Obama/McCain computers hacked

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article5105027.ece

My husband heard on the news this morning that Obama is asking again for 900 Billon to add to our deficit for his tax plan. I want to see more jobs like McCain wanted, not more unemployment and more deficit.

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I received an intrusion alarm when I booted mine up this morning. Don't know if a hacker is after some personal information or if it's my friendly government stalking me because I disagree with Bush's policies.

FBI Examines Computers in Cheney's Office

(10-06) 23:36 PDT WASHINGTON, (AP) --

FBI agents examined computers in Vice President Dick Cheney's office and talked to former and current White House aides Thursday as they investigated an FBI intelligence analyst accused of passing classified information to Filipino officials.

Meantime, former Philippine President Joseph Estrada acknowledged receiving an internal U.S. government report on the Philippines from the analyst, Leandro Aragoncillo, but played down the importance of the information, comparing it to material aired in his country's media.

The FBI is looking at whether Aragoncillo, a former Marine, took classified information about the Philippines from the White House when he worked for Vice Presidents Al Gore and Cheney from 1999 to 2002.

The type of information has not been disclosed. Though Aragoncillo had top-secret clearance, that status would not have made him privy to highly sensitive intelligence.

Aragoncillo, a U.S. citizen originally from the Philippines, was charged last month with providing classified information from his FBI posting at Fort Monmouth, N.J., to former and current Philippine officials who oppose President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Philippine Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales said the criminal complaint against Aragoncillo suggests the information could have been intended to destabilize the Philippine government.

Michael Ray Aquino, a former top Philippine police official who acted as Aragoncillo's alleged go-between, was indicted by a Newark, N.J., federal grand jury Thursday on charges of conspiracy and acting as an unregistered foreign agent. Aragoncillo, 46, of Woodbury, N.J., and Aquino, 39, living in Queens, N.Y., have been jailed since their arrests last month.

Federal prosecutors in Newark did not seek an indictment against Aragoncillo because he is negotiating a plea, court records show.

Aquino lawyer Mark A. Berman said his client rejected a plea deal.

There's a fundamental difference between Aragoncillo and Aquino, Berman said. Aquino is not an FBI agent and had no reason to know that the information the government laid out in the indictment was classified.

While the criminal complaint is limited to Aragoncillo's time at Fort Monmouth the investigation has widened to include his stint, while a Marine, in the vice president's office. Agents examined computers and interviewed current and former vice presidential aides Thursday, according to a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.

FBI spokesman Rich Kolko would not confirm details of the investigation, but he said, In the course of a logical investigation, the FBI will research the subject's entire career for whenever he had access to classified or sensitive information to see whether any illegal or improper activity took place.

Meantime, Estrada said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press in the Philippines that he received documents from Aragoncillo but that he did not think they contained classified information.

He was just describing how America sees the Philippines, Estrada said. I don't think that is classified. It pertains to graft and corruption, the first gentleman (Arroyo's husband).

Estrada said he met Aragoncillo during his state visit to Washington in 2000 and received about six reports from him.

He compared what Aragoncillo did with reports diplomats send back home. I don't think that's espionage, he said.

He's a kind person, the former president said of Aragoncillo. He's a good family man. He has two children.

Estrada said Aragoncillo communicated with him by mail and also spoke with him on his birthday, but he didn't say when. Estrada was toppled in massive street protests in 2001 on charges of corruption and is under house arrests while on trial.

A Philippine opposition senator has acknowledged receiving information from Aquino. Sen. Panfilo Lacson, a former national police chief under whom Aquino served, said he and many others received information passed by Aquino, but he played down the value of the reports, describing them as shallow information.

White House and Justice Department officials declined to comment on the investigation.

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., a former federal prosecutor who handled an FBI spy case, said the Aragoncillo case raises questions about easy access to classified materials and how long the naturalized U.S. citizen was able to pass on sensitive information before he was stopped.

If the complaint is accurate, there is a wealth of evidence which makes it all the more surprising he went undiscovered as long as he did, because it was not a very sophisticated operation, Schiff said.

Aragoncillo was hired to work at Fort Monmouth in July 2004 and began sending classified information and documents in January, often via e-mail, according to an FBI complaint made public last month. The documents' contents have not been made public.

From May to Aug. 15 of this year, he printed or downloaded 101 classified documents relating to the Philippines, of which 37 were classified secret, according to the criminal complaint.

He sent some of the material to Aquino, the complaint said.

Aragoncillo's public defender, Chester M. Keller, declined to say if his client was cooperating with investigators. It's just too sensitive right now, Keller said.

___

Associated Press reporter Jim Gomez in Manila and Jeffrey Gold in Newark, N.J., contributed to this report.

The National Security Agency's Internet site has been placing files on
visitors' computers that can track their Web surfing activity despite strict
federal rules banning most of them.

These files, known as cookies, disappeared after a privacy activist
complained and The Associated Press made inquiries this week, and agency
officials acknowledged Wednesday they had made a mistake. Nonetheless, the issue
raises questions about privacy at a spy agency already on the defensive amid
reports of a secretive eavesdropping program in the United States.

Considering the surveillance power the NSA has, cookies are not exactly a
major concern, said Ari Schwartz, associate director at the Center for Democracy
and Technology, a privacy advocacy group in Washington, D.C. But it does show a
general lack of understanding about privacy rules when they are not even
following the government's very basic rules for Web privacy.

Until Tuesday, the NSA site created two cookie files that do not expire until
2035 � likely beyond the life of any computer in use today.

Don Weber, an NSA spokesman, said in a statement Wednesday that the cookie
use resulted from a recent software upgrade. Normally, the site uses temporary,
permissible cookies that are automatically deleted when users close their Web
browsers, he said, but the software in use shipped with persistent cookies
already on.

Cookies are widely used at commercial Web sites and can make Internet
browsing more convenient by letting sites remember user preferences. For
instance, visitors would not have to repeatedly enter passwords at sites that
require them.

But privacy advocates complain that cookies can also track Web surfing, even
if no personal information is actually collected.

In a 2003 memo, the White House's Office of Management and Budget prohibits
federal agencies from using persistent cookies � those that aren't automatically
deleted right away � unless there is a compelling need.

A senior official must sign off on any such use, and an agency that uses them
must disclose and detail their use in its privacy policy.

Peter Swire, a Clinton administration official who had drafted an earlier
version of the cookie guidelines, said clear notice is a must, and `vague
assertions of national security, such as exist in the NSA policy, are not
sufficient.

Daniel Brandt, a privacy activist who discovered the NSA cookies, said
mistakes happen, but in any case, it's illegal. The (guideline) doesn't say
anything about doing it accidentally.

The Bush administration has come under fire recently over reports it
authorized NSA to secretly spy on e-mail and phone calls without court
orders.

Since The New York Times disclosed the domestic spying program earlier this
month, President Bush has stressed that his executive order allowing the
eavesdropping was limited to people with known links to al-Qaida.

But on its Web site Friday, the Times reported that the NSA, with help from
American telecommunications companies, obtained broader access to streams of
domestic and international communications.

The NSA's cookie use is unrelated, and Weber said it was strictly to improve
the surfing experience and not to collect personal user data.

Richard M. Smith, a security consultant in Cambridge, Mass., questions
whether persistent cookies would even be of much use to the NSA. They are great
for news and other sites with repeat visitors, he said, but the NSA's site does
not appear to have enough fresh content to warrant more than occasional
visits.

The government first issued strict rules on cookies in 2000 after disclosures
that the White House drug policy office had used the technology to track
computer users viewing its online anti-drug advertising. Even a year later, a
congressional study found 300 cookies still on the Web sites of 23 agencies.

In 2002, the CIA removed cookies it had inadvertently placed at one of its
sites after Brandt called it to the agency's attention.

Do you think either candidate is more "real" than the other? Is one of them truly a "what you see is what you get" sort of person, or is one of them liable to turn tail and be the opposite of what we see now?

I had hoped to include Hillary in my list, but I guess that won't be necessary now. Bummer.

That is how I have been going over the last couple months. I just don't know any more and frankly I'm getting tired of it. I voted for Obama over Hillary, then was a strong supporter of Obama. Heard some stuff I didn't like so I switched to McCain, then heard some stuff and switched back to Obama, now with the economic crisis and what the democrats have done, I am looking towards McCain again. Let me explain why (please take pitty on me and don't flame me too bad :-), but with that said let me tell you why.

I feel that Obama can speak better than McCain. Gotta give him credit for being an eloquent speaker, however that doesn't mean that his ideas are right for America. I'm learning about his voting record and the programs he will be pushing for, and if I wanted to live in the type of economy Obama wants if he is elected I mind as well move to Cuba or another country that is socialized. Yes he understands our economy but he's making all the wrong decisions and we are going to be further in debt. I just found out today that 700B dollars is not a figure they need. They made that up out of thin air. They need close to a trillion dollars, but they were afraid if they ask for a trillion it will raise suspicion so they picked 700B out of thin air. And that money will be pocketed by them and then they'll need more. Kucinich said today where do you think we're going to get 700B from? We'll get it from banks. And we'll give it to banks. And then more faux money and debt and loans will go out and we will not be any better. And this is what Obama is going to approve. Obama does not care about people like you and me. He is for the 1% of the rich (him and his friends). I don't think he is qualified to make any decisions about our economy. And Pelosi and Franks should be fired on the spot! We should remember as a democratic congresswoman pointed out that we have enemies both foreign AND domestic. That means here in our country, and as far as I can see they are the democratics that are destroying our economy. NOT ALL DEMOCRATS. I wanted to make sure I made that clear. There are plenty good democrats who know this bill is wrong and are voting agaist it - good for them, but there are the other ones (along with some republicans) who are out for themself. We need a strong leader to lead us in the direction of bringing our economy back up and I believe that person is John McCain.

Second, I don't feel safe with what Obama is proposing to sit down with our enemies and have a nice big group hug and everything will be all better. That's not the way it works and McCain understands that. I feel safer with McCain in there on foreign policies and the ability to keep our country safer.

Biden - Don't know much about him except he's been in the senate a long time, which is good because Obama is fairly new so he would be big help. Personally I like Biden, so have no quams with him. I think he can put his foot in his mouth enough if you get him talking long enough. It also doesn't help that he was even saying Obama is not qualified to be president, but time will tell.

Palin. She's better than a lot of people are giving her credit for. I know your probably saying pleeese, but put your hatred towards her aside. She has a lot to learn, but so does Obama. He's had an 18-month lead on her, and with help she is learning fast. I heard the leader of Pakistan tonight and he said after meeting with her she was intelligent and he thinks if McCain and Palin are elected she will do just fine.

I like her resume and knowlege of the economy and plans for getting us back on the right track better than Obama's. BTW - I did watch one of her interviews and she did quite well. She was very intelligent and articulate in what she was saying (completed full sentances throughout the whole interview, finished her thought processes, etc), but then again she was being interviewed by someone who treated her with respect and didn't try to pull any of the "gotcha's", or look down at her cross-eyed like Couric did. Couric has the interview skills of a beanpole, so don't know why anyone even watched it.

I am looking forward to the debate on Thursday. I know a lot of you have already got it in your minds that she has already lost the debate and that is unfortunate. I am anxious to hear Biden talk. I do like him and had wished he had won the nomination over Obama.

My feeling on Palin is that given a chance and good mentors she will do just fine as VP and I always remember our founding fathers didn't have half the experience she does and they made this country great in the beginning. Now politics is just filled with lawyers, crooks and liars.

So...if Obama and Biden win I won't be crying, and if McCain and Palin win I will be fine too.

This is for all of you who constantly pick on Obama and hope for Obama's downfall.

Who knows if the motivation is sincere or not, but I'm just going to assume that it is and give him kudos. Here is what he will say in the ad tonight (courtesy of AP):

"Senator Obama, this is truly a good day for America. Too often the achievements of our opponents go unnoticed. So I wanted to stop and say, congratulations. How perfect that your nomination would come on this historic day. Tomorrow, we'll be back at it. But tonight Senator, job well done."

Obama/McCain computers hacked

FBI Examines Computers in Cheney's Office

McCain: Obama has 'done well' as president so far