That’s been set aside as the court awaits the govenrment’s explanation for its actions
"Govenrment" --> "goverment".
It's a great writeup. I don't anything new to add that TD, TNR, NYT (sucks) and others haven't said for months.
Thad did suggest King Trump can't rule forever. Technically true given his health, but martial law in the US and the elimination of elections is coming. I will feel no joy in being right here, but senseless random "rationalized justification" killing of innocent people by armed thugs with qualified immunity and with the full post-facto support of their command... along with high seas piracy, foreign invasion and kidnapping.
Where does it end? Oh wait, that's rhetorical. I already suggested martial law. Don't forget to convice as a "seditionist" anyone who speaks about "unlawful orders."
And yet Republicrap congresscritters toe the line, fear "being primaried" and allow this.
We used to ask for half a decade "How COULD Hitler have been elected and done what he did?" The answer is before us in 2026.
Hi, I live in Arizona, and TDS is worse than you write. My opinion follows. Also it's no longer January 5th so maybe redo the "support us by Jan 5th" message... especially since §230 will be history shortly...
Arizona is a US state with varying degrees of support for any one person, like the current one.
Southern Arizona disassociates itself from northern Arizona, and the unofficial secession non-movement is called "Baja, Arizona." Google is your friend there.
Superior, Prescott, the 10+ Phoenix suburbs who pretend to be entities (Mesa, Goodyear, Chandler, Scottsdale, I'm already tired typing...) are strongholds of the Rebuplicrap party.
Jump to the northwest Arizona and you get Measles-Center or MAGA-Center or Pedophile-center. Kingman, Havasu, and the borders of Nevada or Utah suggest it's a different country.
Best 2026 wishes to all.
E
Mexico, as not a part of the United States pays no taxes to Texas... so they can't be last.
Texas is not in last place for contributing US states (or territories or minor islands). They appear to be 17th of 19 that contribute more to the Feds than they get.
https://usafacts.org/articles/which-states-contribute-the-most-and-least-to-federal-revenue/
This is all mostly irrelevant to the topic here, because the discussion is about their unconstitutional laws, backing from the 5th circuit, and like their King they will push this as far up the chain as they can afford to -- their money isn't earned -- while private groups use donor funds to attempt to make a difference.
There's also the chilling effect of trying to challenge this law, knowing it may bankrupt your organization, and worse create a precedent later to be used by similar states or the Feds.
@MrWilson > using AI for anything official relating to charges or trials should lead to an automatic dismissal of charges
A government that uses its Depart of Justice to go after its "enemies", commits warm crimes, doesn't apply the law fairly equitably, and reguarly lies and refuses to provide transparency (how about that Epstein list) isn't to be expect to know what or when a dismissal should occur, let alone an automatic one, let alone for violating protocol or standards or even having any.
@Tim > Garbage in, garbage out.
That it is garbage isn't in question but that the LEO uses it as if it's mana from Heaven with no Earthly taste as good... is a current administration thing, lacks oversight, accountability, and transparency.
We don't expect "white-out" to fix our thinking, just remove typos. First-gen spellcheck did the same but it was so much better than white-out. Second-gen was grammar highlight which surely could detected insure vs ensure and affect vs effect but didn't. Third-gen is ChatpGPT.
It's not an intelligence, and pretending it is and using that word and creating two new alternate levels (AGI and SGI) pretends that where we are today we HAVE an intellilgence.
We do not. We have a third-gen spell and grammar checker 100% based on crap already published by others. It's like putting a line cook next to a Cordeon Blue and saying "turn out food like he does."
Everyone who insists on using the term AI because "it's too hard to call it an LLM or explain the difference" contributes to the overall stupidity of the users who expect an actual intelligence.
That includes lawyers, judges, websites, magazines, and police reports.
The problem has become so ingrained the assumption now is a begged question and thusly accepted and ignored.
The show you want to watch is Person of Interest. Res ipsa loquitur.
Also the person that went into Sam's apartment to find the cellphone - was he charged with trespass or is The Machine protecting him.
I hear sound and fury.
“The Net interprets censorship as damage and routes around it.” -John Gilmore
Give credit when you use someone else's work and words.
When they are effective at anything technical, wake me up. Cryptocurrency laundromats are a much higher priority and cost billion$ in damages than little Suzy's pink pony fetish.
Bought one. Have to activate by end of month. Can't recharge existing membership. Initial refusal of refund took five messages and back charge offer to get them to see reason.
They day it's for new members only. Read the description and see of you can find it.
But that will kick off yet another constitutional crisis...
We've all heard the myth of the boiling toad. It's not true, but it does serve a purpose.
YOU Techdirt writers and WE Techdirt readers have talked constitutional crisis since 2017.
AND YET it's always "coming soon." This goon has destroyed the federal government, our trade with the rest of the world, deported citizens to LDCs, claimed rights to own Greenland and Canada, has promoted IDIOTS to SECDEF, ODNI, AG, AUSAs, etc.
He has ignored court orders. His thugs are rapelling from UH60s to arrest US CITIZENS theoretically safe under the castle doctrine.
And yet...
You tell me a constitutional crisis is coming.
What WILL it take? Please elucidate a bright line so when it's crossed we don't just use our tennis shoes to wipe it out, step back 10 feet, and draw a new line in the sand.
Pussies. And bullies. Pick one.
Quantum and post-quantum have no meaning except as steps in a long staircase. It's like "nextgen" something. All good until it's obsolete.
One-way functions are not one-way functions. They seem to be that way because that's how Ron, Adi, and Len (sorry, Ken, off by one letter) developed modern day public key cryptography.
There is no mathematical proof that there exists a true one-way algorithm. Argue all you want, post PDF links all you want, but that's the reality of it. This means potentially one day some number of one-way algs will be reversed.
And on that day all previously hertofore thought unbreakable encryption will be nothing more than an obsolete formula. Your CVV2 will mean nothing, much as CVV (now called CVV1) means nothing, much as entering it at a POS terminal means nothing so now we just let NFC handle it.
And on that day HTTPS and SMTPS and SSL and LUKS and FDE and everything that relies on this "assumption" of one-way encoding not allowing decoding will fail.
There's an old joke about how Sicillians keep a secret. There's true encryption for you.
Also feel free to suggest anyone who disagrees with your some PDFs is an idiot. Many idiots have displaced many academicians. This too will happen.
Encryption is dead. We just don't know it yet.
Quick background: the $8 billion FCC Universal Service Fund (USF) applies a small surcharge on traditional phone lines
It's not $8B because the right wingnuts killed RHC and LifeLine. See USAC's report p.6 of:
https://www.usac.org/wp-content/uploads/about/documents/annual-reports/2024/2024_USAC_Annual_Report.pdf
It's not a "small surcharge" and it's not about whatever you think "traditional" phone lines are. You mean 1FBs? POTS? Whatever. USAC FUSF sucharges apply to CATV connections, T1s, T2s, T3s, E1s, etc. So long as it's used for interstate (and yes, a local loop used to service an interstate service counts) it gets the surcharge.
But hey:
It’s unfortunate because the USF really does need good faith reform.
Yes, the entire US Federal government's taxation and fee system DOES need reform. There's no good faith to be had from all the crooks scheming to get "their share" of the money.
But you did get it right about the fake organization and the 5th ckt. You malign the 6th ckt, but that's par for karl.
There youztabee these thin onion-skin papers that went on the choo-choo and delivered information. These "newsies" were good. By that I mean that people didn't say they radicalized anyone.
Then telegraph came around. Those same choo-choo tracks could send immediate messages. Some thought this was good... and some thought this might upend the newsies.
Then came radio. It was even better than telegraph. It had the potential for changing people's minds. It was evil.
Movies.
Television.
Video games.
Blame EVERYTHING and EVERYONE. The real problem is keeping the sheep down lest they learn to stop bleating and start revolting.
It's 2025. Video games have been around for over 50 years with no science showing a negative social effect. Same for television (80 years) or radio (100 years).
Negative effects arise from politicians. When they don't get their way they whine, bitch, mollycoddle, and engage in hystrionics (I say that in the medical way, not the mansplaining way).
What society needs is honest straight-forward people leading the way.
Holler when that's coming. Youztabee it was 'right 'round the 'orner.
All irrelevant shit. Blackhats WILL get your data if you're required to provide it. THAT is the point of the discussion. Read the damn article.
Specifically:
Couldn’t they just verify the government ID once, then take the key fields (name, birthday, address, license number, expiry date) then make a salted hash of the ID document?
Who is the "they" you trust with the original data? What is this "government ID" you think of?
What "license number" and since you couldn't be bothered to read my post above, I'll say "Why should my identification document ever expire or need to be renewed"???
Salted hash? Thanks 1975. Didn't realize you were calling. Encryption schemes are far beyond that now. FIPS 203 and 204 aren't quite as stupid as "hash with salt."
YOU ENTIRELY MISSED THE POINT. When you give away data it WILL get stolen. The key is not "how to encrypt it" for today, quantum, post-quantum, whatever quantum-next-gen is... but how NOT GO GIVE IT AWAY to ANYONE who will INVARIABLY lose it to the blackhats.
DO NOT TRUST because those you trust today are not those who will hack your data tomorrow.
Next up - submit (there's that word again) your government ID (what's that) to random elements to GET WHAT EXACTLY? The rights you already have.
Stand up for yourself, girl.
When you REQUIRE people to PROVIDE information that is not materially public, only two things will happen. One - nothing. Two - that information will go to people who shouldn't have it, because 100% security only exists when you kill everyone who knows it. (Sicillian joke ref.)
So asking for "government-issued photo ID" already requires much more info than is necessary. Why must it be a "photo" ID? One more whine then the answer. And I cut out the "valid" part because all these websites AND TSA AND the airports won't accept "expired" documents. So while I do have a driver's license and it DID verify my permission to drive on public highways in my ONE STATE of the union, it no longer is usable to board an aircraft.
The real answer is that the government ought to offer a verification service, much as they do for EIN/SSNs. Then NOBODY needs to PROVIDE anything to anyone that can be hacked.
Verification, authentication, authorization, security, these are not new concepts.
Ignoring all of the concepts and having people "submit" (key word there) a copy of something that can be hacked... that's the problem.
E
Excuses for violating societal norms inevitably point to preventing harm to the children. But of course they don't. Children are not the oftentime victims politicians the media claim them to be.
And when it's not about the children, it's about the terrorists. They are not the "baddies" that politicians and the media claim them to be.
ALWAYS BLAME THE TERRORISTS (you know, like drug runners on a speedboat in international waters in Central America) or ALWAYS PROTECT THE INNOCENT LOVELY CHILDREN (who aren't at all affected by most of this stuff).
And if none of that works, Article II.
I use online generated SSNs, driver's license IDs, medical RXs, etc. Yeah, it's against the law. But my real data stays safe.
Coding is the use of computer languages, but learning to code is no more useful than learning to use a hammer, screwdriver, and drill and thinking one is "now a carpenter."
Learning to program is a step higher. Understanding the fundamentals of computer science, then programming, then picking an appropriate language, then coding in it is more appropriate.
I won't harp on Javascript because if the best you can muster is a tricycle, the Tour De France is out of your reach. However, here's an example:
GIVEN: you have a device that is either ON or OFF, and it is remotely controlled. There is a variable X which is either a 0 (device turns off) or 1 (device turns on).
Here it is in what a simple Javascript "coder" would do:
let X = 0;
if (X === 0) {
X = 1;
} else {
X = 0;
}
And here's how a real programmer would write it:
X = 1 -X;
Teaching "coding" is like abandoning a small child at a big box building store and telling them "You have all the tools. Make stuff."
E
As an amateur radio operator for 40 years I assure you there's no way that those antennas in close proximity can be effective. Those are commodity WiFi MIMO routers with "extra antennas" added in via photo editing. I'd love to blame Chinese "engineering" but this is US government photoshop/gimp.
The 35 mile thing is a wild guess as they made that number up and haven't explained the method or the data.
Servers don't consume resources by "making calls." They tie up the common (SMS CCS) which is server heavy and client light. Unlike RCS there's no ack required, expected, nor given, so other than DDoS there's no incentive for the victims [UN delegates, no really, seriously] to keep their receivers on.
Occam's razor. Hanlon's razor. US Government lying. They all fit. The published PR (including "Mccool video") is a pile of rotting bullshit.
I unsub'd from this thread earlier today but it seems TD/WP doesn't even honor that anymore. My 0321MST post didn't show up until after 0845MST. The [paid] Crystal Ball has been 404s for 6 months.
I'm outta here. Those who care about facts - sorry I can't share more. Those who wish to suck the government story dick - enjoy.
On the other hand, let’s give credit where credit is due: taking down what seems to be a fairly large scam calling/text/anonymization service ring is a good thing. Too bad they tried to overplay their achievement.
What "fairly large scam" is related in the YT video or the other press releases? I don't see or read one. All I see is that the USSS (whose job is not to locate Stingrays) claim a 4000 square mile area housed 300+ servers and 100,000+ SIMs.
Crime? None listed. Scam? None listed. Perpetrators/suspects/persons of interest [not a real thing]/indictees? None listed.
Do please humor me and every other person made stupider by watching or reading these pressers and elucidate as to what this "fairly large scam" is or was, and who orchestrated/perpetrated it, and to what ends.
The Trump2.0 government has its artwork department working overtime to make up crap to spew on the airwaves. Please show how this is different.
Since it's technical, I'll weigh in.
None of this is real.
The USSS SAIC "Mccool" putting out a YT video is hilarious. Less than 3 minutes and less than 3 facts.
The "servers" are consumer level looking WiFi routers and depending on the picture are either on a wood floor in an apartment, a food-storage rack with foot-high shelves, but certainly not real "servers" in any real high-density configuration. There also don't appear to be 300+ of them.
SIM cards [sic] aren't used by anyone other than consumers. Black hats use eSIMs because the codes can be swapped instantly, not by having grubby hands chuck out an old SIM, put in a new SIM, and waiting for hardware detection. Even generously assuming 5 seconds a SIM, 100,000 such swaps would take 140 hours. Absurd to even consider.
35 miles is beyond cell tower range even on flat land, let alone a city environs. It's absurd to suggest that 4,000 square miles of area was searched by the USSS or that it takes that kind of area to initiate an attack.
Conceivably a limited DDoS attack is possible, but cell network authentication would immediately fail to pass messages from the 100K SIMs.
end tech stuff -
There are many other technical issues, but this is a non-started. It's not something "Russia, Israel, or China" would do and the Mafia is not into DDoS. Nobody was arrested in this op that HAPPENED OVER A MONTH AGO and the USSS (which is involved why?) has no suspects, no arrests, and no clue. That last part seems to be part of their Trump MO - no clue - no methods - and everyone who knew how to do things has been retired.
Ask yourself - when has the USSS put out a YT video "detailing" an investigation where they accomplished NOTHING until this? Who thinks cellphones work 35 miles away or that "the cellular telephone network" (like there's only one) can't survive false auth attempts?
This is more BS from the same people who wrote "Anti-ICE" in crayon on some ammo, and video game memes to pretend a WWI 30.06 can make an incision entry would and no exit would on a neck from 200 yards.
I'm a tech guy so the tech stuff above is what I would be confident swearing to under oath as an expert witness. The rest is my personal thoughts on how investigations of large (4000sq miles, 100,000 SIMs, and zero suspects, and YT video plus select pictures of clearly NOT a server farm) should go.
Draw your own conclusions. This is too stupid to be real, and yet "they" expect everyone to lap it up -- hence the PR tour on YT and social media.
Where's the court filing for this AUGUST "investigation"?
Too busy photoshopping more memes on the servers maybe?
E
Typo
Arizona Legislators
Hi, I live in Arizona, and TDS is worse than you write. My opinion follows. Also it's no longer January 5th so maybe redo the "support us by Jan 5th" message... especially since §230 will be history shortly... Arizona is a US state with varying degrees of support for any one person, like the current one. Southern Arizona disassociates itself from northern Arizona, and the unofficial secession non-movement is called "Baja, Arizona." Google is your friend there. Superior, Prescott, the 10+ Phoenix suburbs who pretend to be entities (Mesa, Goodyear, Chandler, Scottsdale, I'm already tired typing...) are strongholds of the Rebuplicrap party. Jump to the northwest Arizona and you get Measles-Center or MAGA-Center or Pedophile-center. Kingman, Havasu, and the borders of Nevada or Utah suggest it's a different country. Best 2026 wishes to all. E
Filings
Deep link on RECAP (free): https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/70139392/zaid-v-executive-office-of-the-president/
Who ranks where
Mexico, as not a part of the United States pays no taxes to Texas... so they can't be last. Texas is not in last place for contributing US states (or territories or minor islands). They appear to be 17th of 19 that contribute more to the Feds than they get. https://usafacts.org/articles/which-states-contribute-the-most-and-least-to-federal-revenue/ This is all mostly irrelevant to the topic here, because the discussion is about their unconstitutional laws, backing from the 5th circuit, and like their King they will push this as far up the chain as they can afford to -- their money isn't earned -- while private groups use donor funds to attempt to make a difference. There's also the chilling effect of trying to challenge this law, knowing it may bankrupt your organization, and worse create a precedent later to be used by similar states or the Feds.
Oh that ol Ron Johnson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkwiQmGWK4c
@MrWilson > using AI for anything official relating to charges or trials should lead to an automatic dismissal of charges A government that uses its Depart of Justice to go after its "enemies", commits warm crimes, doesn't apply the law fairly equitably, and reguarly lies and refuses to provide transparency (how about that Epstein list) isn't to be expect to know what or when a dismissal should occur, let alone an automatic one, let alone for violating protocol or standards or even having any. @Tim > Garbage in, garbage out. That it is garbage isn't in question but that the LEO uses it as if it's mana from Heaven with no Earthly taste as good... is a current administration thing, lacks oversight, accountability, and transparency. We don't expect "white-out" to fix our thinking, just remove typos. First-gen spellcheck did the same but it was so much better than white-out. Second-gen was grammar highlight which surely could detected insure vs ensure and affect vs effect but didn't. Third-gen is ChatpGPT. It's not an intelligence, and pretending it is and using that word and creating two new alternate levels (AGI and SGI) pretends that where we are today we HAVE an intellilgence. We do not. We have a third-gen spell and grammar checker 100% based on crap already published by others. It's like putting a line cook next to a Cordeon Blue and saying "turn out food like he does." Everyone who insists on using the term AI because "it's too hard to call it an LLM or explain the difference" contributes to the overall stupidity of the users who expect an actual intelligence. That includes lawyers, judges, websites, magazines, and police reports. The problem has become so ingrained the assumption now is a begged question and thusly accepted and ignored.
Person of interest
The show you want to watch is Person of Interest. Res ipsa loquitur. Also the person that went into Sam's apartment to find the cellphone - was he charged with trespass or is The Machine protecting him. I hear sound and fury.
seppuku vs hari-kiri
HBO not being a samurai cannot commit seppuku. The proper term in this case is hari-kiri, a death without honor, which is appropriate for HBO.
For new customers only
Bought one. Have to activate by end of month. Can't recharge existing membership. Initial refusal of refund took five messages and back charge offer to get them to see reason. They day it's for new members only. Read the description and see of you can find it.
Constitutional crisis
One way TODAY is not one way FOREVER.
Quantum and post-quantum have no meaning except as steps in a long staircase. It's like "nextgen" something. All good until it's obsolete. One-way functions are not one-way functions. They seem to be that way because that's how Ron, Adi, and Len (sorry, Ken, off by one letter) developed modern day public key cryptography. There is no mathematical proof that there exists a true one-way algorithm. Argue all you want, post PDF links all you want, but that's the reality of it. This means potentially one day some number of one-way algs will be reversed. And on that day all previously hertofore thought unbreakable encryption will be nothing more than an obsolete formula. Your CVV2 will mean nothing, much as CVV (now called CVV1) means nothing, much as entering it at a POS terminal means nothing so now we just let NFC handle it. And on that day HTTPS and SMTPS and SSL and LUKS and FDE and everything that relies on this "assumption" of one-way encoding not allowing decoding will fail. There's an old joke about how Sicillians keep a secret. There's true encryption for you. Also feel free to suggest anyone who disagrees with your some PDFs is an idiot. Many idiots have displaced many academicians. This too will happen. Encryption is dead. We just don't know it yet.
USF fees
Youztabee
There youztabee these thin onion-skin papers that went on the choo-choo and delivered information. These "newsies" were good. By that I mean that people didn't say they radicalized anyone. Then telegraph came around. Those same choo-choo tracks could send immediate messages. Some thought this was good... and some thought this might upend the newsies. Then came radio. It was even better than telegraph. It had the potential for changing people's minds. It was evil. Movies. Television. Video games. Blame EVERYTHING and EVERYONE. The real problem is keeping the sheep down lest they learn to stop bleating and start revolting. It's 2025. Video games have been around for over 50 years with no science showing a negative social effect. Same for television (80 years) or radio (100 years). Negative effects arise from politicians. When they don't get their way they whine, bitch, mollycoddle, and engage in hystrionics (I say that in the medical way, not the mansplaining way). What society needs is honest straight-forward people leading the way. Holler when that's coming. Youztabee it was 'right 'round the 'orner.
"They"
All irrelevant shit. Blackhats WILL get your data if you're required to provide it. THAT is the point of the discussion. Read the damn article. Specifically:
Who is the "they" you trust with the original data? What is this "government ID" you think of? What "license number" and since you couldn't be bothered to read my post above, I'll say "Why should my identification document ever expire or need to be renewed"??? Salted hash? Thanks 1975. Didn't realize you were calling. Encryption schemes are far beyond that now. FIPS 203 and 204 aren't quite as stupid as "hash with salt." YOU ENTIRELY MISSED THE POINT. When you give away data it WILL get stolen. The key is not "how to encrypt it" for today, quantum, post-quantum, whatever quantum-next-gen is... but how NOT GO GIVE IT AWAY to ANYONE who will INVARIABLY lose it to the blackhats. DO NOT TRUST because those you trust today are not those who will hack your data tomorrow. Next up - submit (there's that word again) your government ID (what's that) to random elements to GET WHAT EXACTLY? The rights you already have. Stand up for yourself, girl.The "children"
When you REQUIRE people to PROVIDE information that is not materially public, only two things will happen. One - nothing. Two - that information will go to people who shouldn't have it, because 100% security only exists when you kill everyone who knows it. (Sicillian joke ref.) So asking for "government-issued photo ID" already requires much more info than is necessary. Why must it be a "photo" ID? One more whine then the answer. And I cut out the "valid" part because all these websites AND TSA AND the airports won't accept "expired" documents. So while I do have a driver's license and it DID verify my permission to drive on public highways in my ONE STATE of the union, it no longer is usable to board an aircraft. The real answer is that the government ought to offer a verification service, much as they do for EIN/SSNs. Then NOBODY needs to PROVIDE anything to anyone that can be hacked. Verification, authentication, authorization, security, these are not new concepts. Ignoring all of the concepts and having people "submit" (key word there) a copy of something that can be hacked... that's the problem. E Excuses for violating societal norms inevitably point to preventing harm to the children. But of course they don't. Children are not the oftentime victims politicians the media claim them to be. And when it's not about the children, it's about the terrorists. They are not the "baddies" that politicians and the media claim them to be. ALWAYS BLAME THE TERRORISTS (you know, like drug runners on a speedboat in international waters in Central America) or ALWAYS PROTECT THE INNOCENT LOVELY CHILDREN (who aren't at all affected by most of this stuff). And if none of that works, Article II. I use online generated SSNs, driver's license IDs, medical RXs, etc. Yeah, it's against the law. But my real data stays safe.
Learning to code is a scam
Coding is the use of computer languages, but learning to code is no more useful than learning to use a hammer, screwdriver, and drill and thinking one is "now a carpenter." Learning to program is a step higher. Understanding the fundamentals of computer science, then programming, then picking an appropriate language, then coding in it is more appropriate. I won't harp on Javascript because if the best you can muster is a tricycle, the Tour De France is out of your reach. However, here's an example: GIVEN: you have a device that is either ON or OFF, and it is remotely controlled. There is a variable X which is either a 0 (device turns off) or 1 (device turns on). Here it is in what a simple Javascript "coder" would do:
And here's how a real programmer would write it: X = 1 -X; Teaching "coding" is like abandoning a small child at a big box building store and telling them "You have all the tools. Make stuff." EAs an amateur radio operator for 40 years I assure you there's no way that those antennas in close proximity can be effective. Those are commodity WiFi MIMO routers with "extra antennas" added in via photo editing. I'd love to blame Chinese "engineering" but this is US government photoshop/gimp. The 35 mile thing is a wild guess as they made that number up and haven't explained the method or the data. Servers don't consume resources by "making calls." They tie up the common (SMS CCS) which is server heavy and client light. Unlike RCS there's no ack required, expected, nor given, so other than DDoS there's no incentive for the victims [UN delegates, no really, seriously] to keep their receivers on. Occam's razor. Hanlon's razor. US Government lying. They all fit. The published PR (including "Mccool video") is a pile of rotting bullshit. I unsub'd from this thread earlier today but it seems TD/WP doesn't even honor that anymore. My 0321MST post didn't show up until after 0845MST. The [paid] Crystal Ball has been 404s for 6 months. I'm outta here. Those who care about facts - sorry I can't share more. Those who wish to suck the government story dick - enjoy.
Scam? What scam?
Occam and Hanlon are still bushy-faced
Since it's technical, I'll weigh in. None of this is real. The USSS SAIC "Mccool" putting out a YT video is hilarious. Less than 3 minutes and less than 3 facts. The "servers" are consumer level looking WiFi routers and depending on the picture are either on a wood floor in an apartment, a food-storage rack with foot-high shelves, but certainly not real "servers" in any real high-density configuration. There also don't appear to be 300+ of them. SIM cards [sic] aren't used by anyone other than consumers. Black hats use eSIMs because the codes can be swapped instantly, not by having grubby hands chuck out an old SIM, put in a new SIM, and waiting for hardware detection. Even generously assuming 5 seconds a SIM, 100,000 such swaps would take 140 hours. Absurd to even consider. 35 miles is beyond cell tower range even on flat land, let alone a city environs. It's absurd to suggest that 4,000 square miles of area was searched by the USSS or that it takes that kind of area to initiate an attack. Conceivably a limited DDoS attack is possible, but cell network authentication would immediately fail to pass messages from the 100K SIMs.
- end tech stuff -
There are many other technical issues, but this is a non-started. It's not something "Russia, Israel, or China" would do and the Mafia is not into DDoS. Nobody was arrested in this op that HAPPENED OVER A MONTH AGO and the USSS (which is involved why?) has no suspects, no arrests, and no clue. That last part seems to be part of their Trump MO - no clue - no methods - and everyone who knew how to do things has been retired. Ask yourself - when has the USSS put out a YT video "detailing" an investigation where they accomplished NOTHING until this? Who thinks cellphones work 35 miles away or that "the cellular telephone network" (like there's only one) can't survive false auth attempts? This is more BS from the same people who wrote "Anti-ICE" in crayon on some ammo, and video game memes to pretend a WWI 30.06 can make an incision entry would and no exit would on a neck from 200 yards. I'm a tech guy so the tech stuff above is what I would be confident swearing to under oath as an expert witness. The rest is my personal thoughts on how investigations of large (4000sq miles, 100,000 SIMs, and zero suspects, and YT video plus select pictures of clearly NOT a server farm) should go. Draw your own conclusions. This is too stupid to be real, and yet "they" expect everyone to lap it up -- hence the PR tour on YT and social media. Where's the court filing for this AUGUST "investigation"? Too busy photoshopping more memes on the servers maybe? E