Police “Hacking”

There’s an interesting story in The Times today about police forces in the UK and “remote searches” of a suspect’s PC.

It doesn’t need a court warrant, just for a senior officer to say he “believes” that it is “proportionate” and necessary to prevent or detect serious crime — which is defined as any offence attracting a jail sentence of more than three years. So, no chance of any abuse of the system there, then. *cough*

This development isn’t new – it’s been in place since an amendment to the Computer Misuse Act 1990 in 1994 which made hacking legal if it was authorised and carried out by the state.

However, I wonder what happens if the suspect being “remote searched” has a firewall and/or secure wireless network (or no wireless network at all) which prevents that remote search. Can they then also be charged with refusing/blocking a ‘legitimate’ search, in the same way you can if you refuse to be stop-and-searched?

Poster Placement

You just couldn’t make it up.

A poster advertising a film called “Righteous Kill”, with the tagline “There’s nothing wrong with a little shooting as long as the right people get shot.”

And where does it get placed?

Yep – the platform of Stockwell tube station, where Jean Charles de Menezes got shot.

Genius.

End Of Another Hype Phase

At long last, the American Presidential election is going on today. And thank Christ for that – because I’m certainly getting deeply bored of all the coverage of it in the UK Media.

Now yes, I know, it’s important in the context of being US President, and all the guff around the “special relationship” between the US and the UK. (Why we don’t go the whole hog and just call it “being seen as the 51^st state”, I don’t know) And I think that some of the coverage has been important to remind us all just how stupid some Americans can be – I’m thinking particularly of all the crap about “Obama must be a turr’rist, because his name sounds like Osama”, and seeing the way people think he’s Muslim (or even an Arab, forgetting the entire thing in their own country’s laws banning non-Americans from running for President – which is why (thank fuck) we’ll never see President Schwarzenegger)

But at the same time, I’m just so bored of the entire thing. I don’t honestly care whether Obama or McCain is leading the polls, or who said what at the latest debate in West Buttfuck, Idaho. Just. Don’t. Care.

So I’ll be glad when it’s all over.

Or at least, “over” as in “won’t hear about this again for another three years”…