March 2006
US Senator Obama on Energy Independence
In this year's State of the Union address, President Bush told us that it was time to get serious about America's addiction to foreign oil. The next day, we found out that his idea didn't sit too well with the Saudi Royal Family. A few hours later, Energy Secretary Bodman backtracked and assured the world that even though the President said he planned to reduce the amount of oil we import from the Middle East, he actually didn't mean that literally.
If there's a single example out there that encapsulates the ability of unstable, undemocratic governments to wield undue influence over America's national security just because of our dependence on oil, this is it.
February 2006
The Right Way - Iraq
The clock may be ticking, but all is not lost; it is possible to imagine a different strategic approach. Over the past several months the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution brought together a group of experts on Iraq, military affairs, reconstruction, and democratization to undertake a thorough review of U.S. policy on Iraq. This group, the Iraq Policy Working Group, reflected a wide range of beliefs and politics. It included military and civilian personnel who have served in various governments. Most of them have also had significant on-the-ground experience in Iraq. The group met to try to answer this question: If America can’t leave Iraq precipitately, what should we be doing differently to give ourselves the greatest prospect of success? The result is a 70,000-word report on all aspects of Iraq policy, from security to economics to politics.
January 2006
Media Matters - Top 12 media myths and falsehoods on the Bush administration's spying scandal
Media Matters presents the top 12 myths and falsehoods promoted by the media on President Bush's spying scandal stemming from the recent revelation in The New York Times that he authorized the National Security Agency (NSA) to eavesdrop on domestic communications without the required approval of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance court.
Bush Defends Spy Program and Denies Misleading Public - New York Times
President Bush continued on Sunday to defend both the legality and the necessity of the National Security Agency's domestic eavesdropping program, and he denied that he misled the public last year when he insisted that any government wiretap required a court order.
December 2005
CNN.com - Report: Bush eased domestic spy rules after 9/11 - Dec 16, 2005
President Bush authorized the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on Americans and others inside the United States -- without getting search warrants -- following the Sept. 11 attacks, The New York Times reports.
September 2005
After Failures, Government Officials Play Blame Game - New York Times
Some federal officials said uncertainty over who was in charge had contributed to delays in providing aid and imposing order, and officials in Louisiana complained that Washington disaster officials had blocked some aid efforts.
Local and state resources were so weakened, said Michael Chertoff, the homeland security secretary, that in the future federal authorities need to take "more of an upfront role earlier on, when we have these truly ultracatastrophes."
But furious state and local officials insisted that the real problem was that the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which Mr. Chertoff's department oversees, failed to deliver urgently needed help and, through incomprehensible red tape, even thwarted others' efforts to help.
"We wanted soldiers, helicopters, food and water," said Denise Bottcher, press secretary for Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco of Louisiana. "They wanted to negotiate an organizational chart."
Mayor C. Ray Nagin of New Orleans expressed similar frustrations. "We're still fighting over authority," he told reporters on Saturday. "A bunch of people are the boss. The state and federal government are doing a two-step dance."
May 2005
Berkeley Lab Computer Protection Program: Resources
by 1 otherPROCEDURES FOR SECURING SYSTEMS
Macintosh Security
* Newest Notes
* Overview of Mac Security
* Viruses, Trojans, and Worms
* PC Emulators
* Network Issues
* Security at Home
* Firewalls for the Mac
o OS X Firewall at Startup
o Firewall Resources
* OS X Issues
o How to Share More Than Public Folders
o Security Guidelines for Mac OS X Workstations
o Security Guidelines for Mac OS X Servers
o How to Make a Login Banner in OS X
o Ian Kaufman's March 22, 2005 presentation on MacOSX security
* Lab Computer Security Notice
* Mac Resources and Software Links
Berkeley Lab Computer Protection Program: Resources
(via)Security Guidelines for Mac OS X Workstations
1. Physical Security
2. Protecting against Viruses and Worms
3. Securing Accounts and Account Access
4. Protecting against Unauthorized Privilege Use
5. File System and Sharing Security
6. Securing Services
7. Deleting Unnecessary Accounts
8. Patching Your System
9. Other Mac OS X Workstation Security Tips
10. Conclusion
11. Online Resources
Securing Mac OS X
(via)1. Introduction
2. Using this Guide
3. Summary of Security Hardening
4. Security Hardening Guidelines
5. References
6. Acknowledgement
Macintosh Security Basics - MacOS (mainly v. 9.x) and Mac OS X : File Sharing and Network/Internet client security
Basic system security for MacOS (mainly v. 9.x) and Mac OS X, including:
• File Sharing (from both client and server perspectives)
• Network/Internet client security (“safe surfing”)
• Firewalls, viruses, email
• OS X basics, bonuses, and pitfalls We’ll start with MacOS 9, since OS X inherits from 9. 2
1
(13 marks)