iraq

"Networks and Netwars: The Future of Terror, Crime, and Militancy": 2002

This Rand study from 2002 is available as PDF downloads. Of particular interest are:
Chapter 1: "The Advent of Netwar"
Chapter 2: "The Networking of Terror in the Information Age"
Chapter 8: "Activism, Hacktivism, and Cyberterrorism: the Internet as a Tool for Influencing Foreign Policy"
Chapter 10: "What's Next for Networks and Netwars?"

[Rand: Networks and Netwars]

"Secret" Encryption Found in Frames of bin Laden August 2003 Speech: July 20, 2003

"In an in-depth analysis of a recently re-released videotape of Osama bin Laden’s August 2003 speech, Northeast Intelligence Network analysts found apparent alpha-numeric codes embedded in several frames of over 55,800 frames of the video tape analyzed. The code is not visible through normal viewing of the footage, and the viewer must know where in the lengthy footage to look for the coding sequence. The above frame illustrates a coding string found on one of the frames hidden in the footage. The video is significant itself as previously released bin Laden footage preceded the Madrid bombing attacks on 11 March 2004. Analysts have forwarded the footage, along with each isolated frame containing the coding, to law enforcement officials."
[Northeast Intelligence Network]

"Steganography is the art and science of hiding messages. Steganography is often combined with cryptography so that even if the message is discovered it cannot be read. The word steganography is derived from the Greek words "steganos" and "graphein", which mean "covered" and "writing." Steganography, therefore, is covered writing. Historical stenganography involved techniques such as disappearing ink or microdots. Modern steganography involves hiding data in computer files. It is fairly easy to hide a secret message in a graphic file without obviously altering the visible appearance of that file."
[Linux Security]
[Niels Provos and Peter Honeyman: "Detecting Steganographic Content on the Internet"—PDF]

Soldier Personal Videocam Commentary in CBS News Report: Date Unknown

This link was forwarded to Camera/Iraq without reference to its original context. It is posted on CBS News.com and is part of a Dan Rather report. It presents personal videocam footage—forbidden by the military—by a soldier who discusses her experience and attitudes with Rather. [Please forward additional info to Camera/Iraq]

[CBS News—RealAudio]

Cam-phone Sex Scandal Reported in Saudi Arabia: July 14, 2004

"Two young men from prominent Saudi families are being probed on charges of orchestrating and filming a sexual assault on a Saudi teen-aged girl by a Nigerian driver, a high-ranking official said Tuesday. [...] the accused circulated footage of the assault through mobile phones equipped with cameras. It should be noted that camera phones are widely used in Saudi Arabia despite an official ban. [...] The phone clip shows the secondary school girl, aged 17, pleading as she is assaulted by the driver, while one of the two men, apparently her former boyfriend, hurls abuse at her."
[Al Bawaba]

Deborah Fallows & Lee Rainie: "The Internet as a Unique News Source": July 8, 2004

"During some of the most turbulent weeks of the Iraq war nearly one quarter of Internet users (24%) went online to view some of most graphic war images that were deemed too gruesome or horrific for newspapers and television to display. Further, of those who have seen the images, 28% actively sought them out. Overall, however, Americans are conflicted about the idea of these disturbing images being available online. By a 49%-40% margin, Americans disapprove of the posting of such images. A strong cultural divide emerges between Internet users and non-users: Internet users approve of the images being online by a small margin of 47% - 44%, while non-users disapprove by an overwhelming 58% - 29% margin. These are some of the results of a nationwide phone survey done between May 14 and June 17 - a period just following massive world coverage of the murder and dismemberment of American contract workers in Iraq's strife-torn town Fallujah, pictures taken at the Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad, and the capture and beheading of U.S. civilian Nicholas Berg. The horrific nature of many of the war-related images that have appeared online have left Internet users with a range of feelings. The data show that millions of Internet users want to be able to view the graphic war images and they see the Internet as an alternative source of news and information from traditional media. But many who do venture outside the traditional and familiar standards of the mainstream news organizations to look at the images online end up feeling very uncomfortable. Women are particularly opposed to the display of the images and are much less likely than men to have viewed the images online."
[Pew Internet & American Life Project]
[Report in PDF format]

Department of Defense Issues Rules on Wireless Security: July 9, 20004

"The new Department of Defense rules on wireless security should help clear the way for the spread of these increasingly popular communications technologies throughout the military, analysts say. But the rules and the process by which they were developed also reflect the continuing uncertainty and diversity of opinion within the military over the safety of wireless systems. The department in April released a policy (DOD 8100.2) that requires end-to-end use of data encryption on wireless systems and lays out the responsibilities of a number of different defense agencies in protecting against unauthorized intrusions. The policy, issued by Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, covers cell phones, Wi-Fi-enabled laptop computers, personal digital assistants and a variety of other devices that are becoming as ubiquitous in military circles as they are in the world of business. Global Positioning System units, receive-only pagers and certain medical devices are not covered under the policy."
[Harrison Donnelly: "Spelling Out Wireless Security" in Military Information Technology—via Textually.org]

Trace Gunsch: "The Wireless Road Ahead": July 9, 2004

"Warfighters need to understand the changes brought about by wireless technology and begin to adapt doctrine and procedures to make the best use of these capabilities. [...] The age of the personal computer is rapidly being replaced by the age of the mobile device. From cell phones and personal digital assistants to Internet cafes and highway traffic systems, wireless systems are changing the interactions of our society. [...] In the military, wireless communications are affecting all areas of our business, from logistics and training to collaboration and medical. Wireless systems have and will continue to have an impact on our military in all of these areas. Our warfighters need to understand these changes and begin to adapt doctrine and procedures to make the best use of these capabilities. [...] The growth of wireless capabilities is a given and is causing great ripples of impact to our society and our military. The military needs to deal with the changes caused by wireless technologies in three particular ways. Defense planners need to recognize the social changes that wireless brings and adapt to make the best use of them, for example by reconsidering policies and procedures that will stifle the positive use of wireless."
[Military Information Technology—via Textually.org]

Could Videogames Teach US Soldiers Prisoner Handling Techniques?

"As graphic images of abuses of detained Iraqis by American military personnel shock the world, the U.S. Army may turn to an unusual tool to teach soldiers how to treat prisoners humanely—video games. The Army already uses a video game called "America's Army" to train and recruit soldiers and distributes a free version of that software. The military officer overseeing the game's development, Col. Casey Wardynski, told Reuters Wednesday that "America's Army" could also be modified to include lessons on prisoner treatment. Saying that even though the game already demonstrates the consequences of negative behavior for players, Wardynski added that it could be changed to more directly address the current scandal. "If we don't get asked, we'll do something anyway ... If we get asked, of course we'll do it," he said."
[Reuters report in Forbes]

Fred Donovan: "Army To Deploy Hand-Held Devices To Make Every Soldier into a Sensor": April 29, 2004

"The Army plans to deploy a hand-held intelligence gathering and communication device that would allow each soldier to receive situational awareness information as well as transmit battlefield reports..."
[AviationNow-via SmartMobs]

Video-blogging Will Sharpen the Debate

"These events were recorded by participants or bystanders. The images were posted on the internet, making them directly, freely and immediately accessible around the world. In other words, journalists played no part in recording or interpreting the images. No editors intervened, government censors and spin doctors were impotent. According to Steve Vines, publisher of a Hong Kong weekly news and political satire magazine, Spike "the main barriers to publishing - cost and geography - have vanished and the result is explosive...unfiltered, uncensored images are now starting to drive the menu of the mainstream news oulets. After Web-logging became a news source for conventional media after the US-led invasion of Iraq, the next step, "Vblogging," will enable those with a desire and a little technology the chance to write, shoot, edit and distribute video journalism on their own, even from the field," forbes.com, the website of Forbes magazine, says. So the challenge to traditional journalism as the determinant of what is news and how news should be filtered will only intensify. And the debate about whether undigested news is objective, useful and moral is bound to sharpen."
[Mail & Guardian - Via Smart Mobs]