I wonder what one could do with the password. Perhaps delete recordings? Was the system accessible over the internet? That password issue was discovered in an audit more than 10 years ago. Ideally they fixed it by now...
-
-
This is from 2023, but interesting... I had one of the brick phones back in 1986 when I started working on Movies.Comment
-
Here's a contender for the Irony Award:
KEY MANAGEMENT IS HARD
Oops. Cryptographers cancel election results after losing decryption key.
Voting system required three keys. One of them has been “irretrievably lost.”
Dan Goodin – Nov 21, 2025 7:16 pm |
One of the world’s premier security organizations has canceled the results of its annual leadership election after an official lost an encryption key needed to unlock results stored in a verifiable and privacy-preserving voting system.
The International Association of Cryptologic Research (IACR) said Friday that the votes were submitted and tallied using Helios, an open source voting system that uses peer-reviewed cryptography to cast and count votes in a verifiable, confidential, and privacy-preserving way. Helios encrypts each vote in a way that assures each ballot is secret. Other cryptography used by Helios allows each voter to confirm their ballot was counted fairly.
An “honest but unfortunate human mistake”
Per the association’s bylaws, three members of the election committee act as independent trustees. To prevent two of them from colluding to cook the results, each trustee holds a third of the cryptographic key material needed to decrypt results.
“Unfortunately, one of the three trustees has irretrievably lost their private key, an honest but unfortunate human mistake, and therefore cannot compute their decryption share,” the IACR said. “As a result, Helios is unable to complete the decryption process, and it is technically impossible for us to obtain or verify the final outcome of this election.”
To prevent a similar incident, the IACR will adopt a new mechanism for managing private keys. Instead of requiring all three chunks of private key material, elections will now require only two. Moti Yung, the trustee who was unable to provide his third of the key material, has resigned. He’s being replaced by Michel Abdalla.
The IACR is a nonprofit scientific organization providing research in cryptology and related fields. Cryptology is the science and practice of designing computation and communication systems that remain secure in the presence of adversaries. The associate is holding a new election that started Friday and runs through December 20.Comment
-
"Helios" was also the name of a nuclear power station in a fictional disaster novel by a German Author. I found it: "The Accident" (English translation)
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/...6-the-accident
This is a great read, full of drama and human reactions (no pun intended) to a catastrophic disaster initiated by a madman.Comment
-
is immediately followed by this:To prevent two of them from colluding to cook the results, each trustee holds a third of the cryptographic key material needed to decrypt results.
Instead of requiring all three chunks of private key material, elections will now require only two.
Comment
-
This one is a classic:
Raccoon found passed out in liquor store after ransacking shelves overnight
Staff thought a burglar had broken in before finding the animal face down in the bathroom
A drunken raccoon has been found passed out at the scene of a “break-in” at an off-licence in the US.
Staff at the liquor shop in Virginia arrived at work on Saturday morning to find bottles smashed amid puddles of scotch and whiskey.
They worried they had been burgled, before spotting the animal asleep on the bathroom floor.
Hanover County Animal Protection and Shelter confirmed one of its animal control officers, Samantha Martin, had been called to the “chaotic scene”.
“Upon arrival, she discovered the ‘suspect’ had broken in, ransacked several shelves, and then … passed out in the bathroom,” the shelter said in a social media post.
“The suspect? A very intoxicated raccoon.”
It’s believed the animal had spent Friday night at the Ashland ABC Store ransacking shelves after dropping down from the roof through a broken ceiling tile.
In footage obtained by The Telegraph, the drunken raccoon can be seen clambering up shelves lined with bottles of alcohol, before stumbling and falling down.
The raccoon was found lying face down between the toilet and bin of the staff toilets.
Ms Martin told the Associated Press that the animal had drunk from bottles of alcohol, which were found smashed on the shop floor.
“He fell through one of the ceiling tiles and went on a full-blown rampage, drinking everything,” she said.
“Another day in the life of an animal control officer, I guess.”
The raccoon damaged the electrical wiring and security system, causing a power outage, and broke 14 bottles of spirits.
The fluffy thief caused $250 (£187) worth of damage.
image.png
Geeky observation: the establishment is described as a liquor store in the headline, but an off-licence (spelled the British way) in the story text. This is an archaic British term meaning a liquor store that is licensed to sell booze only for consumption off the premises (as distinct from a pub, which would have an on-licence). During my childhood, "offies", as they were nicknamed, were among the very few stores that were allowed to open on a Sunday, and even then, only for a couple of hours around lunchtime. Once Sunday opening for supermarkets became a thing in the mid to late '80s, off-licences (which generally only sold liquor and cigarettes) became obsolete, as their function was subsumed into supermarkets and convenience stores that sold booze along with everything else. I guess the author of this article must be at the older end of Gen X.Comment
-
Poor guy looks like me after a festival shift (or several).Comment
-
Source
My guess would be that they tried to pull that off because the relative passed away while on vacation in a foreign country, and her next of kin were trying to avoid the cost, stress, and hurdles of the formalities related to that. I once had a co-worker whose father died of a heart attack in his sleep while the family was on holiday in France. There had to be a post mortem, an inquest, lots of legal hurdles involved in repatriating the body, etc. The formalities cost several tens of thousands, most of which travel insurance did not cover, and there was also the stress of having to take part in court hearings conducted in French (my co-worker's French was good, but not good enough for her to feel comfortable dealing with that); and all that on top of the usual stress and grief of losing a close relative. So I imagine that these people thought that if only the formal pronunciation of death could at least be deferred until they were all in the air, next stop home country, all that could be avoided. I can't say that I blame them.Flight Grounded After Family Wheels ‘Dead’ Relative onto Plane
Leigh Kimmins
Reporter
Published Dec. 19 2025 2:04PM EST
An international flight was abruptly halted after passengers raised alarms about an elderly traveler they said had been brought onboard despite being dead. Witnesses told The Daily Mail that the 89-year-old British woman was wheeled onto an easyJet flight from Málaga, Spain, to Gatwick, London, by five relatives, who told airline staff she was unwell and asleep. Several passengers alleged that a boarding clerk questioned her condition and was reassured she was “just tired.” One passenger said they overheard a relative add: “It’s OK, we’re doctors.”
According to witnesses, the aircraft began taxiing before cabin crew was alerted that the woman had died. The plane stopped just short of takeoff and returned to the stand, delaying the flight for nearly 12 hours. Spanish authorities confirmed police were called to the plane. A spokesman for the Civil Guard in Málaga said: “She was pronounced dead on the aircraft.” EasyJet disputed passenger accounts, saying the woman was alive when she boarded and had documentation clearing her to fly.
An airline spokesman said: “Flight EZY8070 from Málaga to London Gatwick returned to stand prior to departure due to a customer onboard requiring urgent medical assistance. The flight was met by emergency services however the customer sadly passed away.” Passengers have apparently not been pacified by the airline’s account, however, with one writing: “EasyJet, when did you start letting dead people onto planes? Seriously!”Comment
-
Apparently "Cats in Sacks" were causing major problems with submerged cables
in the Stanislaus River (appx 95mi East & slightly North of San Francisco) in 1925.
CatsInSacks051925.jpg
Comment
-
There's gotta be a "letting the cat out of the bag" joke in there somewhere...Comment
-
This article has some great pictures in it. There's a pretty serious spotlight on that drone.
RCMP drone used to rescue pair who fled from shooter into Sask. woods and got lost | CBC News Loaded
Prince Albert and North RCMP drone used to rescue pair who fled from shooter into Sask. woods and got lost
RCMP say the level of success from using drones is "unprecedented"
Lisa Risom · CBC News · Posted: Jan 17, 2026 6:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 5 hours ago
Prince Albert RCMP used a drone equipped with thermal imagining and a spotlight to rescue a man and woman lost in the forest outside Prince Albert, Sask. (Submitted by Saskatchewan RCMP)
Saskatchewan RCMP say a drone was instrumental when two people needed rescue from a forested area on a dark night in frigid temperatures.
The Prince Albert detachment got a report of a man being chased by a person with a weapon in the RM of Buckland around 3 a.m. on Jan. 7, RCMP said in a news release.
Officers determined a man and a woman had fled into the forest to get away from a man with a gun, after they were assaulted and shot at. Both became lost.
The drone was "incredibly important, to be able to get an aerial view with thermal imaging,” said Staff Sgt. Steve Hurst.
They located the man with the drone and gave him verbal instructions to guide him out of the forest using the compass on his phone. They also used a spotlight on the drone to light his path, and activated their police vehicle’s lights and sirens so he could locate them when he got close enough.
Prince Albert RCMP used a spotlight from a drone to help guide a lost man out of the woods to safety. (Submitted by Saskatchewan RCMP)
"Ground searches, guided by the aerial view from the drone, led to officers locating the woman in an SUV in a remote location … As a result of investigation, Prince Albert RCMP used snowmobiles to reach the victim and safely get her to an ambulance that was waiting at the scene," the news release said.
Both people were taken to hospital with injuries that were not considered life-threatening.
“They were extremely happy to be located,” Hurst said.
“Not knowing exactly where they were, the injuries could have been much more serious, whether it was due to exposure, and could have potentially been fatal depending on how long they would have been out there exposed to the elements."
Investigation into the Jan. 7 shooting led to an arrest warrant for 30-year-old Justin Charles of Prince Albert. He's charged with 10 offences, including two counts of assault, pointing a firearm and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.
An arrest warrant has been issued for Justin Charles. RCMP are asking the public to report information on his whereabouts. (Submitted by Saskatchewan RCMP)
Hurst said Saskatchewan is the only province to have a drone in every detachment. Five members of the Prince Albert detachment are trained and certified to use drone technology.
“There's no doubt in my mind that the use of these drones is saving lives on a daily basis, and not just in Saskatchewan, but I think across the country, by us and a variety of other emergency response personnel,” said Const. Colin Lush, a drone training instructor.
He said the machines' thermal imaging works well in cold weather and is a real asset to officers on the ground who are hindered by deep snow and freezing cold.
Sky Fury, shown here with Const. Colin Lush, is a fixed-wing drone used by Saskatchewan RCMP in searches and criminal investigations. (Lisa Risom/CBC)
The type used in the rescue can flash red and blue lights and carry a loudspeaker to play audio messages. Lush said the spotlight, thermal imaging and speaker have been used in a variety of missing persons searches and criminal pursuits.
“They really are revolutionary, game-changing, in how we do our job. Even the amount and level of success that we’re having is unprecedented," he said.
RCMP say they conducted 1,026 drone flights in Saskatchewan last year, including 127 search and rescues and 38 other rescues of vulnerable people. They also located and safely arrested 57 suspects using drones.Comment
-
The current high tech in long throw "spot" lights is "Laser Excited Phosphor" (LEP for short) units. No doubt the drone was equipped with one of those, the beam shape is pretty recognizable. I picked up a rechargable tool belt sized one last christmas for better inspecting overhead rigging from stage decks etc. They are really quite something... but they are kinda one trick pony's unless you spring for a hybrid unit that also has flood features.
But flashlight marketing "specs" are a minefield, so good luck shopping. I kinda ignored the specs and just picked up a hybrid that was on sale and could take 18650 or 21700 cells, Got mine from Nealsgadgets, which has a big LEP selection and frequent sales, but seems to mostly be a direct from china reseller. No issues with mine though.Comment
-
Here (my emphasis).
So will Paramount's data gathering activities end up being "borked" along with the person who inspired the law at issue?Supreme Court to decide how 1988 videotape privacy law applies to online video
Salazar v. Paramount hinges on video privacy law’s definition of “consumer.”
Jon Brodkin – Jan 27, 2026 4:15 pm
The Supreme Court is taking up a case on whether Paramount violated the 1988 Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) by disclosing a user’s viewing history to Facebook. The case, Michael Salazar v. Paramount Global, hinges on the law’s definition of the word “consumer.”
Salazar filed a class action against Paramount in 2022, alleging that it “violated the VPPA by disclosing his personally identifiable information to Facebook without consent,” Salazar’s petition to the Supreme Court said. Salazar had signed up for an online newsletter through 247Sports.com, a site owned by Paramount, and had to provide his email address in the process. Salazar then used 247Sports.com to view videos while logged in to his Facebook account.
“As a result, Paramount disclosed his personally identifiable information—including his Facebook ID and which videos he watched—to Facebook,” the petition said. “The disclosures occurred automatically because of the Facebook Pixel Paramount installed on its website. Facebook and Paramount then used this information to create and display targeted advertising, which increased their revenues.”
The 1988 law defines consumer as “any renter, purchaser, or subscriber of goods or services from a video tape service provider.” The phrase “video tape service provider” is defined to include providers of “prerecorded video cassette tapes or similar audio visual materials,” and thus arguably applies to more than just sellers of tapes.
The legal question for the Supreme Court “is whether the phrase ‘goods or services from a video tape service provider,’ as used in the VPPA’s definition of ‘consumer,’ refers to all of a video tape service provider’s goods or services or only to its audiovisual goods or services,” Salazar’s petition said. The Supreme Court granted his petition to hear the case in a list of orders released yesterday.
Courts disagree on defining “consumer”
The Facebook Pixel at the center of the lawsuit is now called the Meta Pixel. The Pixel is a piece of JavaScript code that can be added to a website to track visitors’ activity “and optimize your advertising performance,” as Meta describes it.
Salazar lost his case at a federal court in Nashville, Tennessee, and then lost an appeal at the US Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit. (247Sports has its corporate address in Tennessee.) A three-judge panel of appeals court judges ruled 2–1 to uphold the district court ruling. The appeals court majority said:
The Video Privacy Protection Act—as the name suggests—arose out of a desire to protect personal privacy in the records of the rental, purchase, or delivery of “audio visual materials.” Spurred by the publication of Judge Robert Bork’s video rental history on the eve of his confirmation hearings, Congress imposed stiff penalties on any “video tape service provider” who discloses personal information that identifies one of their “consumers” as having requested specific “audio visual materials.”
This case is about what “goods or services” a person must rent, purchase, or subscribe to in order to qualify as a “consumer” under the Act. Is “goods or services” limited to audio-visual content—or does it extend to any and all products or services that a store could provide? Michael Salazar claims that his subscription to a 247Sports e-newsletter qualifies him as a “consumer.” But since he did not subscribe to “audio visual materials,” the district court held that he was not a “consumer” and dismissed the complaint. We agree and so AFFIRM.
2-2 circuit split
Salazar’s petition to the Supreme Court alleged that the 6th Circuit ruling “imposes a limitation that appears nowhere in the relevant statutory text.” The 6th Circuit analysis “flout[s] the ordinary meaning of ‘goods or services,’” and “ignores that the VPPA broadly prohibits a video tape service provider—like Paramount here—from knowingly disclosing ‘personally identifiable information concerning any consumer of such provider,’” he told the Supreme Court.
The DC Circuit ruled the same way as the 6th Circuit in another case last year, but other appeals courts have ruled differently. The 7th Circuit held last year that “any purchase or subscription from a ‘video tape service provider’ satisfies the definition of ‘consumer,’ even if the thing purchased is clothing or the thing subscribed to is a newsletter.”
In Salazar v. National Basketball Association, which also involves Michael Salazar, the 2nd Circuit ruled in 2024 that Salazar was a consumer under the VPPA because the law’s “text, structure, and purpose compel the conclusion that that phrase is not limited to audiovisual ‘goods or services,’ and the NBA’s online newsletter falls within the plain meaning of that phrase.” The NBA petitioned the Supreme Court for review in hopes of overturning the 2nd Circuit ruling, but the petition to hear the case was denied in December.
Despite the NBA case being rejected by the high court, a circuit split can make a case ripe for Supreme Court review. “Put simply, the circuit courts have divided 2–2 over how to interpret the statutory phrase ‘goods or services from a video tape service provider,’” Salazar told the court. “As a result, there is a 2–2 circuit split concerning what it takes to become a ‘consumer’ under the VPPA.”
Paramount urged SCOTUS to reject case
While Salazar sued both Paramount and the NBA, he said the Paramount case “is a superior vehicle for resolving this exceptionally important question.” The case against the NBA is still under appeal on a different legal issue and “has had multiple amended pleadings since the lower courts decided the question, meaning the Court could not answer the question based on the now-operative allegations,” his petition said. By contrast, the Paramount case has a final judgment, no ongoing proceedings, and “can be reviewed on the same record the lower courts considered.”
Paramount urged the court to decline Salazar’s petition. Despite the circuit split on the “consumer” question, Paramount said that Salazar’s claims would fail in the 2nd and 7th circuits for different reasons. Paramount argued that “computer code shared in targeted advertising does not qualify as ‘personally identifiable information,’” and that “247Sports is not a ‘video tape service provider’ in the first place.”
“247Sports does not rent, sell, or offer subscriptions to video tapes. Nor does it stream movies or shows,” Paramount said. “Rather, it is a sports news website with articles, photos, and video clips—and all of the content at issue in this case is available for free to anybody on the Internet. That is a completely different business from renting video cassette tapes. The VPPA does not address it.”
Paramount further argued that Salazar’s case isn’t a good vehicle to consider the “consumer” definition because his “complaint fails for multiple additional reasons that could complicate further review.”
Paramount wasn’t able to convince the Supreme Court that the case isn’t worth taking up, however. SCOTUSblog says that “the case will likely be scheduled for oral argument in the court’s 2026-27 term,” which begins in October 2026.Comment
-
Here is a classic "man buggers himself with a foreign object" story...
That would have been quite the Darwin award had it detonated!Hospital evacuated after 8-inch WWI artillery shell discovered in patient’s butt
By Ben Cost
Published Feb. 2, 2026, 8:52 a.m. PT
He had some explosive indigestion.
A hospital in France was evacuated after a male patient arrived with a WWI artillery shell lodged in his backside.
According to the bum-shell report, the unnamed 24-year-old had been rushed to the Rangueil Accident and Emergency unit in Toulouse late Saturday night, the Daily Mail reported.
The poor fellow was “in a state of extreme discomfort, having inserted a large object up his rectum,” an insider source said.
Surgeons conducted emergency surgery, during which they discovered the shocking source of his pain — a live, eight-inch bomb shell from 1918 that had been lodged inside him, the Sun reported.
Fearing a potential fire in the hole — and hospital — medical personnel alerted the bomb squad and fire brigade and evacuated the facility.
Meanwhile, a security perimeter was formed around the medical center as the authorities investigated the explosive situation.
Fortunately, the retro munition, which was also pointed and over an inch wide, was not deemed a threat.
The bomb disposal experts took the shell with them while the patient, a French national, remained at the hospital so he could recover from surgery.
It was unclear how the antique ordnance ended up in the man’s posterior, but experts suspected the combustible could have been the result of a party stunt gone awry.
However, France’s La Dépêche newspaper wrote that medical staff in Toulouse are “accustomed to treating victims injured during sexual games.”
The shellshocked patient is expected to be interviewed by authorities later this week, while prosecutors are considering taking legal action against him for handling “category A munitions,” per an officer.
Shells such as the one found in the man’s bum were used during the First World War by the Imperial German Army, which deployed hundreds of thousands against the British and French armies across the Western Front between 1914 and 1918.
The explosives, which are date-stamped, regularly turn up during the “Iron Harvest” – the annual collection of often unexploded munitions from both world wars, which are found on farmland, building sites, and other disrupted land.
And while a person’s backside might seem like a strange location for one of them to surface, shockingly, this wasn’t a first at a French hospital.
In 2022, the Hospital Sainte Musse in Toulon was partially evacuated after an 88-year-old arrived with a World War I artillery shell similarly lodged in his anus.
image.pngComment
Comment