a suit against you and your
- newspaper.
-
- Sincerely, /s/ John L. DeAngelis, Intellectual Property and Licensing
- Counsel.
-
- JLD/bea
-
- Harris Corporation Electronic Systems Section P.O. Box 37, Melbourne,
- Florida 32902 Telephone 407-727-4000
-
- ------------------------------
-
- Date: Wed, 22 Jun 1993 22:32:12 PDT
- From: Alex Zelchenko <alexz@well.sf.ca.us>
- Subject: File 8--The Full Disclosure Atty's Response to Harris (#4)
-
- Drath & Dwyer
- - Lawyers -
- 400 South Beverly Drive * Suite 214
- Beverly Hills, California 90212-4402
-
- Tel: (310) 364-3444 * Fax: (310) 858-7458
-
- Tuesday, June 1, 1993
-
- John L. DeAngelis Jr., Esq.
- Harris Corp.
- P.O. Box 37
- Melbourne, FL 32902
-
- Dear Mr. DeAndelis:
-
- I write on behalf of Glen L. Roberts, the editor and publisher of the
- magazine, Full Disclosure, in reply to your May 26 letter addressed to
- him. In addition to advising Mr. Roberts, I serve as privacy law
- columnist for his publication and co-host with him of "Full Disclosure
- Live," a one-hour live radio program carried across the country on the
- Let's Talk Radio Network.
-
- It is shocking sophistry on your part to have characterized Full
- Disclosure's editorial expression about the product, "Triggerfish," as
- an "advertisement" Of course, I recognize your procrustean need to do
- that, because "advertisement," is the operative word of the criminal
- statute you cite.
-
- Had you taken time to research even a few of the many cases in which
- "advertisement" not only has been defined as the space one associated
- with a product purchases from a publisher, but as well distinguished
- from editorial expression or news reporting by such a publisher or his
- or her subaltern, for example, an editor, you might have saved your
- company the embarrassment that well may flow from your misguided
- missive. Cary Grant couldn't make an Esquire magazine news article,
- which used a photograph of his head, into an advertisement in the
- Southern District of New York 20 years ago; I doubt you'll have any
- greater success today, venue notwithstanding.
-
- Respecting your assertion of trademark use without permission, we are
- unable to locate any authority, statutory or decisional, that even
- suggests that editorial mention of a product or service, which enjoys
- registered or common law trade or service mark protection, obliges the
- publisher to include an indication of such status or forbids such
- publication "without permission." Perhaps, given your stated role as
- intellectual property counsel, you can afford us the benefit of your
- expertise in this realm.
-
- What I find most troubling about your letter is your apparent
- indifference to First Amendment law. A careful reading of the 1968
- legislative history of 18 USC 2512 acquaints one with the fact that
- Congress did not seek to abridge free press rights in proscribing the
- advertising of "bugging" devices.
-
- unknown." It continues to be Mr. Robert's persistent and pervasive
- theme that for our democratic society to defeat the depredations of
- privacy-invasive devices, it must know that they exist and how they
- work.
-
- Hence, attempts like yours to chill or impair free exercise of
- expression in the arena of such public affairs can only be viewed as
- inimical to the legislative underpinnings of the statute involved. You
- use of it is akin to the drunkard's fondness for the lamppost: more
- for support than illumination. Really, sir, for a lawyer to tell a
- reporter that there's potential criminality involved in writing about
- a product in the marketplace should make you tremble to know that God
- is just.
-
- The First Amendment, you seem to require reminding, is an absolute bar
- to the imposition of such government restraints of the press as you
- erroneously think your cited statute imports. The press must be free
- to publish news, whatever the source, without censorship. Guarding
- little secrets, like the existence of your "Triggerfish," at the
- expense of an informed representative government is about as tawdry a
- legal proposition as I can imagine.
-
- Let me add that your menacing Full Disclosure's editor with the
- prospect of criminal charges, in our opinion, implicates issues of
- professional responsibility. When lawyers in jurisdictions with which
- I am familiar try that technique to obtain an advantage in a civil
- dispute, they are subject to discipline. Is there no such sanction for
- Pennsylvania practitioners?
-
- I invite your reply on the points raised, including your proposal as
- to how we might avoid formal proceedings to right the wrong you have
- done Full Disclosure. Failing your willingness to apologize or submit
- this matter to an alternative dispute resolution mechanism for a
- declaration of rights, I shall advise Full Disclosure to proceed with
- an action under 28 USC 2201 as a possible predicate to seeking further
- relief.
-
- As a matter of professional courtesy, I wish to inform you that the
- Harris Corp. officers and directors shown as recipients of copies of
- this letter and its enclosure are not being sent a copy of your letter
- to Mr. Roberts; it, I believe, more appropriately should reach them
- from you. For your further information, the two other copy recipients
- in addition to Mr. Roberts, namely, Messrs.. Ward and Rudnick, are,
- respectively, our intellectual property adviser and our litigation
- counsel. You doubtless know Mr. Ward from his prominence at the
- trademark bar. Mr. Rudnick, who would handle a Rule 57 matter, if such
- proves necessary, is a former federal prosecutor with the Los Angeles
- Strike Force.
-
- Sincerely, /s/ Will Dwyer II
-
- Enclosure
-
- Copies: Richard L. Ballantyne, Esq., Mr. John T. Hartley, Mr. Joseph Boyd,
- Mr. Lester Coleman, Mr. Ralph D. Denunzio, Mr. C. Jackson Grayson, Jr.,
- Mr. George I. Meisel, Mr. Walter Raab, Mr. Robert Cizik. Mr. Joseph
- Dionne, Mr. Alexander Trowbrige, Mr. Allan J. Huber, Mr. Glen L. Roberts,
- Marvin L. Rudnick, Esq., Thomas J. Ward, Esq.
-
- ------------------------------
-
- End of Computer Underground Digest #5.46
- ************************************
-