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The Internet

Internet traffic monitoring

Submitted by Shalmendo
Shalmendo writes "A client has specific needs and it's been awhile since I last worked on an extensive networking project. Therefore, I need some advice from the slashdot community, and the variety of experts within it.

My client needs to monitor traffic on his LAN, particularly going out to the internet. This will include websites like facebook, myspace, and similar, including from mobile devices.

So far, based on the network education I have, I've concluded that it might be best to get a tap (And some kind of recording system with wireshark, probly a mini-barebone), or replace the existing Linksys router with a custom built mini barebone system with linux routing software and appropriate storage capacity etc to record traffic internally. (either way it looks like I will need to put together a mini barebone system for some purpose)

My client is trying to protect his family from scammers and other unsavory types, and isn't savvy in this matter, so i'm doing it for him.

What I need is a way to record the traffic at a singular point, like modem/router areas, or similar, and a way to scrape out facebook, myspace, and other messages. It also appears that the client's family is using iphones and some game called 'words' which has message capability. Is it possible to scrape messages out of that game's packets, or are they obfuscated? Can I write a script?

What software would you recommend? Linux routing OS? Can we sniff packets and drop them on the internal hard drive? or would a tap be better?

How do I analyze and sort the data afterwards? my client needs easily read evidence (Such as text or screenshots) he can use as proof in discussion with his family to try and intercede in any potentially harmful transactions.

In other words, how can I Achieve this goal? I have basic and medium training in computer networking, so I can make my own cables and such, but I've never worked on this exact kind of project before, and thought it might be better to query slashdot instead of do my own research from scratch.

After days of discussion with the client, it's not plausible to put monitoring software in the devices on the network (due to leagal issues and a few other factors), so I concluded a network tap or other device would be the best way to capture and study what's going on.

This needs to be clandestine.

Serious answers please! I'm not looking to start a debate, i just want some recommendations."
Security

White House Hires a New Cybersecurity Boss->

Submitted by
TheGift73
TheGift73 writes "Cybersecurity and the government have been a volitile combination lately, with proposed bills like SOPA, PIPA, and the still-up-in-the-air CISPA at the center of on-and-off internet outrage. So it's kind of a big deal when the White House replaces its chief of cybersecurity affairs.

Last week, longtime chief Howard Schmidt stepped down. He's replaced by Michael Daniel, who's been in the Office of Management and Budget's national security division for 17 years. What does that mean for the future of the cybersecurity issue? Probably that we can expect his knowledge of the intelligence community to play a part in not just tracking down hackers, but determining the lines that need to be crossed with future SOPA-like bills. So while this sounds like a relatively nondescript appointment, Daniel will almost definitely be a major player the next time someone comes for your internet."
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The Internet

Ultra-Orthodox Jews Rally for a More Kosher Internet 1

Submitted by
Hugh Pickens writes
Hugh Pickens writes writes "Michael Grynbaum writes that 40,000 ultra-Orthodox Jewish men filed through the gates of Citi Field to discuss the dangers of the Internet. For the attendees, many of whom said they came at the instructions of their rabbis, it was a chance to hear about a moral topic considered gravely important in the Hasidic community: the potential problems that can stem from access to pornography and other explicit content on the uncensored, often incendiary Web. Schlomo Cohen, 24, said he came to Citi Field because the rally was a good way to remind his community to keep temptation at bay. “Desires are out there,” said Cohen. “We have to learn how to control ourselves." The rally was sponsored by a rabbinical group, Ichud Hakehillos Letohar Hamachane, that is linked to a software company that sells Internet filtering software to Orthodox Jews. Those in attendance were handed fliers that advertised services like a “kosher GPS App” for iPhone and Android phones, which helps users locate synagogues and kosher restaurants. “No one here is a Luddite who denies the manifold benefits that technology has brought to mankind as a whole,” says Eytan Kobre, spokesman for the event. “But at a certain point, a mature, thinking individual stops and says, ‘I’ve got to make a cost-benefit analysis [of] what ways it is enriching my life, [and] in what ways it is undermining it.’”"
Government

Amazon Poised to Get Cut of CA Sales Taxes

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes "Eager to host Amazon warehouses and receive a cut of the tax on sales to customers statewide, the LA Times reports that two California cities are offering Amazon most of the tax money they stand to gain. After agreeing to collect California sales taxes beginning in the fall, Amazon is setting up two fulfillment centers in San Bernardino and Patterson, which will gain not only jobs but also a tax bonanza: Sales to Amazon customers throughout California will be deemed to take place there, so all the sales tax earmarked for local government operations will go to those two cities. The windfall is so lucrative that local officials are preparing to give Amazon the lion's share of their take as a reward for setting up shop there. 'The tax is supposed to be supporting government,' said Lenny Goldberg, executive director of the California Tax Reform Assn., of the proposed sales-tax rebate. 'Instead, it's going back into Amazon's pocket.' Sen. Mark DeSaulnier added: 'It seems like the private sector finds a way to pit one city against the other. You can't give away sales tax in this manner.'"

Asking /.: Temporary Backup Pouch?

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes "It looks simple. I've got a laptop and a USB HDD for backups. With rsync, I only move changes to the USB HDD for subsequent backups. I'd like to move these changes to a more portable USB stick when I'm away, then sync again to the USB HDD when I get home.

I figured with the normality of the pieces and the situation, there'd be an app for that, but no luck yet.

I'm guessing one could make a hardlink parallel-backup on the laptop at the same time as the USB HDD backup. Then use find to detect changes between it and the actual filesystem when it's time to backup to the USB stick. But there would need to be a way to preserve paths, and a way communicate deletions.

So how about it, /.? I'm joe-user with Ubuntu. I even use grsync for rsync. After several evenings of trying to figure this out, all I've got is a much better understanding of what hardlinks are and are not. What do the smart kids do? Three common pieces of hardware, and a simple-looking task."

Depressed People Surf the Web Differently

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes "Are you constantly hitting refresh on your favorite site or spend countless hours surfing the web? If you answered yes, you may be depressed.

Internet usage was shown to vary between people who showed signs of depression and people who had no signs of depression. People who had symptoms of depression were more likely to use file-sharing programs and seemingly cruise around sites at random."
Open Source

Linux 3.4 Released->

Submitted by
jrepin
jrepin writes "This release includes several Btrfs updates: metadata blocks bigger than 4KB, much better metadata performance, better error handling and better recovery tools. There are other features: a new X32 ABI which allows to run in 64 bit mode with 32 bit pointers; several updates to the GPU drivers: early modesetting of Nvidia Geforce 600 'Kepler', support of AMD RadeonHD 7xxx and AMD Trinity APU series, and support of Intel Medfield graphics; support of x86 cpu driver autoprobing, a device-mapper target that stores cryptographic hashes of blocks to check for intrusions, another target to use external read-only devices as origin source of a thin provisioned LVM volume, several perf improvements such as GTK2 report GUI and a new 'Yama' security module."
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Privacy

Facial Recognition Cameras Set to San Francisco Clubs and Bars->

Submitted by
Fluffeh
Fluffeh writes "On Friday a company called SceneTap, flipped the on switch enabling cameras installed in around 20 bars to monitor how full the venues are, the mix of men and women, their ages — and to make all this information available live via a iPhone or Android app. Privacy advocates are unimpressed though, as the only hint that people are being monitored is via tiny stickers on the windows. Beyond academics and policy experts, some San Francisco bar owners that originally partnered with SceneTap have said that they’re pulling out and will be taking down the company’s cameras. An increasing number of bars still listed on the SceneTap’s site are now saying that they’re not working with the Chicago startup, including Mr. Smith’s, Southpaw, John Colins, and Bar None."
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Science

"Colloidal Display" Turns Soap Film Into a Projector Screen

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes "3 graduate students from University of Tokyo, Carnegie Mellon University, University of Tsukuba have developed Colloidal Display — a clear projector screen that can control its transparency. Normally soap film will pass through the light but Colloidal Display does not. It mixes colloid into the solution and uses an ultra sonic speakers to vibrate the surface of the soap film to achieve this. They have created several prototype such as 3D planer screen to show how this technology can be useful."

Between grand theft and a legal fee, there only stands a law degree.