More PDF Blackout Follies

georgewilliamherbert writes "The latest installment of "As the PDF Blackouts Turn" hit today, with a U.S. government apparently releasing a redacted version of their court filing in the Balco grand jury leak case which merely stuck a black line over the text, which remains available in the document. As with prior documents, entering text cut/paste mode in a normal PDF browser such as Acrobat allows a reader to access the concealed text. Previous incidents include an AT&T filing in the NSA case." This works with Xpdf and KPDF, too; for KPDF, use the selection tool (under the Tools menu) around the redacted section, copy to clipboard, then paste into the text-manipulator of your choice.

Maybe

[GmAz]

Perhaps the people making these "blacked out documents" should be taught a little about Vector Graphics and that a black box is not the same as a sharpie. One word for them 'n00b'!!

This is why...

[dubmun]

we should all just write everything down in pencil. Boo to technology.

Or... they could just find a better technological solution. Seems like a no brainer to me.

History repeats itself

[alshithead]

Perhaps after another dozen or so incidents they'll decide a little training is appropriate for the folks who are doing the redacting.

which?

[Anonymous Coward]

with a U.S. government apparently releasing a redacted version of their court filing

Which U.S. government?

Even more shocking

[$RANDOMLUSER]

What's this in TFA about Barry Bonds and steroids? I had no idea.

Re:Redacting right is HARD

[fistfullast33l]

From the document:

This page intentionally left blank.

I was going to say, those guys are goooood.

Re:Redacting right is HARD

[Rob T Firefly]

Turning leaked information back into a secret, that's the HARD bit.

blonde joke

[k4_pacific]

Q: How can you tell when a blonde NSA agent has been redacting PDFs?

A: There is magic marker ink all over the screen!

Pretension

[GonzoTech]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/ a/2006/06/21/MNGUAJI4B85.DTL&o=0 [sfgate.com] The two reporters "are the only individuals, other than the leaker himself, who would have personal knowledge of the leaker's identity," Hershman and Raphael said.

Is it just me or do they look a little pretensious?

Re:which?

[TwilightSentry]

The RIAA

Adobe can come out of this smelling like a rose!

[Laura_DilDio]

Add a "redact" tool to the existing toolbar!

Hush! Hush!

[Anonymous Coward]

Why are we publicizing this flaw? We have a US Government in power that increasingly wants to peer into the lives of innocent citizens, while becoming less transparent itself in order to cover up deceit, fraud, abuse, and just plain bumbling incompetence. If these Keystone Kops want to believe that they are criminal masterminds, let them, but don't help them actually cover stuff up!

Re:which?

[Anonymous Coward]

That would be "grammar" Nazis.

What's with all the illiterate retards lately? Kill yourself.

We have to act!

[Waffle Iron]

Clearly, these information leaks are a major security threat that is aided and abetted by these renegade PDF viewers. I'm encouraging my representatives in Congress to introduce a "Digital Millennium Redaction Act" that will prohibit the manufacture, sale, discussion or hyperlinks to any PDF viewers which enable the illicit extraction of redacted data from PDF documents. Such viewers are little more than the preferred tools for information thieves, hiding in the guise of "productivity applications". It's despicable.

This law would instruct the FCC to create a program to certify approved PDF viewers; such viewers must make it impossible for users to steal the redacted data in a file, along with technical measures to prevent tampering with the viewers by hackers. Certified viewers will be made available to the public by software companies on a list of government-approved PDF vendors. After it becomes illegal to own a non-certified pirate PDF viewer, these dangerous information leaks will thankfully become a thing of the past.

Re:Redacting right is HARD

[More Trouble]

Looks like you're redacting that document. NSA Office Kitty can help! First, tell us what you're trying to hide:

• gov'ment impropriety
• financial cheating
• illicit sex
• other

Re:Maybe

[Mirlas]

Maybe we need to go back to good-old fashioned text files.
It was good enough back in the days of wood-burning computers;
it should be good enough now.

Re:Someone missed the memo

[Neil Watson]

The animated moggie Word assitant really adds a professional touch ;)

Re:This frightens me!!!!!

[dinsdale3]

I just don't want the "bad guys" (terrorists, etc.) knowing my name is attached to anything that resulted in their cohorts arrested or killed on the battlefield

Its a good thing you haven't told anyone, then.

Re:A redacted document? Say it ain't so!

[giafly]

If redacting is the "the careful editing of a document", obviously this wasn't a redacted PDF.

Re:Maybe

[HumanisticJones]

Indeed it does seem I have allowed my mind to wander while writing a post. Anyone want to try out my new book, "Not Hitting Preview First: Making an Ass of Yourself in a Public Forum"?

Re:History repeats itself

[Eadwacer]

Sometimes history doesn't repeat itself. Sometimes it picks up a big club and says "Weren't you listening the first time?" - Terry Pratchett.

Re:Maybe

[morgan_greywolf]

Maybe we need to go back to good-old fashioned text files.
It was good enough back in the days of wood-burning computers;
it should be good enough now.

Definitely! Then we can redact things with fancy ANSI terminal codes ^[[30;40mlike this super secret hidden message[[m!

w00t! No one will EVER figure how to defeat that!

Re:History repeats itself

[geobeck]

Perhaps after another dozen or so incidents they'll decide a little training is appropriate for the folks who are doing the redacting.

No, more than likely they will just pass a new law, stating that "Copying and pasting of blacked out (redacted) lines is a felony" or somesuch...

Train them to use the blackout method, but to replace the redacted text with "If you can read this, you're under arrest!"

Re:Maybe

[kin_korn_karn]

I rot13 mine twice for extra security.

Re:This proves it:

[ThePelt]

)

that is all

Re:This is why...

[Analog Squirrel]

<oblig>

Are you saying "boo" or "Boo urns"?

</oblig>

Re:This is why...

[Anonymous Coward]

i don't think we should write anything down. instead, we should retain the important information by creating hymns & poems that we teach the younger ones while dancing around a fire and praying for a good harvest.

ds

Re:Maybe

[OldManAndTheC++]

It was good enough back in the days of wood-burning computers

Oh man, that brings back some memories! Late nights cranking out code on my Bunyan 2500 - that puppy went through three cords of oak a week, and it kept the place warm to boot. And we didn't need any of that fancy book learnin' to make it work either; if you were a good hand at whittling, you could be a programmer. Never had a lick of trouble with the Bunyan, except for the occasional splinter. Oh sure, you had to keep some kindling around to get her started, but once she got goin' she could do anything - add, multiply, and of course, branch.

Internet? Pfft. We modulated the smoke exhaust by opening and closing the flue - you could see it for miles, unless it was raining, or windy. Hell, we had peer to peer networks back before most of you guys were even a swimmer in your dad's testicals.

There's still a few Bunyans around, if you know where to look. Auditors like them, since they're so good at logging, and keeping a paper trail. I think the Vatican still has one, though they only fire it up when they elect a new Pope. Ah, the good old days...

Re:Maybe

[IAmTheDave]

Reminds me of one of my favorite Onion articles: CIA Realizes It's Been Using Black Highlighters All These Years [theonion.com]

Re:Maybe

[statusbar]

No. no, all you need to do is to sell them 'magic-cyber markers' for $1000.00 that they can apply directly to their screen!

--jeffk++

(... a fool and his money are best parted... )

Proper way to conceal information...

[InvisibleSoul]

Those ignoramuses!

The proper way to conceal the information is to apply white out on the monitor!

Re:Maybe

[recursiv]

I can't remember the last time I saw rot13 mentioned without without someone cleverly pointing out their habit of double or triple rot13. That would be a novel thing.

Re:Maybe

[scribblej]

I had one of them wooden computers once. Wooden keyboard, wooden monitor, wooden CPU... only one problem: it wooden work. :(

Re:Maybe

[Uncle Kadigan]

Yours could multiply? Ours could only add. In order to multiply, we needed to build a log table.

"The Simpsons" did it!

[LanceUppercut]

This reminds me of the Homer Simpson's "Mister X" Web site :)

Re:Maybe

[Anonymous Coward]

Perhaps the people making these "blacked out documents" should be taught a little about Vector Graphics and that a black box is not the same as a sharpie. One word for them 'n00b'!!

Yeah! Good point.
<hidden>Not like that n00b 'GmAz' knows anything about vector graphics...</hidden>