AZBeauty
Stop lyin' nicca.
Kaspersky getting bushed. Why the hell would federal agencies be using it anyway.
RUSSIA 🇷🇺 / РОССИЯ THREAD—DJT IMPEACHED TWICE-US TREASURY SANCTS KILIMNIK AS RUSSIAN AGENT—UKRAINE Peace?
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Kaspersky getting bushed. Why the hell would federal agencies be using it anyway.
they should have bushed it that day!
for some reason he really thinks dinner is an amazing high level negotiating tactic
[provided he gets extra salad dressing or larger salt and pepper shakers or an extra scoop]
dinner wont negotiate p*ssy but he thinks its the best tool ever
IMO, Nap is a necessary evil.
His neurosis, narcissism, and borderline sociopathic posting style is
, but it really helps when staying on top of a story as huge as the #TrumpRussia scandal. 
I use this thread as a jumping-off point to do further research into what's going on. It's really been helpful.
I'm honestly torn.
Nap is crazy
Nap is useful
His neurosis, narcissism, and borderline sociopathic posting style is
, but it really helps when staying on top of a story as huge as the #TrumpRussia scandal. I use this thread as a jumping-off point to do further research into what's going on. It's really been helpful.
I'm honestly torn.
Nap is crazy
Nap is usefulU.S. bans use of Kaspersky software in federal agencies amid concerns of Russian espionage
U.S. bans use of Kaspersky software in federal agencies amid concerns of Russian espionage
By Ellen Nakashima and Jack Gillum September 13 at 1:19 PM
The U.S. government on Wednesday banned the use of a Russian brand of security software by federal agencies amid concerns the company has ties to state-sponsored cyberespionage activities, according to U.S. officials.
Acting Homeland Security secretary Elaine Duke ordered that Kaspersky Lab software be barred from federal government networks, giving agencies a timeline to get rid of it, according to several officials familiar with the plan who were not authorized to speak publicly about it. Duke ordered the scrub on the grounds that the company has connections to the Russian government and its software poses a security risk.
“The Department is concerned about the ties between certain Kaspersky officials and Russian intelligence and other government agencies, and requirements under Russian law that allow Russian intelligence agencies to request or compel assistance from Kaspersky and to intercept communications transiting Russian networks,” the department said in a statement. “The risk that the Russian government, whether acting on its own or in collaboration with Kaspersky, could capitalize on access provided by Kaspersky products to compromise federal information and information systems directly implicates U.S. national security.”
The directive comes months after the federal General Services Administration, the agency in charge of government purchasing, removed Kaspersky from its list of approved vendors. In doing so, the GSA suggested a vulnerability exists in Kaspersky that could give the Kremlin backdoor access to the systems the company protects.
In a statement to The Washington Post on Wednesday, the company said: “Kaspersky Lab doesn’t have inappropriate ties with any government, which is why no credible evidence has been presented publicly by anyone or any organization to back up the false allegations made against the company. The only conclusion seems to be that Kaspersky Lab, a private company, is caught in the middle of a geopolitical fight, and it’s being treated unfairly even though the company has never helped, nor will help, any government in the world with its cyberespionage or offensive cyber efforts.”
“Kaspersky Lab has always acknowledged that it provides appropriate products and services to governments around the world to protect those organizations from cyberthreats, but it does not have unethical ties or affiliations with any government, including Russia,” the firm said.
The directive comes in the wake of an unprecedented Russian operation to interfere in the U.S. presidential election that saw Russian spy services hack the networks of the Democratic National Committee and other political organizations and release damaging information.
At least a half-dozen federal agencies run Kaspersky on their networks, the U.S. officials said, although there may be other networks where an agency’s chief information security officer — the official ultimately responsible for systems security — might not be aware it is being used.
The order applies only to civilian government networks, not the military’s. But the Defense Department, which includes the National Security Agency, does not generally use Kaspersky software, officials said.
The U.S. intelligence community has long assessed that Kaspersky has ties to the Russian government, according to officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. The company’s founder, Eugene Kaspersky, graduated from a KGB-supported cryptography school and had worked in Russian military intelligence.
In recent months concern has mounted inside the government about the potential for Kaspersky software to be used to gather information for the Russian secret services, officials said.
Richard Ledgett, former NSA deputy director, hailed the move. Speaking Wednesday on the sidelines of the Billington CyberSecurity Summit in Washington, he noted that Kaspersky, like other Russian companies, is “bound to comply with the directive of Russian state security services, by law, to share with them information from their servers.”
Concerns about Kaspersky software had been brewing for years, according to one former official who told The Post that some congressional staffers were warned by federal law enforcement officials as early as November 2015 not to meet with employees from Kaspersky, over concerns about electronic surveillance.
When the GSA announced its July decision, it underscored that its mission was to “ensure the integrity and security of U.S. government systems and networks” and that Kaspersky was delisted “after review and careful consideration.” The action removed the company from the list of products approved for purchase on federal systems and at discounted prices for state governments.
The directive will also put pressure on state and local governments that use Kaspersky’s products. Many had been left to speculate about the risks of sticking with the company or abandoning taxpayer-funded contracts, sometimes at great cost. In July, The Post found several state or local agencies that used Kaspersky’s anti-virus or security software had purchased or supported the software within the past two years.
U.S. bans use of Kaspersky software in federal agencies amid concerns of Russian espionage
By Ellen Nakashima and Jack Gillum September 13 at 1:19 PM
The U.S. government on Wednesday banned the use of a Russian brand of security software by federal agencies amid concerns the company has ties to state-sponsored cyberespionage activities, according to U.S. officials.
Acting Homeland Security secretary Elaine Duke ordered that Kaspersky Lab software be barred from federal government networks, giving agencies a timeline to get rid of it, according to several officials familiar with the plan who were not authorized to speak publicly about it. Duke ordered the scrub on the grounds that the company has connections to the Russian government and its software poses a security risk.
“The Department is concerned about the ties between certain Kaspersky officials and Russian intelligence and other government agencies, and requirements under Russian law that allow Russian intelligence agencies to request or compel assistance from Kaspersky and to intercept communications transiting Russian networks,” the department said in a statement. “The risk that the Russian government, whether acting on its own or in collaboration with Kaspersky, could capitalize on access provided by Kaspersky products to compromise federal information and information systems directly implicates U.S. national security.”
The directive comes months after the federal General Services Administration, the agency in charge of government purchasing, removed Kaspersky from its list of approved vendors. In doing so, the GSA suggested a vulnerability exists in Kaspersky that could give the Kremlin backdoor access to the systems the company protects.
In a statement to The Washington Post on Wednesday, the company said: “Kaspersky Lab doesn’t have inappropriate ties with any government, which is why no credible evidence has been presented publicly by anyone or any organization to back up the false allegations made against the company. The only conclusion seems to be that Kaspersky Lab, a private company, is caught in the middle of a geopolitical fight, and it’s being treated unfairly even though the company has never helped, nor will help, any government in the world with its cyberespionage or offensive cyber efforts.”
“Kaspersky Lab has always acknowledged that it provides appropriate products and services to governments around the world to protect those organizations from cyberthreats, but it does not have unethical ties or affiliations with any government, including Russia,” the firm said.
The directive comes in the wake of an unprecedented Russian operation to interfere in the U.S. presidential election that saw Russian spy services hack the networks of the Democratic National Committee and other political organizations and release damaging information.
At least a half-dozen federal agencies run Kaspersky on their networks, the U.S. officials said, although there may be other networks where an agency’s chief information security officer — the official ultimately responsible for systems security — might not be aware it is being used.
The order applies only to civilian government networks, not the military’s. But the Defense Department, which includes the National Security Agency, does not generally use Kaspersky software, officials said.
The U.S. intelligence community has long assessed that Kaspersky has ties to the Russian government, according to officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. The company’s founder, Eugene Kaspersky, graduated from a KGB-supported cryptography school and had worked in Russian military intelligence.
In recent months concern has mounted inside the government about the potential for Kaspersky software to be used to gather information for the Russian secret services, officials said.
Richard Ledgett, former NSA deputy director, hailed the move. Speaking Wednesday on the sidelines of the Billington CyberSecurity Summit in Washington, he noted that Kaspersky, like other Russian companies, is “bound to comply with the directive of Russian state security services, by law, to share with them information from their servers.”
Concerns about Kaspersky software had been brewing for years, according to one former official who told The Post that some congressional staffers were warned by federal law enforcement officials as early as November 2015 not to meet with employees from Kaspersky, over concerns about electronic surveillance.
When the GSA announced its July decision, it underscored that its mission was to “ensure the integrity and security of U.S. government systems and networks” and that Kaspersky was delisted “after review and careful consideration.” The action removed the company from the list of products approved for purchase on federal systems and at discounted prices for state governments.
The directive will also put pressure on state and local governments that use Kaspersky’s products. Many had been left to speculate about the risks of sticking with the company or abandoning taxpayer-funded contracts, sometimes at great cost. In July, The Post found several state or local agencies that used Kaspersky’s anti-virus or security software had purchased or supported the software within the past two years.
WASHINGTON — Michael G. Flynn, the son of President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, is a subject of the federal investigation into Russian meddling in the presidential election and possible collusion between Moscow and the Trump campaign, according to four current and former government officials.
The inquiry into Flynn is focused at least in part on his work with his father's lobbying firm, Flynn Intel Group, three of the officials said. It's unclear when the focus on Flynn began.
Barry Coburn, who said he is serving as the younger Flynn's legal counsel, said he couldn't comment on the matter.
Flynn's status as a subject of the Russia investigation widens the publicly known scope of the probe. NBC News has reported that those under investigation have included the elder Flynn and former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort. Others under scrutiny by special counsel Robert Mueller include Carter Page, a Trump campaign ally; Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law and senior White House adviser; and the president's son, Donald Trump Jr.
Mike Flynn and his son, Mike Flynn Jr., near right.
Trump Jr. may be called to appear before the Senate Judiciary committee sometime this fall. He, Kushner, Manafort and Page have all denied any collusion with Russia during the campaign.
The elder Flynn's lawyer, Robert Kelner, declined to comment Tuesday when asked how his client responds to allegations of collusion with Russia. The president also has come under scrutiny for possible obstruction of justice and has denied colluding with Russia.
The younger Flynn worked closely with his father, whose connections to foreign governments, including Russia and Turkey, have been a subject of federal and congressional investigations.
Michael G. Flynn accompanied his father, for instance, on a trip to Moscow in December 2015 for the elder Flynn to deliver a paid speech at a gala for the state-sponsored Russian television network RT. He can be seen in video from an associated event.
Michael G. Flynn during at an RT event with his father Ret. Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn in Moscow in 2015. RT
The elder Flynn, a retired Army lieutenant general and a former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, was seated at the same table as Russian President Vladimir Putin during the dinner. Records released by the House Oversight Committee show he was paid nearly $34,000 for his speech; RT also paid for Flynn and his son's airfare to Moscow and lodging at a luxury hotel from Dec. 9 to Dec. 12.
Flynn Intel Group also was paid $530,000 in 2016 for work the Justice Department has said benefited the government of Turkey. The elder Flynn did not register as a foreign lobbyist at the time, but did so retroactively this year. According to his filing with the Justice Department, he was hired by a Turkish businessman to gather information about Fethullah Gülen, a Turkish cleric residing in Pennsylvania whom the Turkish government accuses of orchestrating an attempted coup there in July 2016.
Related: Obama Warned Trump Against Hiring Mike Flynn
The elder Flynn was fired as Trump's national security adviser in February after it became public that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence about his conversations with the Russian ambassador to the U.S.
A former business associate of Michael Flynn's said the younger Flynn had a heavy hand in the day-to-day operations of Flynn Intel Group and served as his father's chief of staff. Those responsibilities included attending meetings with his father and communicating with prospective clients, the former business associate said.
Several legal experts with knowledge of the investigation have told NBC News they believe Mueller, following a classic prosecutorial playbook, is seeking to compel key players, including Flynn and Manafort, to tell what they know about any possible Trump campaign collusion with Russia. Mueller has brought onto his team a federal prosecutor known for convincing subjects to turn on associates. Any potential criminal liability for Michael G. Flynn could put added pressure on his father, these legal experts said.
Retired Lt. Gen Michael Flynn talks to the media as he arrives with is son Michael G. Flynn, left, at Trump Tower in New York on Nov. 17, 2016. Carolyn Kaster / AP file
"Any time a family member is identified as a subject that does increase pressure," said Peter Smith, a former federal prosecutor. "In the typical parent-child relationship the last thing any parent would want is for their child to get in trouble for something they initiated."
That pressure appeared to mount Wednesday, when House Democrats released information they said confirmed that the elder Flynn omitted from his security clearance renewal application in 2016 that he had traveled to the Middle East in 2015 to meet with foreign leaders about a proposal to partner with Russia in a plan to build nuclear reactors in Saudi Arabia.
In a letter to Flynn's former business partners who had turned over documents to Congress, Democratic Reps. Elijah Cummings of Maryland and Eliot Engel of New York also accuse Flynn of concealing the trip from background check investigators who interviewed him during that 2016 process. The congressmen, ranking members on the House Oversight and House Foreign Affairs committees respectively, told the former business partners that because "it appears that General Flynn violated federal law" they are turning over their documents to Mueller.
Related: Flynn, Manafort Are Key Figures in Russia Probe
Peter Carr, the spokesman for Mueller, did not respond to a request for comment. Kelner, the elder Flynn's lawyer, did not respond to a request for comment on the Cummings-Engel letter.
The younger Flynn, 34, has a bachelor's degree from the University of North Carolina-Charlotte and an associate degree in golf course management. He is married, has one son and lives in Northern Virginia. He worked for a golf company and then a healthcare management firm between 2008 and 2015, and since 2014 has worked for the Flynn Intel Group, according to LinkedIn. He was a registered Republican in Charlotte, N.C., from 2004 to 2008, according to public records.
He was a controversial figure during the presidential campaign and during the Trump transition, known for writing inflammatory comments on Twitter and circulating conspiracy theories.
He perpetuated a so-called "pizzagate" conspiracy theory that surfaced in the days before the November election alleging Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton had used the Comet Ping Pong pizzeria in Washington to run a child sex-trafficking operation. About a month later, in December 2016, a North Carolina man fired gunshots in the pizzeria allegedly in response to the false "pizzagate" story. At the time, Flynn wrote on Twitter: "Until #Pizzagate proven to be false, it'll remain a story."
During the Trump transition there were questions about whether Flynn had an official role. He had a government transition email address and was said to be helping his father, who had been named national security adviser. But after the shooting at the "pizzagate" restaurant, Pence, who was in charge of the transition, said Flynn "has no involvement in the transition whatsoever."
The younger Flynn continues to express political opinions on social media, tweeting in support of former Trump adviser Steve Bannon and tweeting criticism of Black Lives Matter.
AZBeauty
Stop lyin' nicca.
First tweet response:
Everybody obstructing justice. Trump down to his lawyers.
While we wait for Mueller time, Trump continues to do damage:
Survival of the fittest brehs...
Know this: Trump has killed or weakened 860 regulations
Large companies no longer have to spell out what they pay men and what they pay women or what they pay whites and what they pay blacks, a rule that had been aimed at promoting pay equity.
WASHINGTON — We’ve all become bit players in Donald Trump’s bizarre reality show, but behind the bluster, he’s altering our lives through dramatic changes in regulations.
We quake with anxiety that he might get us into a catastrophic war with North Korea. Then we gasp when he threatens to deport 800,000 of the best and brightest. We puzzle over his touting of a nonexistent tax plan. And he stuns by equating racists and neo-Nazis with opponents of hatred and discrimination.
We nervously watch him try out different, often competing, ways of governing by bullying and whining. We’re aghast at his lack of knowledge and pathetically small vocabulary. We wince as he embarrasses us, alternating between flattering and threatening world leaders.
We can’t even look forward to being fired and returning to real life. This nightmare will not end soon.
Behind the diversion of obnoxious rhetoric, mendacity (1,100 outright lies since Jan. 20) and nail-biting uncertainty, and in between and even during killer hurricanes, Trump and his people are doing extreme damage.
Americans may hate the bureaucratic nonsense government often engenders. But when they can catch their breath, they will be horrified at what Trump has done.
The White House boasts that Trump has killed or weakened 860 regulations. Trump, who excoriated former president Barack Obama for using executive orders in frustration when the Republican-led Congress refused to do anything he asked, has himself issued dozens of them. The man who insists he must follow the law by threatening Dreamers (young immigrants illegally brought to America when they were under 16 who now attend school, have jobs or serve in the military) pardoned Joe Arpaio, convicted of unconstitutionally torturing and imprisoning people.
Here is a tiny sampling of what Trump is doing.
More people will die in bed because mattresses will no longer have to be as fire-retardant as they are now. Construction site workers will be more likely to be run over by vehicles. Hundreds of endangered species will no longer be on the list for protection.
New safety regulations on how meat and poultry are processed, in the works since 2001, will not be pursued. A requirement that federal contracts be issued only to firms that comply with 14 labor and civil rights laws, including equal pay for women, has been dropped. States may no longer create retirement savings plans for private-sector workers.
Large companies no longer have to spell out what they pay men and what they pay women or what they pay whites and what they pay blacks, a rule that had been aimed at promoting pay equity.
States no longer have limits on drug tests for those receiving unemployment benefits. Financial advisers will not have to act in the best interests of their clients. Employers no longer have to keep records of worker injuries, and the federal government will no longer publicize worker injuries. Government contractors no longer must disclose violations of labor laws. Judges no longer have discretion over handing out lenient criminal sentences. Private prisons will not be phased out. Law enforcement may seize assets of suspects not convicted of a crime.
Toxic waste dumps slated for cleanup will be ignored. More waterways will not have to meet federal environmental protection standards. Power plants have fewer restrictions on emissions of greenhouse gases. Regulations that require chemical companies to reveal what is in storage tanks (an issue in Hurricane Harvey) are disappearing. Federal standards to make natural-disaster-ravaged infrastructure more resistant to flooding when rebuilt have been revoked.
Money to let Americans know how and when to sign up for affordable health care is being slashed. Efforts to stabilize Obamacare to preserve insurance for millions are being ended.
The military will no longer accept transgender Americans.
Local police departments once again can have access to excess military equipment such as tanks, bayonets and grenade launchers. Oil and gas companies no longer have to report payments (bribes) to foreign governments.
The number of people eligible for overtime pay has been greatly decreased.
Oops. Out of space. Just know that Trump says he intends to get rid of 80 percent of all federal regulations.
Trump’s world is dog eat dog. He is making that our world as well.
Survival of the fittest brehs...
Know this: Trump has killed or weakened 860 regulations
Large companies no longer have to spell out what they pay men and what they pay women or what they pay whites and what they pay blacks, a rule that had been aimed at promoting pay equity.
WASHINGTON — We’ve all become bit players in Donald Trump’s bizarre reality show, but behind the bluster, he’s altering our lives through dramatic changes in regulations.
We quake with anxiety that he might get us into a catastrophic war with North Korea. Then we gasp when he threatens to deport 800,000 of the best and brightest. We puzzle over his touting of a nonexistent tax plan. And he stuns by equating racists and neo-Nazis with opponents of hatred and discrimination.
We nervously watch him try out different, often competing, ways of governing by bullying and whining. We’re aghast at his lack of knowledge and pathetically small vocabulary. We wince as he embarrasses us, alternating between flattering and threatening world leaders.
We can’t even look forward to being fired and returning to real life. This nightmare will not end soon.
Behind the diversion of obnoxious rhetoric, mendacity (1,100 outright lies since Jan. 20) and nail-biting uncertainty, and in between and even during killer hurricanes, Trump and his people are doing extreme damage.
Americans may hate the bureaucratic nonsense government often engenders. But when they can catch their breath, they will be horrified at what Trump has done.
The White House boasts that Trump has killed or weakened 860 regulations. Trump, who excoriated former president Barack Obama for using executive orders in frustration when the Republican-led Congress refused to do anything he asked, has himself issued dozens of them. The man who insists he must follow the law by threatening Dreamers (young immigrants illegally brought to America when they were under 16 who now attend school, have jobs or serve in the military) pardoned Joe Arpaio, convicted of unconstitutionally torturing and imprisoning people.
Here is a tiny sampling of what Trump is doing.
More people will die in bed because mattresses will no longer have to be as fire-retardant as they are now. Construction site workers will be more likely to be run over by vehicles. Hundreds of endangered species will no longer be on the list for protection.
New safety regulations on how meat and poultry are processed, in the works since 2001, will not be pursued. A requirement that federal contracts be issued only to firms that comply with 14 labor and civil rights laws, including equal pay for women, has been dropped. States may no longer create retirement savings plans for private-sector workers.
Large companies no longer have to spell out what they pay men and what they pay women or what they pay whites and what they pay blacks, a rule that had been aimed at promoting pay equity.
States no longer have limits on drug tests for those receiving unemployment benefits. Financial advisers will not have to act in the best interests of their clients. Employers no longer have to keep records of worker injuries, and the federal government will no longer publicize worker injuries. Government contractors no longer must disclose violations of labor laws. Judges no longer have discretion over handing out lenient criminal sentences. Private prisons will not be phased out. Law enforcement may seize assets of suspects not convicted of a crime.
Toxic waste dumps slated for cleanup will be ignored. More waterways will not have to meet federal environmental protection standards. Power plants have fewer restrictions on emissions of greenhouse gases. Regulations that require chemical companies to reveal what is in storage tanks (an issue in Hurricane Harvey) are disappearing. Federal standards to make natural-disaster-ravaged infrastructure more resistant to flooding when rebuilt have been revoked.
Money to let Americans know how and when to sign up for affordable health care is being slashed. Efforts to stabilize Obamacare to preserve insurance for millions are being ended.
The military will no longer accept transgender Americans.
Local police departments once again can have access to excess military equipment such as tanks, bayonets and grenade launchers. Oil and gas companies no longer have to report payments (bribes) to foreign governments.
The number of people eligible for overtime pay has been greatly decreased.
Oops. Out of space. Just know that Trump says he intends to get rid of 80 percent of all federal regulations.
Trump’s world is dog eat dog. He is making that our world as well.
AZBeauty
Stop lyin' nicca.
Excuse me, WHAT
