How gov'ts spy on protestors—how to avoid it

How governments spy on protestors—and how to avoid it | Incognito Mode | WIRED
(WIRED) Law enforcement’s ability to track and profile peaceful political protestors has become increasingly multifaceted and technology-driven.

In this edition of Incognito Mode, WIRED Senior Editor, Security, and Investigations Andrew Couts and WIRED Senior Writer Lily Hay Newman discuss the technologies used by cops that put citizens' privacy at risk — and how to avoid them.

Shop for products discussed in this episode of Incognito Mode: Silent Pocket SLNT Faraday Waterproof Backpack: amzn.to/42ePTOg. Visit the SLNT Storefront: amzn.to/4cA8ub9. When buying something through these affiliate links, WIRED earns a commission.

• 0:00 How governments spy on protestors
• 0:44 Facial recognition
• 5:31 Social media
• 9:24 IMSI catchers
• 12:17 Geofencing
• 13:40 Data brokers
• 16:46 License plate readers
• 18:33 Drones
• 20:10 Emerging tech
• 23:23 How to protect yourself

Director: Efrat Kashai. Director of Photography: Brad Wickham. Editor: Matthew Colby. Host: Andrew Couts. Guest: Lily Newman. Line Producer: Joseph Buscemi. Associate Producer: Paul Gulyas. Production Manager: Peter Brunette. Production Coordinator: Rhyan Lark. Camera Operator: Mar Alfonso. Gaffer: Niklas Moller. Sound Mixer: Sean Paulsen. Production Assistant: Malaia Simms. Post Production Supervisor: Christian Olguin. Supervising Editor: Erica DeLeo. Assistant Editor: Justin Symonds. Subscribe to WIRED on YouTube ► wrd.cm/15fP7B7. Listen to the Get WIRED podcast ► link.chtbl.com/wired-ytc-desc. Want more WIRED? Get the magazine ► https://subscribe.wired.com/subscribe... Follow WIRED: Instagram ► wired. Twitter ► wired. Facebook ► wired. Tik Tok ► wired. Get more incredible stories on science and tech with daily newsletter: wrd.cm/DailyYT. Also, check out the free WIRED channel on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV.

ABOUT: WIRED is where tomorrow is realized. Through thought-provoking stories and videos, WIRED explores the future of business, innovation, and culture.

• WIRED, April 16, 2025; Pfc. Sandoval, CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Telephone Invention Day (comedy)

Now, if I could just figure out a way to get rid of this darn wire (actor portraying Bell in 1926)

"Who this?" Alexander Graham Bell places a phonecall from NY to Chicago in 1892.

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Telephone 1.0 by Gary Gulman. Sept. 29, 2016: What is a traditional phone to a modern mobile cellphone? The Orchard Enterprises Telephone 1.0 (Live). It's About Time ℗ 2015 Virtual Comedy Network, LLC Released on: 2016-09-30.

This day in history

My cellphone has an app to make voice calls

(UPI) Today is March 7th. On this date in history: In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell was granted a patent for the telephone.

[Bell may not have invented all of the components of the phone or even be the one who came up with the idea, but he is the one who gets all the credit for being the first to get a patent for a two-way transmitter-receiver that now rules our lives due to corporations like Apple and its line of iPhones. Who invented the radio? An Italian man named Gugli' Marconi. got the patent, so we say it was him. Who invented flying? Not the Wright brothers, but they get the glory. How about natural selection and the theory of evolution? If anyone answers Charles Darwin, meet Alfred Russel Wallace.]

When was the first WIRELESS phone invented?

• 
  It was invented in 1909 by American inventor William Dubilier (and, no, it was not a BlackBerry nor a walkie-talkie like in WW I).
• It was a new radio-powered device: #343 - Technical world magazine v.17 (1912) | HathiTrust Digital Library
• William Dubilier unveils an astonishing new "wireless telephone" to fairgoers at Seattle's Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition on June 21, 1909 (HistoryLink.org)

Wireless phone made in 1909 by William Dubilier

In 1918, Finland signed a peace treaty with Germany shortly after declaring independence from Russia.

Mistakes were made, Hitler might now admit.

In 1936, Adolf Hitler ordered Nazi troops into the Rhineland, violating the Treaty of Versailles.

In 1945, the U.S. 1st Army crossed the Rhine at Remagen, Germany after capturing the strategically important Ludendorff Bridge (also known as the Bridge at Remagen). World War II in Europe ended two months later.

In 1965, hundreds of civil rights marchers trying to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, USA, were turned back by state troopers and sheriff's deputies, who beat and injured dozens of people in what became known as "Bloody Sunday." Marchers voluntarily turned around on a ceremonial walk to the bridge two days later and, on March 21, with protection by federal and National Guard troops, the main Selma-to-Montgomery march began.

In 1984, the U.S. Senate confirmed William Wilson as the first U.S. ambassador to the Vatican [the independent country called the Holy See in the center of Rome, the capital of the current Holy Roman Empire known as the worldwide Catholic Church] in 117 years.

In 1985, "We Are the World," a song composed by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and recorded by a series of high-profile music stars was released worldwide with the goal of generating funds for the USA for Africa charity. The song and related promotions eventually raised about $63 million.

In 2010, Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win an Academy Award for best director for her film The Hurt Locker.

CIA: We owe much to Hitler and the Nazis

In 2013, the U.S. Senate confirmed John Brennan as director of the CIA.

In 2017, Malta's iconic Azure Window, a natural rock arch, collapsed into the sea during a storm.

In 2024, Sweden became the 32nd member of NATO after a longstanding policy of nonalignment.

Howard Stern HATES Trump and MAGA?

Top U.S. & World Headlines — September 19, 2024

(Democracy Now!) Sept. 19, 2024: Latest Shows. Support this work: democracynow.org/donate... Democracy Now! is an independent global news hour that airs on over 1,500 TV and radio stations Monday through Friday. Watch our livestream at democracynow.org Mondays to Fridays 8-9 a.m. ET.

Trump: Howard Stern went ‘woke’

(Fox News) Sept. 18, 2024: Former President Trump discusses how several celebrities and talk show hosts, like Howard Stern, have gone ‘anti-Trump’ on ‘Gutfeld!’

Lefties losing it: Howard Stern’s ‘bile-filled rant’ about DJ Trump

(Sky News Australia) Sept. 19, 2024: Sky News reactionary host Rita Panahi reacts to famous (albeit vile and vulgar) radio personality Howard Stern's "bile-filled rant" about former president Donald John Trump.

• Pfc. Sandoval, Seth Auberon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Trans teen trend: case of social contagion?

Paradox of Möbius strip and Klein bottle

The mind-bending paradox of the Möbius strip and Klein bottle: a 4-D visualization

(Andrew's Campfire) Mar 31, 2022. Embark on a mind-bending journey into the 4th dimension as we explore the fascinating geometry of the Möbius Strip and Klein Bottle. This video will take you on a whirlwind tour of time travel, geometric paradoxes, 4D visualization, and sentient primitive shapes.

CHAPTERS

• 00:00 - A Hexagon Illusion
• 00:50 - Defining Topology, Manifold, and Boundary
• 02:11 - An Open 2D Manifold
• 02:25 - Riddle #1
• 02:39 - Cutting the Möbius Strip in half
• 04:05 - Cutting the Möbius Strip in thirds
• 04:34 - The Grandfather Paradox
• 05:13 - Grandfather Paradox Solution Using a Möbius Strip
• 07:11 - A Closed 2D Manifold
• 07:46 - Riddle #2
• 08:03 - Visualizing the Klein Bottle with an Ant
• 09:12 - Spatial and Temporal Dimensions
• 09:24 - Linus - Two Dimensions for a 1D Creature
• 10:26 - Squirrel - Three Dimensions for a 2D Creature
• 11:19 - Time Evolution of a Flattened Möbius Strip's Boundary
• 12:07 - Klein Bottle
• 12:36 - Visualizing the Klein Bottle in 4 Dimensions

Patreon: patreon.com/andrewscampfire

A 6th cent. Irish monk sailed to America?

Michele Gama Sosa, Grunge, 3/19/23; Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Statue of St. Brendan, County Kerry, Ireland (© Phil Darby/Shutterstock)

 

The Legend of the 6th century Irish monk who may have sailed to America

In elementary school, we were indoctrinated to accept that Columbus "sailed the ocean blue" and discovered America in 1492.

Later, we were told that in fact, Norse explorers made it to America at least four centuries earlier.

But what we don't learn is the possibility that someone else had already beaten the Norse to America 500 years before that. [For one thing, Buddhist missionaries from Afghanistan led by Chinese monk, as published by the American Edward Payson Vining in 1895].

Irish legend tells that a monk named St. Brendan the Navigator sailed west to a legendary land sometime in the 6th century AD, enduring sea monsters [dragons?], volcanoes, and storms to reach a mythical, promised land that has been identified as everything from Africa to a metaphor for paradise.

Among the more likely candidates, however, is North America. St. Brendan's journey has evoked fascination among enthusiasts and scholars, who debate its veracity to this day.

With a combination of archeological evidence, modern-day attempts to recreate the voyage, and Norse stories about the Americas, the evidence suggests that St. Brendan's voyage should not be discarded.

Here is the legend of the Irishman who may have "discovered" America.

Mobhi: The man who became Brendan

Portrait of Saint Brendan Portrait of Saint Brendan © Ary Renan/Wikimedia Commons

.

The man who would become St. Brendan was born in 484 AD in a place called Fenit in County Kerry, Ireland. Now, according to St. Brendan's Catholic Church, his name was originally Mobhi.

 

But the Ireland of the 5th century AD was rapidly changing. More

• The holy maple bar: Notes on an afterlife, without religion

Spacey, cops and Batmobile, Alex Jones (TJDS)

Voice artist Mike MacRae (mikemacrae.com), Jimmy Dore, Kurt Metzger, Jackson Hinkle (The Jimmy Dore Show); Pfc. Sandoval, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Do you need a "Buddha Box"? (South Park)

South Park (southpark.cc.com); Crystal Q., CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

This is what we really want, what we have all been waiting for...more quality time with what we love most. But because the world won't give it to us, Buddha Box had to be invented. Now we can all turn away from everything but the most important thing -- our...

Lit Crawl L.A. 2014 (Wednesday, Oct. 22)

Editors, Wisdom Quarterly; L.A. and nationwide (LitCrawl.org/LA/Facebook/Twitter

What is life without creativity, art, and lit, the very core of our humanity? (litcrawl.org)

Taking literature to the streets!

Buddhist literature is the coolest lit to sit with.

"Lit Crawl" was created by San Francisco’s Litquake Literary Festival in 2004. The idea is simple: Let’s transform a "bar crawl" into a fast-paced mob scene of literary mayhem.

Can we take over a neighborhood and make pop-up events in every conceivable venue?

The liberal arts are the core of our culture.

How about bars, cafes, bookstores, the Metro, galleries, clothing boutiques, furniture showrooms, parking lots, laundromats, bowling alleys, hair salons, barbershops, plant-growing supply shops, parks, police stations, secret weapon manufacturing sites, Halloween pumpkin patches, churches, and more?

Can we invite dozens of writers to read from their works then watch hundreds of literati tromp the route and get drunk on words -- all for FREE? H*lls yeah, we can! More

Mayhem starts at 7:00 pm in 30+ locations with after party at 10:00 pm (litcrawl.org/la)

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The international Lit Crawl phenomenon returns to L.A. this fall with the 2nd Annual Lit Crawl L.A.: NoHo on Wednesday, October 22, 2014 from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. in the North Hollywood (NoHo) Arts District! Restaurants, bars, galleries, theaters, and other hip NoHo venues are hosting an evening of innovative presentations with the best of L.A.’s literary scene sampling from throughout L.A. County. The second annual Lit Crawl is greater L.A.’s grassroots literary event and promises to be another magical, vibrant night for all! More

Check Out Poetry Podcasts at Blog Talk Radio with PSH Live

• PoetrySuperhighway.com (LIVE)
• Check out last year’s crawlers in action
  
  • Read about Lit Crawl in the NY Times
• Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center: A place dedicated to the possibilities of language
• Poets & Writers (pw.org)
• "There are, like, times when it sucks being white"
• SCHEDULE: LitCrawl.org/schedule
• Monsters invade two of Cali's biggest book events
• LaBloga: Conrad Romo on the 2nd annual LC 
• A Night with a NoHo Beat (Europawynd)

"Men's Stories"[?]/Hero's Journey (Nat'l Organization for Women/Jill Soloway/Transparent)

(FD) Lit Crawl 2014 says, "Just say no to Amazon, Jill Soloway!"

(Oct. 19, 2014) Katie Crouch speaking truth to power-publishing in the 21st century... Attention, Jill Soloway, author of Transparent, Just say NO to predatory capitalism! Save our bookstores and you'll save our country!

Las Lunas Locas womyn return to NoHo for Lit Crawl LA (avenue50studio.org)

L.A. (NoHo), Miami, Brooklyn, Manhattan, London, San Francisco, Seattle, Austin

When is social media too much? (cartoon)

Seth Auberon, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly; Tom Tomorrow (thismodernworld.com)

If teens have been peddled to and become addicted and obsessed with social media, what are they really after? It used to be "being part of the group." Now it's all about money and FAME.

Stimulating the brain's reward centers with addictive devices (thismodernworld.com)

In a day and age obsessed with social media and spying technology, it's hard to picture life without them.

Is that good or bad or neither? According to Andrew Keen, author of the book Digital Vertigo: How Today's Online Social Revolution Is Dividing, Diminishing, and Disorienting Us, the Internet, and particularly social media, is changing society in a way that is worrisome. (Christians agree).
 

Keen has long been known for the position he has taken on the addictive Internet, claiming that it is having an adverse effect on society and people personally. After voicing this position in his book The Cult of Amateur, he has been given nicknames like the "Net's supreme cyber-grump" and the "Antichrist of the Silicon Valley."

Speaking to WebProNews he explains that, while he supports the Internet and social media, he is concerned that the public nature of the social age is resulting in "losing something essential about what it means to be human." 

(The National, Feb. 2014) How are teens being affected by social media? Research suggests the impact is emotional - bullying, obsession with money and fame (defined as likes), and sexting.

"One of the problems, I think, with social media is that it isn't very social. It's really just an aggregation of individuals," he says. As he explains, many of our actions on social networks aren't pro-social. The movements that have developed are not coherent, viable movements. For example, Occupy or the movements in the Middle East, are atomized and radically individualized not "social" movements. Most social networks, instead, represent "just an aggregation" of people.

To avoid a potential harmful impact, Keen says the Internet needs to become more civilized and habitable. He also suggests that government regulation regarding privacy protections against spying could help prevent the concerns from getting worse.

• The problem is not loving Facebook; it's hating it but still using it: Top 10 Reasons to Quit Facebook (Diggnation Daily)

New Studies Confirm Cell Phone Hazards

Mark Huffman (ConsumerAffairs.com, May 23, 2011)


"Stunning proof" ignored in USA, scientists say

Since the days when cell phones were the size of bricks, there has been debate over the safety of these devices, which use radio waves to transmit voice and data.

A number of studies, stretching back more than a decade, have suggested extended cell phone exposure increases the risk of tumors and can harm human reproduction. The industry staunchly defends the safety of mobile phones, saying the studies' conclusions are unfounded.

"Stunning proof"

Now a group of international researchers meeting in Istanbul, Turkey, has released what they call “stunning proof” that confirms findings from the Council of Europe:

• pulsed digital signals from cell phones disrupt DNA,
• impair brain function, and
• lower sperm count.

A meeting convened by Environmental Health Trust, with the Turkish cancer society, and Gazi University, revealed the new research that the scientists say shows damage to DNA, brain, and sperm.

Nesrin Seyhan -- an advisor to the World Health Organization (WHO) and NATO and head of the Biophysics Department and Bioelectromagnetics Laboratory at Gazi University in Ankara --presented findings that he says confirm the warning that just four hours of exposure to cell phone radiation disrupts the ability of human brain cells to repair damaged genes.

“We are deeply concerned about what this could mean for public health,” Seyhan said.

Prof. Wilhelm Mosgoeller from the Medical University of Vienna, who has led European research teams, said he found that the cell waves induce DNA breaks. Despite industry claims to the contrary, he says DNA breaks are real.

Insect studies

A research team at the University of Athens said insect studies have demonstrated that acute exposure to GSM (Global System for Mobile) signals brings about DNA fragmentation in insects’ ovarian cells, and consequently a large reduction in the reproductive capacity of the insects.

Further studies, they said, demonstrated that long exposures induced cell death to the insects in the study.

Other researchers said throughout a gestation period, exposure to radiation for just six minutes a day affects the bone formation of fetuses. The researchers also worry about the effect of cell phone use on children.

At higher frequencies, children absorb more energy from external radio frequency radiation than adults, because their tissue normally contains a larger number of ions and so has a higher conductivity.

The researchers strongly suggest limiting cell phone and cordless phone use by young children and teenagers to the lowest possible level and urgently ban telecom companies from marketing to them.

The researchers call their findings “thought-provoking” and say they have never been investigated in North America.

“The evidence justifies precautionary measures to reduce the risks for everyone of us,” Wosgoeller said.

The meeting was sponsored by Environmental Health Trust, The International Commission on Electromagnetic Safety, Gazi University and Athens University. Source

• US cancer research institute warns higher cell phone risks
• Cell phone cancer: What's in store in 10 years?
• Cell phones can cause brain cancer Part 1
• Cell phone does cause cancer

Mobile Phone Magic

Four things you didn't know your phone could do

Public Service Annoucement by dotconnectoruk.blogspot.com

(artsandopinions.com)

There are a few things a cell phone can do in an emergency. Mostly it just causes brain cancer (tumors corresponding to use showing up years later), weakens one's protective aura, distracts, and consumes one, as well as dooming migratory birds. But a mobile can actually be a survival tool on top of being a cute fashion accessory. Here are four unknown things plus an ATM tip:

1. Hidden Battery Power
Imagine your battery gets very low from over use. There's an an emergency. To reactivate, press the keys *3370# and your phone will restart using reserve power. It will show a 50% battery increase. This reserve will get charged when the phone is recharged.

2. Worldwide Emergency Number
The emergency number worldwide for mobile phones is 112. If you find yourself out of your coverage area network and there is an emergency, dial 112. The phone will search any existing network and establish the emergency number. Interestingly, this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked.

3. Locked your keys in the car?

Does your car have remote keyless entry? Your phone might come in handy if you do. If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their mobile phone. Then hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock.

4. Disable a Stolen Phone
To check your mobile phone's serial number, key in the following digits on your phone: * # 0 6 #

A 15 digit code will show on the screen. This number is unique to your phone. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. If your phone gets stolen, call your service provider; give them this code. They will then be able to block your phone so that even if the thief changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You may not get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can neither use nor sell it. If everybody did this, there would be no point in people stealing mobile phones.

ATM-PIN Number Reversal
If you should ever be forced by a robber to withdraw money from an ATM machine, you can notify the police by entering your PIN # in reverse. For example, if your pin number is 1234, then you would put in 4321. The ATM system recognizes that your PIN number is backwards from the ATM card you placed in the machine. The machine will still give you the money you requested, but unknown to the robber, the police will be immediately dispatched to the location.

This information was recently broadcast on CTV by Crime Stoppers. However, it is seldom used because people just don't know about it. Pass it along.