Author: David

Not Paranoid Enough

Tech 9 Comments

The Regina Leader-Post Editorial Board echos my concerns over giving the Internet access to patient records. However the editorial focuses mainly on the threat from allowing external access.
By far, the largest threat vector is internal in origin and I’m not just talking about a disgruntled employee. Any employee who brings in their own device, checks email or surfs the web at work, plays facebook games or VPN’s in from home are all potential points of vulnerability.
This just happened.

A hospital in Los Angeles has been operating without access to email or electronic health records for more than a week, after hackers took over its computer systems and demanded millions of dollars in ransom to return it.

Based on the article it looks like the hospital was hit with a version of Cryptolocker software. That means that some employee in the hospital, or someone who has an ‘always-on’ VPN connection to the hospital and has mapped a drive to the data at the hospital became the accomplice.
No matter how hard you lock down a network or a computer the single largest point of failure is always between the keyboard and the seat.

Apple vs. the FBI

Sleeping With The Enemy 27 Comments

This is what the FBI wants from Apple.
The FBI wants Apple to create an image of the OS that allows them access to that specific device. The software image only has to bypass Apples device protection from brute-force password cracking attempts. This can be done at Apple’s facilities or the gov’t and if at the company then they must provide the government access to the device.
The devil is in the last part. It shouldn’t be too difficult to bypass the built-in brute-force protection but in order to do so Apple will give the FBI a system diff of the bypass. The FBI teams should be able to reverse engineer this to create an in-house version.
This is the top 10 countries using Apple’s products.
Now you know why Apple is balking.

The Reviews are in

Media 50 Comments

Rachel, Rachel, Rachel. Sigh.
New links since yesterday. Undoubtedly by tomorrow (or whenever you’re reading this) there will be many more editorials, cartoons and commentary, but they don’t matter, they’re not reporters
Macleans riffs the double face-palm meme.
Rick Bell thinks Alberta politics is going to get really interesting.
The Globe and Mail compares the Alberta NDP to Russia, Egypt and Iran.
Alberta Legislature Press Gallery backs The Rebel’s claim of media.
Evan Solomon. During this podcast I thought Solomon was actually +sputtering+ at times he sounded so angry.
Warren Kinsella, who was also on Sirius/XM’s Arlene Bynon Show on this topic. I listened, but couldn’t find a podcast. She, too, supported The Rebel.
All things in perspective, this is pretty much the Canadian equivalent of a revolution. In fact, the pile-on is getting so large I’m beginning to worry if the AB NDP might not end up suffering from PTSD.
Update: Please stop hating us.

“The government has appointed former Western Canadian bureau chief for Canadian Press, Heather Boyd, to consult and give us recommendations on what the government’s media policies should be. In the meantime, no one will be excluded from government media events.”

I still have issues with this ‘review’ and I am suspicious of the ‘in the meantime’, but as Sun Tzu is written, leave an outlet.
The NP article which includes content from Ezra and The Rebel’s lawyer and seems to indicate that the lawsuit may be on hold.

Do not be fooled.

Media 30 Comments

Notley appointing a retired reporter to ‘review’ the gov’ts media policy is nothing but bait and switch.

Later Tuesday, the government announced that it had appointed a retired journalist to review the government’s policy and report back within two to three weeks.
“In light of the controversy around this issue,” Oates said, “we’ve asked Heather Boyd … to consult with media and give us recommendations on a media policy for the Alberta government.”

First, by putting a two-week time frame on the report the Alberta NDP hope to outlast the news cycle. That will work and is why a court challenge is important.
Second, by putting a ‘process’ in place, the Government tries to validate and justify their power-grab from the Alberta legislature press gallery. Next time something happens, the press gallery will have to ask the government of the day for permission, or to see if it works within their review.
Banning a media source from the press gallery, and all that entails, is not within the purview of the government. There is nothing for the gov’t (or more realistically the NDP party) to review, change, or implement. The government in this case can only acquiesce to what the legislature press gallery requires and according to their president, The Rebel did exactly that.

Oh, Fuddle-Duddle

Media 52 Comments

The Rebel story is spinning way out of government control.
Alberta Press Gallery – Legislature Building
Via, CBC:

“The government’s position is that if you have testified under oath that you are not a journalist, then we don’t consider you a journalist,” she said.
Oates’s comment refers to testimony given by Levant in a libel suit in 2014. He told the court that he was a commentator and a pundit, not a reporter.

You’ll note the deliberate ignoring of the word, ‘reporter’ in Levant’s statement and instead equate it with the much more general ‘journalist’.
I have to ask if Paul McLoughlin or the Armet’s qualify under these new definitions.
And then there’s, “We didn’t allow bloggers or online news sources in,” she said. “They (The Rebel) weren’t singled out.”
Does that mean that the HuffPost, the Tyee, Vice, or iPolitics can’t play anymore in Alberta?

Carbon Capture.

Uncategorized 36 Comments

The Dippers are starting in on the Carbon Capture system at Boundary Dam Unit 3 now.
Last week, Sask Power published this post on the results of their ground breaking research and development.
I found the post to be a little on the sparse side of information, so I queried Sask Power.


After clearing up email addresses and the like I received this:

In 2015, Unit 3 would have produced approximately 1,100,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, while providing power to about 100,000 homes. About 425,000 tonnes were captured using our CCS facility, so that leaves about 675,000 tonnes emitted. In 2016, we’re targeting the capture of 800,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, meaning we should emit about 300,000 tonnes from that unit. This brings the unit into compliance with federal emission regulations, and meets the demand of our carbon dioxide buyer.

Note the last sentence, and remember this.

A Liberal government would set national targets for reducing carbon emissions but would allow provinces to design their own policies to meet them, leader Justin Trudeau said Friday.

In other words, SaskPower has created a completely home-grown solution to bring our power generation in-line with the Federal requirements. A solution that doesn’t necessitate a carbon tax, cap and trade, or shutting down power plants. It means that we’ll still be able to employ people at the coal mines, it means we won’t have to build expensive new natural gas plants to replace our coal generated capacity. It means we won’t have to plant windmills instead of wheat.
Well done, I’d say.

Red Rose Country

If Women Ran The World 51 Comments

Gov’t of Alberta censors press.
All budding totalitarians know that if you can’t control the press, you can’t control the masses.
Update: The story at The Rebel. And why not throw throw some bucks into the pot so The Rebel can set a precedent that no government in Canada can decide who is or isn’t a journalist. You’re forced to give $35 bucks a year to the CBC, why not match that for The Rebel?
Update: According to the National Post article, the Notley Crue are doubling down. It should be mentioned that Sheila Gunn Reid single-handily destroyed the Alberta NDP over Bill 6.
Update: Faith comes out of the closet.
See the video and more updates as the come below the fold.

Continue reading →

Your house isn’t worth anything.

nannystate 23 Comments

It’s easy when you’re an ‘institute’ to eliminate an entire source of equity when you’ve got a narrative to advance.

The results are startling — and explain why seniors’ poverty is set to rise unless action is taken to tackle the retirement savings crisis, including boosting the GIS and expanding CPP.

John Michael McGrath dug down.

A leash on the ‘new’ gov’t.

Sleeping With The Enemy 4 Comments

The head of the group representing lobbyists across the country says recent directives from Lobbying Commissioner Karen Shepherd regarding lobbyist-hosted receptions could negatively affect an important source of input for government officials.

This lobbyist said that the giving of gifts to government officials, for the most part, is a throwback to 1950s-style lobbying. Yet, he said buying someone a coffee or a meal, or things that are “standard business courtesy,” should not be restricted.
“If I invite you for coffee and pay for the coffee, that’s just common courtesy,” he said. “No one’s going get bought off a coffee; it’s stupid.”

It’s not supposed to make sense. It’s supposed to demonstrate that no one trusts lobbyists, “gov’t officials” or politicians.
As a side note, the headline writer should be taken out back of the wood shed for using the word, ‘czar’.

And now for something completely different.

Frankly, My Dear 39 Comments

I’m actually laughing out loud over this.
Not because of his misfortune…although some may say it’s deserved.
But because of this:

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