Sheriff's Online Database Leaks Info On Informants 185
Tootech writes with this snippet from NPR:
"A Colorado sheriff's online database mistakenly revealed the identities of confidential drug informants and listed phone numbers, addresses and Social Security numbers of suspects, victims and others interviewed during criminal investigations, authorities said. The breach potentially affects some 200,000 people, and Mesa County sheriff's deputies have been sifting through the database to determine who, if anyone, is in jeopardy. ... The FBI and Google Inc. are trying to determine who accessed the database, the sheriff said. Their concern: That someone may have copied it and could post it, WikiLeaks-style, on the Internet. 'The truth is, once it's been out there and on the Internet and copied, you're never going to regain total control,' Hilkey said. Thousands of pages of confidential information were vulnerable from April until Nov. 24, when someone notified authorities after finding their name on the Internet. Officials said the database was accessed from within the United States, as well as outside the country, before it was removed from the server."
What if (Score:5, Insightful)
This isn't a leak. (Score:5, Insightful)
The article makes this situation comparable to the current wikileaks situation, which it isn't.
Some IT person left the data freely accessible on the internet and eventually a crawler found it. They're guessing it was a malicious person but in all odds it is not.
This is just another IT mistake not an act of whistleblowing or terrorism or something else the government wants to make illegal.
A concession to reality (Score:4, Insightful)
"'The truth is, once it's been out there and on the Internet and copied, you're never going to regain total control"
That's a remarkably pragmatic approach, and portrays the Sherrif's office as focussed and efficient. Public perception matters a lot in these instances, and while they could've threatened to rip off the ears of anyone who shares the files, it would have had no effect on actual information sharing, at a great cost to their public image in at least some quarters.
It's also nice to see that someone understands what "information wants to be free" means: that information tends to be free, and you have to plan for this.
Re:What if (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Donutleaks strikes again! (Score:5, Insightful)
They are terrorists!
If you're referring to to the informants, IMO they are the terrorists. Most of the societal problems attributed to drugs are, in fact, caused by the laws against them.
It's easier for a teenager to buy pot than it is for an adult. One slashdot wag's sig reads "thanks to the war on drugs, it's easier to buy meth than it is to buy cough syrup."
One would think that alcohol prohibition would have taught us that such laws are incredibly harmful.
The only segment of society that benefits from anti-drug laws are the smugglers and dealers, which tell you who's funding the anti-drug lobby.
Just law enforcement? (Score:3, Insightful)
What if annual security training was mandatory for all the IT staff connected with law enforcement IT equipment...
I don't see why that last phrase is on there, i.e., why the statement should be restricted to law enforcement. IT staff in every internet-connected company which stores data on other people (which is most companies larger than a mom&pop gas station these days) have a responsibility to the people that data pertains to.
Every time I hear about another database getting hacked, I blame the idiots who let it happen. It makes me really leery of doing simple things like buying *anything* from *anywhere* with a credit card, because I am entrusting the seller to keep my data secure. And so many of them demonstrate that they have not earned that trust.
Do you think doctors' offices maintain good data security? Or the local pizza place that has an account for you? It's pretty amazing how open our data is to those who wish to harvest it.
But the sad truth is that in the end IT is seen as a cost center that needs to be minimzed. And security... well, that's like insurance. You don't need it until you need it (at which point of course it is far too late).
Re:Donutleaks strikes again! (Score:5, Insightful)
The only segment of society that benefits from anti-drug laws are the smugglers and dealers, which tell you who's funding the anti-drug lobby.
You forget pharmaceutical companies (hemp and marijuana would have a major impact on their bottom line for a lot of old standbys), so-called "rehab centers", and, let's not forget, our privately-owned prisons.
Re:What if (Score:5, Insightful)
The government is not out to get you
It is if you're a pot smoker or Julian Assange.
Re:Donutleaks strikes again! (Score:4, Insightful)
Because people commit crimes from outside the county but are included in the database. I track the addresses of criminals with complaints in my county and while the majority reside within the boundaries, there are the outliers who hail from all over the State of Minnesota (this is a rolling 30 day picture and is purposefully limited to only the MSP metro area for clarity's sake): http://www.lazylightning.org/dakota-county-criminal-complaints-mapped-again [lazylightning.org]
WikiLeaks-Style?! (Score:5, Insightful)
Their concern: That someone may have copied it and could post it, WikiLeaks-style, on the Internet.
Let's hope they post it WikiLeaks-style. That would mean they spend months coordinating with journalists to redact names and other information that might put individuals' lives at risk. Then, they would only release a few select important parts of the material in a completely responsible manner.
Of course, that is not what the editors and poster were trying to convey by 'WikiLeaks' style. Why insert this useless anti-free-speech FUD into the story?
Re:Donutleaks strikes again! (Score:4, Insightful)
FTFA:
"Deputies have used the database since 1989 to collect and share intelligence gathered during the course of police work. It contains 200,000 names — Mesa County's population is about 150,000 — and includes investigative files from a local drug task force.
The information included data about Mesa County employees, information from the nearby Fruita and Palisade police departments — and possibly information from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Grand Junction police."
It wouldn't be very hard to have 200,000 entries in 21 years. Police investigations take in info on friends of friends and acquaintances. The data set likely includes most of the Mexican drug cartel's known players.
Re:Donutleaks strikes again! (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Donutleaks strikes again! (Score:4, Insightful)
I wasn't aware that Mike Huckabe was calling for treason and the death penalty. I knew there was something about him I didn't like, but introducing "treason" executions for something that does not call for it so that the people will get desensitized to the idea.. yea he is the one that should be tried for treason.
Wikileaks style... pshh.. I can't help but think this was done on purpose for that one line. Yes I know it has been out there for awhile, which is why it makes this all the more scary the planning and limits the G men will go to.
Regardless, this has nothing to do with Wikileaks, and is completely the fault of whoever didn't make sure it was secured. But I bet Mike Huckabee won't call on that person to be brought up on charges of treason, even though they did in fact provably put people at risk.
Re:Donutleaks strikes again! (Score:4, Insightful)
I mean, why would you let someone take away your government monopoly on legal substance abuse?
You're making the same mistake as people who gripe about "Big Oil" instead of "Big Energy". Just as Exxon-Mobil will gladly sell you hydrogen or biodiesel or whatever else when we migrate off oil, plenty of companies in the recreational drug industry will cheerfully market pot if it became legal.
Anheuser-Busch isn't in the business of selling you alcohol. Ultimately, they're in the business of getting you high. While they're currently most efficient at doing that by distributing ethanol, you can bet they could sell other stuff, too.
And think of the Super Bowl ads. You think they're funny now?
Re:Donutleaks strikes again! (Score:3, Insightful)