Please Wish Lauren Canario Merry Christmas In Prison

Just got this from Kat Kanning. Frankly I'm disgusted that the media in this country, given how much attention they give to political prisoners in other countries, refuses to cover this story. 80 Days in prison without a trial for trespassing? Thats positively tyrannical. Please read on, and do what you can to wish Lauren a merry christmas. She hasn't seen her kids in 80 days, and won't be allowed to by the state of Connecticut:

Lauren Canario's now been imprisoned 80 days without a
trial for her fight against eminent domain.

She's been nominated for Freedom Fighter of the Year
on Strike the Root. If you have a moment, please
vote:

http://www.strike-the-root.com/

Also, she'll be spending her birthday (Dec. 23rd) and
Christmas imprisoned. It takes over a week, I
believe, to get anything to her her there. If you
could spare a moment, please send her a card or
letter. I don't believe she can receive any packages.

Lauren Canario #334457
c/o York Correctional Institution
201 West Main Street Niantic, CT 06357

Thank you!
Kat

Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who
can labor in freedom. – Albert Einstein

SENATE BANKING COMMITTEE MEMBER DENOUNCES "NO-SWIPE" CREDIT CARDS

"It's About Time," says CASPIAN

A member of the Senate Banking Committee denounced RFID "no-swipe" credit cards at a press conference Sunday. Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) said contracts for the cards should have warning boxes disclosing "the known weaknesses of the technology." He cautioned cardholders about their vulnerability to identity thieves, commenting you "may as well put your credit card information on a big sign on your back."

"No-swipe" or "contactless" credit cards contain RFID microchips that communicate account information silently and invisibly by radio waves. These microchips have earned the nickname "spychips" because the information they contain can be read without an individual's knowledge or consent.

While Congress is just waking up to the dangers of RFID technology, privacy and civil liberties organizations like CASPIAN have been sounding the alarm for years.

"It's about time for Capitol Hill to recognize the dangers of RFID," said Dr. Katherine Albrecht, Founder and Director of CASPIAN (Consumers Against Supermarket Privacy Invasion and Numbering). "Perhaps now members of Congress will listen to their concerned constituents and work to pass long overdue bipartisan RFID labeling legislation not only for credit cards, but other RFID-tagged consumer items as well."

CASPIAN has had model RFID labeling legislation titled "The RFID Right to Know Act" available to federal lawmakers since 2003. (See http://www.spychips.com/right-to-know-bill.html.) The legislation was authored by by Zoe Davidson of the Boston University Legislative Clinic.

While CASPIAN supports free-market solutions to the problems of privacy invading technologies like RFID, the group believes consumer notice is needed so the free market can work. "We believe consumers have a right to know when the things they wear, carry, and interact with contain tracking devices--especially credit cards that can leak sensitive personal information," said Liz McIntyre, CASPIAN's communications director.

McIntyre, a former federal bank examiner, points out that vulnerable "swipeless" technology not only poses a threat to customers, but to the financial institutions that have issued millions of contactless cards, as well. "What excuse will organizations like JP Morgan Chase make if consumers are harmed financially because they have their personal information siphoned by identity thieves? These issuers stand to lose millions of dollars."

CASPIAN demanded a recall of RFID credit cards last month after the New York Times reported that a team of security researchers found that virtually every one of the "no-swipe" credit cards it tested was vulnerable to unauthorized charges and put consumers at risk for identity theft.

Researchers demonstrated how thieves could secretly skim information from the cards, right through purses, backpacks and wallets. The data included the cardholder's name, credit card number, expiration date and other information that could be used to make unauthorized purchases.

Albrecht and McIntyre are offering to testify before Congress about their extensive research into the dangers posed by RFID, and to send a copy of their book "Spychips: How Major Corporations and Government Plan to Track Your Every Purchase and Watch Your Every Move" (Penguin/Plume Oct. 2006) to interested federal legislators.

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TO LEARN MORE

"NY Sen. Schumer warns of no-swipe cards"
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8LPMID00.htm

New York Times article about "no-swipe" credit card vulnerabilities:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/23/business/23card.html

Security researcher's detailed report on "no-swipe" cards:
http://www.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/business/20061023_CARD/fc2007-submission.pdf