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Stupid Security
Portions of Stupid Security are copyright 2003 by Nat Howard and his licensors.

 
Hospital CIO is a Jedi -- Really....
posted by nrh on Wednesday May 27, @04:11PM
News Angry Padiwan Learner writes "Did you know that hospital Chief Information Officers are trained as Jedi warriors? At least mine is....

When I talk to him about the need for security, he waves his Jedi hand and says "There is no risk". And, poof, instantly all the hackers run away, leaving our (completely unsecured) data alone....

With tongue in cheek,
Angry Padiwan Learner"

Thanks, APL! I include this because too little security can make things just as inconvenient as too much security. Like every profession (or group of professions) that serves the public, we owe it to ourselves, our employers, and the public to do the right thing. Offhand, it would seem that insecured hospital data ought to be secured -- at least a little!

( Read More... | 3 comments )



Bathroom Emergency On Flight Prompts Felony Charge
posted by nrh on Monday April 20, @07:12PM
News kylemonger writes "A man who says he desperately needed to use an airplane bathroom after eating something bad in Honduras faces a federal charge after being accused of twisting a flight attendant's arm to get to the lavatory, the FBI said Wednesday."

Wow! Suppose he'd just stood there and.... uh... let nature take its course? What would the charge have been then?

( Read More... | 2 comments )



Dual-Booting Linux Can Get You Into Trouble...
posted by nrh on Monday April 20, @06:52PM
News Anonymous Coward writes "Simply being good at computers and knowing Linux was enough to get one student in trouble with the cops: http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/04/boston-colleg e-prompt-commands-are-suspicious"

Thanks, AC!

( Read More... | 2 comments )



Man Detained by TSA for Carrying Cash - Audio Recording
posted by nrh on Sunday April 05, @10:59AM
News Anonymous Coward writes "A member of Ron Paul's campaign was detained by the TSA in St. Louis for carrying cash. Unbeknownst to them, he recorded the event on his phone.

See http://tinyurl.com/dmuy3s ."

Thanks, AC! Good for the young man! He kept his head!

( Read More... | 11 comments )



Minister Breaches Security
posted by nrh on Saturday April 04, @11:44AM
News Martin writes "A Canadian minister gains unauthorized access to the tarmac of Canada's biggest airport. Read the story.

Now, can you really blame cops if a minister (their boss?) wants access somewhere else? Can the CEO have access to a data center room even if the CEO does not have a keycard to enter?"

Thanks, Martin! Of course, the stupidity here is the apparent attempt to focus on anything but airport security. I agree with the minister -- it's his job to find shortcomings and fix them. Normally, this is done with bureaucracy and proxies, but....

( Read More... )



Only Able Bodied Manly Men Can "Attend" to Their Luggage
posted by nrh on Friday March 27, @03:44PM
News Anonymous Coward writes:

http://davehingsburger.blogspot.com/2009/03/elephant-disappears.html

"He looked at me, annoyed and said, "Luggage can't be left unattended."

"I AM attending it," I said incredulous.

"You don't understand, SOME BODY needs to be in possession of the luggage," he said and I didn't get his implication, not yet, I was still too startled.

"I am in possession of this luggage, it is MINE," my voice is rising.

He looks at me with exaggerated patience, "SOME BODY (long pause) needs to be attending the luggage."

I got it then, I wasn't SOME BODY, "Are you suggesting that I can't supervise my own luggage because I'm in a wheelchair?"

Thanks, AC! That's choice!

( Read More... | 1 comment )



TSA Throws Out Toothpaste But Allows Syringes Through
posted by nrh on Friday March 27, @05:48AM
Howlers Charles writes "Due to a recent blood clot obtained while flying, I now have to inject Heparin on flights (before and after). This requires that I carry pre-filled syringes with me on travel.

While passing SFO security, my syringes were ignored but my 4.1g tube of toothpaste was thrown away. No questions were asked about the syringes!

It looks likes you can take any thing through security, but just don't exceed 3g of a known substance!"

Thanks, Charles!

( Read More... )



Satisfying: Congressman Who Helped Create TSA Gets Rubber-Glove Treatment
posted by nrh on Thursday March 19, @06:10AM
News What goes around, comes around, and then pokes you while wearing rubber gloves. The Washington Post has an article describing the somewhat-understandable reaction of Rep. Peter A. DeFazio when he was "singled out for additional security screening by rubber-glove-wearing TSA workers".

"I said, 'This is really stupid. What are you going to find here with rubber gloves that you didn't find in primary security with the X-ray machine?'" He also "said he offered up that he was 'kind of an expert on airport security,' telling the TSA screeners: 'I helped create the TSA. I'm in Congress.'" according to the article.

Thank you, representative. You, of course, have less call to complain than most of us as you "helped create the agency that makes those rules."

The article doesn't detail exactly what the rubber-gloved searchers did with their rubber-gloved fingers. It also doesn't reveal whether the representative got any special treatment at the time of the incident, although it mentions that he did manage to talk to some TSA officials about classified reasons for the "stupid" extra search. The result? "DeFazio says the TSA gate screening measures 'make a little more sense' after his meeting, but he argues if additional random screening truly is necessary, 'they need to do it with sophisticated, state-of-the-art bomb-detection equipment' rather than with rubber gloves."

I love politicians: if it only makes "a little more sense", then why not end the practice? Or if that little additional sense is enough to push things over into "making sense", why not say so? As it is, the statement is deeply ambiguous.

( Read More... )



Bet It Was The Lineman's Sets
posted by nrh on Sunday March 08, @04:48PM
News computer spook writes "Hey a friend was sharing an experience. He and a fellow engineering student at a well known engineering school pulled a real fast one. On the day of the "big game", they put in work clothing, put on tool belts, and got a could linemen's butt sets (the telephones that phone installers use) In this outfit they walked up to the man gate just as everyone was coming into the game. Without identification or even company logs on their outfits they asked "who reported the phone system out". They were waved through, were bypassed around the security searches and sent to the main office. Once inside they simply ignored going to the office, and took in the whole game for free and walked out.

And we thought that these places were supposed to have learned something by now

After all we all know that only telephone people on official business have butt sets. ;-)"

Thanks, CS -- To me, this just goes to show that the real security needs aren't the ones trumpeted to ordinary folk.

( Read More... )



Epinefrine-Auto-Injector
posted by nrh on Saturday February 28, @12:27AM
News Permutor writes "We thought we were well prepared for our holiday trip. Because of my sons allergy, we carry a epinefrine-auto-injector, just in case. It is definitively more hazardous than a nailclipper, so not something that is expected to be brought freely into an airplane cabin. So we carry the device past all detectors, prepared to hand it over to the steward at the cabin entrance. "Well...", he said, "If you got this far with it, you may take it into the cabin"."

Thanks, Permutor. The system was broken, but it (for once) reached the proper conclusion!

( Read More... )



 
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