Tag Archive for: States

Good News, Bad News for Security Researchers: Feds Are Less Likely to Charge You, States Are Another Thing

/in


A talk at a security conference in Washington offered a little long-awaited reassurance to security researchers: Federal prosecutors just aren’t that into you anymore. 

In a talk at ShmooCon(Opens in a new window) Friday evening, Venable LLP cybersecurity lawyer Harley Geiger(Opens in a new window) told attendees that two laws long considered harmful by information-security types have grown less toxic because of recent actions in Washington.

“The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act have evolved in favor of hackers,” he said at the start of his “Hacker Law for Hackers” presentation. 

The CFAA, passed in 1986 after growing alarm over the risks of hacks (catalyzed to some degree(Opens in a new window) by the 1983 classic WarGames), criminalizes access to a computer system “without authorization” or that “exceeds authorized access.” The DMCA, enacted in 1998 at the behest of Hollywood, makes it a crime to disable security measures that control access to copyrighted material. Both measures have been used to threaten and harass security researchers.

But in 2021, the Supreme Court held (PDF(Opens in a new window)) that the CFAA does not cover unauthorized use of “information that is otherwise available” to a person. That essentially took terms-of-service violations out of the law’s scope. As Geiger put it, “that may be a violation of a contract, but it is not a federal hacking crime.”

In May 2022, the Justice Department went further, announcing that it would no longer prosecute good-faith security research under the CFAA. “That is a big deal,” Geiger said. 

He sounded a little less cheery about the DMCA and its Section 1201(Opens in a new window) ban on circumventing copyright-protection systems. Change has come to that statute mainly through the Library of Congress’s Copyright Office, which can grant and renew public-interest exceptions to the anti-circumvention provision every three years.

In 2021, the office renewed and expanded(Opens in a new window) a “1201” exemption on breaking copyright protection for security research. It still, however, prohibits distributing those circumvention tools, which Geiger called an…

Source…

CAFC Expressly States Patentee Disclaimers During IPR are Not Binding on the PTAB’s Patentability Analysis

/in


“In brief, if patent owners could freely modify their claims by argument in an IPR, they could avoid the public-protecting amendment process that Congress prescribed. That cannot be.” – CAFC Judge Timothy Dyk

CAFCEarlier today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) issued a precedential decision in CUPP Computing AS v. Trend Micro Inc. affirming final written decisions from a trio of inter partes review (IPR) proceedings invalidating CUPP Computing’s patent claims covering methods for performing security operations on a mobile device. The CAFC’s decision makes clear to patent owners defending their rights at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) that the Board is not required to consider a disclaimer entered during IPR as binding on the proceedings before it.

IPR Petitions Filed after CUPP Computing Targets Trend Micro’s Mobile Security Services

The three patents at issue in CUPP Computing’s appeal from the PTAB are U.S. Patent No. 8631488, U.S. Patent No. 9106683 and U.S. Patent No. 9843595, each sharing the common title Systems and Methods for Providing Security Services During Power Management Mode. Each patent claims a priority date of August 4, 2008, and each generally cover methods and systems for waking a mobile device from a power-saving mode in order to perform security operations such as scanning the storage medium for malware or updating security applications.

These patents-at-issue were among a collection of patents asserted by CUPP Computing in a pair of lawsuits filed against Trend Micro in the Northern District of Texas. In May 2018, CUPP Computing filed a suit against Trend Micro alleging patent infringement by Trend Micro’s mobile security technologies along with its network defense products, hybrid cloud security products and several other security solutions. Then in April 2021, CUPP Computing filed a first amended complaint in a separate suit reiterating many of the infringement allegations from the May 2018 action based on several new patents that had been issued to CUPP Computing since the first lawsuit.

Trend Micro challenged the validity of the ‘488, ‘683 and ‘595 patents by filing petitions for IPR…

Source…

VMM-268 Showcases MV-22 Versatility, Strengthens Relationships on 6,100 Mile Trans-Pacific Flight > United States Marine Corps Flagship > News Display

/in


KAILUA, HAWAII —

 U.S. Marines with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 268 concluded their deployment with Marine Rotational Force – Darwin by executing a 6,100 mile transpacific flight from Australia to Hawaii, September 13-18, 2022. The occasion marks the second time this year that MV-22 Ospreys from Marine Aircraft Group 24 successfully completed long-range maritime self-deployments. Earlier this year, VMM-363 executed a similar mission, flying approximately 5,000 miles from Hawaii to the Philippines for Exercise Balikatan 22.

The monumental journey began in Darwin on September 13 as two VMM-268 MV-22s and one KC-130J from Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 152 departed for Royal Australian Air Force Base Amberley. Over the next several days, the Marines would land in Fiji, American Samoa, and the Republic of Kiribati before completing the final leg to Marine Corps Base Hawaii Kaneohe Bay.

“The MV-22s are capable and versatile aircraft for operations in the Pacific,” said Capt. John Wilkinson, a pilot assigned to VMM-268.

“It’s important to remember that flights of this magnitude wouldn’t be possible without the dedication and support of our Marines and our allies and partners.”  Capt. John Wilkinson, a pilot assigned to VMM-268

While transiting the islands of the South Pacific via a path resembling the Corps’ island-hopping campaign of World War II, they prioritized their interactions with local leaders and communities along the way. In Fiji, the Marines welcomed airfield support staff onboard for a tour and later came together to share a meal and exchange tokens of appreciation for support.

In American Samoa, the Marines had several memorable interactions. Sergeant Tyrone Travers, a native of the island, embraced his sister for the first time in six years. Colonel Manlee Herrington, MAG-24 commanding officer, met with two retired Marines; Sgt. Maj. Tusipasi Suiaunoa, whose last assignment was as the Headquarters and Support Battalion Sergeant Major at U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Pacific; and Cpl. Ketsemame Meaole, a veteran of the war in Vietnam.

While in the Republic of Kiribati, the Marines delivered humanitarian aid supplies to the community,…

Source…

Suicide Prevention Awareness Month  – Support for Persons at Elevated Risk for Suicide > United States Coast Guard > My Coast Guard News

/in




If you are close to someone who has experienced a recent suicidal crisis and who may not be fully recovered. How do you think about their risk and what kind of support can you provide?  It is likely that you or someone else played a key role in encouraging their pursuit of urgent mental health care and/or a formal suicide risk assessment. Regardless of what the risk was assessed to be at the time, it is important to know suicide risk is dynamic and subject to change based on a variety of factors. 

Factors Influencing Continuing Suicide Risk Following an Acute Crisis

  • Untreated depression or anxiety

  • Ongoing stressor that is unresolved and/or subject to intensify

  • Persistent problems with sleep or ability to function

  • Unrelenting hopelessness and/or pessimism

  • Misuse of alcohol and/or substances

  • Intermittent or persistent thoughts of death or suicide

  • Access to lethal means to harm oneself

Supporting Those with Elevated Risk of Suicide

You may have had an initial conversation with your family member, friend, or coworker about their crisis and your connection may have supplied an important dose of hope and encouragement.  It is vital that you convey your continuing availability and support, that they are not traversing this difficult time alone.  Your listening and empathic understanding during this time is indispensable.  Your time spent with them will afford you the opportunity to encourage initiating or sustaining their participation in treatment (medication and psychotherapy have strong evidence bases for reducing suicide risk), watching for signs of acute increased risk for suicide (establishes a basis for urgent evaluation/care), reminding them of reasons to live, and assisting with lethal means safety. 

Lethal Means Safety

Restricting access to the available means to harm oneself has been shown to reduce suicides.  Studies have shown that people have a preference for a given means and that many do not seek out other methods if a preferred means is not available.  The time between thinking of suicide and acting on it can span minutes, but also subside as quickly.  Restricting access to lethal means…

Source…