fbi

The FBI has recently formed a secretive surveillance unit with an ambitious goal: to invent technology that will let police more readily eavesdrop on Internet and wireless communications.

The establishment of the Quantico, Va.-based unit, which is also staffed by agents from the U.S. Marshals Service and the Drug Enforcement Agency, is a response to technological developments that FBI officials believe outpace law enforcement's ability to listen in on private communications.

While the FBI has been tight-lipped about the creation of its Domestic Communications Assistance Center, or DCAC -- it declined to respond to requests made two … Read more

FBI Director Robert Mueller confirmed that the bureau has renewed its push for a new Internet wiretapping law, which CNET reported two weeks ago.

In an appearance this week on Capitol Hill, Mueller downplayed privacy concerns, saying the FBI's wiretap proposals -- social-networking Web sites and providers of VoIP, instant messaging, and Web e-mail are the primary targets -- would still require a court to be involved.

We want to "be able to obtain those communications," Mueller said on Wednesday. "What we're looking at is some form of legislation that will assure that when we … Read more

In today's show, Microsoft makes things more difficult, jurors wrestle over Java, and the CEO of Yahoo has his pants on fire:

Yahoo's CEO Scott Thompson is being accused of lying about his college degree for years, and shareholders demand he's fired by Monday... or else.

The FBI says in this age of Internet communication, the department needs the power to wiretap into online chat and video services to find the evil-doers. CNET has learned that the FBI is talking to Internet companies like Facebook and Google, asking them to work with the FBI to build backdoors … Read more

The FBI is asking Internet companies not to oppose a controversial proposal that would require firms, including Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo, and Google, to build in backdoors for government surveillance.

In meetings with industry representatives, the White House, and U.S. senators, senior FBI officials argue the dramatic shift in communication from the telephone system to the Internet has made it far more difficult for agents to wiretap Americans suspected of illegal activities, CNET has learned.

The FBI general counsel's office has drafted a proposed law that the bureau claims is the best solution: requiring that social-networking Web sites and … Read more

One of the more widespread malware attacks that has affected Macs, Windows-based PC systems, and even network hardware such as routers is the DNSChanger Trojan, which has also been known as "RSPlug," "Puper," and "Jahlav."

This Trojan was first discovered in 2007, and was able to infect millions of PC systems worldwide. It remained active until 2011 when an FBI sting called Operation Ghost Click resulted in the arrest of an Estonian crime ring and seizure of the rogue DNS network used to maintain the attack.

The DNSChanger malware worked by setting up a … Read more

The FBI is warning that hundreds of thousands of people could lose their Internet connections come July, unless they take steps to diagnose and disinfect their computers.

The problem is related to malware called DNSChanger that was first discovered way back in 2007 and that has infected millions of computers worldwide.

In simple terms, when you type a Web address into your browser, your computer contacts DNS (or Domain Name System) servers to find out the numerical Internet Protocol (IP) address of the site you're trying to reach, and then it takes you there. DNSChanger fiddled with an infected … Read more

After 24 years with the FBI, Shawn Henry retired late last month from his post as executive assistant director of the Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Service Branch of the agency. Today, he announced that he will be working for security startup CrowdStrike.

In a phone interview with CNET today, Henry discusses what he thinks are the biggest cybersecurity threats facing the country and why the bad guys always seem to be one step ahead.

So, what will be your role at CrowdStrike? I'm going to run their services operation, so president of the services division. CrowdStrike has three parts: … Read more

An ambitious effort to launch an Internet service provider designed from its inception to be privacy-protective and surveillance-resistant has raised more than $43,000 in only one day.

A CNET article published yesterday morning profiled Nicholas Merrill, who's raising funds to launch what he calls a national "nonprofit telecommunications provider dedicated to privacy, using ubiquitous encryption" that will sell mobile phone service and, for as little as $20 a month, Internet connectivity.

Merrill, 39, set up a donation page on the Indiegogo crowd funding site a few hours after the article appeared. With the help of an … Read more

Nicholas Merrill is planning to revolutionize online privacy with a concept as simple as it is ingenious: a telecommunications provider designed from its inception to shield its customers from surveillance.

Merrill, 39, who previously ran a New York-based Internet provider, told CNET that he's raising funds to launch a national "non-profit telecommunications provider dedicated to privacy, using ubiquitous encryption" that will sell mobile phone service and, for as little as $20 a month, Internet connectivity.

The ISP would not merely employ every technological means at its disposal, including encryption and limited logging, to protect its customers. It … Read more