gHacks technology news » eff http://www.ghacks.net A technology blog covering software, mobile phones, gadgets, security, the Internet and other relevant areas. Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:14:29 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 en hourly 1 Proxy Server Usage To Extend Jailtime In The US http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/15/proxy-server-usage-to-extend-jailtime-in-the-us/ http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/15/proxy-server-usage-to-extend-jailtime-in-the-us/#comments Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:10:44 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/15/proxy-server-usage-to-extend-jailtime-in-the-us/ torA proxy server can be used for a number of things. People can use it to overcome censorship in their country, to access contents they could otherwise not access or to remain anonymous while performing research on the Internet. Proxy servers to provide a level of anonymity and privacy that makes them a good choice in many situations. A new federal law in the United States is up for voting at the united States Sentencing Commission that can increase the jail time by up to 25% if a proxy server has been used.

Privacy advocates have already expressed great concern as proxy servers are not only in use by individuals who want to protect their privacy but also by companies and even Internet Service Providers, sometimes without the knowledge of the end user. VPN (Virtual Private Network) would for example be classified as proxy servers under the new legislation. As is the popular Tor client that has been created specifically to counter censorship in the world. Several web browsers like Opera Mini or Opera 10 are also making use of proxy servers to compress data to decrease the time it takes to load websites.

The United States Sentencing Commission will vote on the new legislation on April 15. It is set to take effect on November 1 if is is passing the voting process. You can read up on the EFFs stance here

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]]> http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/15/proxy-server-usage-to-extend-jailtime-in-the-us/feed/ 8 Color Laser Printers and Tracking Dots http://www.ghacks.net/2008/06/14/color-laser-printers-and-tracking-dots/ http://www.ghacks.net/2008/06/14/color-laser-printers-and-tracking-dots/#comments Sat, 14 Jun 2008 20:49:00 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/?p=4988 Did you know that a lot of newer color laser printers create yellow tracking dots on their output which can be used to identify the printer and probably even the person that printed the document ? It’s not a fictional scenario and the EFF, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, started creating a list of color laser printers that do and do no create the tracking dots.

It’s interesting that they state that the cannot be sure that the printers that did not create the tracking dots are not using another way to add a tracking code to the printed documents. The printer manufacturers apparently gave in to the demands of the US Government in a “purported effort to identify counterfeiters”.

Currently there is not enough information to validate a tracking dot with a 100% certainty unless the manufacturer himself stated that the printer would indeed make use of it. The EFF has been using three sources of information to compile the list:


We looked at printer output under a blue light and/or a computer microscope; we consulted press reports about printers (e.g. at Druckerchannel); we relied on printer manuals and other manufacturer statements.

The two companies that have a completely green – meaning no yellow dots to be seen – listing are Okidata and Samsung. As the EFF states this does not necessarily mean that they do not use another method to add the information to the printouts but as of know nothing of this kind could be spotted.

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