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FBI Tag

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 31, 2016 39 Comments
The Hillary Clinton email scandal has been kicking around since March 2015. There has been a drip, drip, drip of inconsistencies in her story and justifications for creating a shadow electronic government controlled by Hillary and her operatives.  The slow flow of identification of classified information on emails, including those sent by her, now has become a flood. The FBI probe, so frequently dismissed by Hillary as a non-event and nothing to worry about, now has become worrisome. The FBI appears to be rolling up her underlings, including her key technical consultant who was hired by the State Department as a political appointee. And interviews are underway or soon to be underway with key Hillary associates. Now David Shuster, formerly of MSNBC now with al-Jazeera America (please hold off on the "what's the difference" jokes), reports that Hillary will be interviewed.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on March 29, 2016 21 Comments
Despite her nonchalance about the issue, Hillary Clinton's email problems are not going away.  The FBI investigation has entered a new phase as the FBI is set to interview Hillary's longtime and closest aides. The Los Angeles Times reports:
Federal prosecutors investigating the possible mishandling of classified materials on Hillary Clinton’s private email server have begun the process of setting up formal interviews with some of her longtime and closest aides, according to two people familiar with the probe, an indication that the inquiry is moving into its final phases. Those interviews and the final review of the case, however, could still take many weeks, all but guaranteeing that the investigation will continue to dog Clinton’s presidential campaign through most, if not all, of the remaining presidential primaries.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on March 28, 2016 22 Comments
Would ya look at that... The federal government didn't need to start a privacy flame war with one of the countries largest electronic purveyors after all. Monday, the LA Times reported the FBI was able to unlock one of the San Bernardino terrorist's iPhones without the assistance of Apple:

Posted by Taryn O'Neill on March 23, 2016 7 Comments
One day before Apple and prosecutors were to face off in court, the U.S. Department of Justice was granted a request to cancel the Tuesday hearing on whether Apple should assist the FBI in bypassing security measures in a locked iPhone used by a San Bernardino terrorist. The hearing was cancelled by U.S. Magistrate Sheri Pym at 5:30P.M. PDT. The earlier order requiring Apple to assist the FBI unlocking the phone was temporarily stayed. "On Sunday, March 20, 2016, an outside party demonstrated to the FBI a possible method for unlocking Farook's iPhone. Testing is required to determine whether it is a viable method that will not compromise data on Farook's iPhone," the government said in court documents filed on Monday. "If the method is viable, it should eliminate the need for the assistance from Apple Inc. ("Apple") set forth in the All Writs Act Order in this case." Department of Justice spokeswoman Melanie Newman said in a statement that the government only learned of the unlocking method this past weekend. "We must first test this method to ensure it doesn't destroy the data on the phone, but we remain cautiously optimistic. That is why we have asked the court to give us some time to explore this option," Newman said to Ars Tecnica.

Posted by Taryn O'Neill on March 17, 2016 5 Comments
As the nation watches the FBI battle Apple in court over access to a terrorist's iPhone data, a conflict with another Silicon Valley company simmers in the background. With over a billion users, the Facebook-owned mobile app WhatsApp is one of the world's largest messaging platforms and allows users to send text messages and make phone calls abroad without incurring the international data costs associated with traditional text and voice communication. Similar to Telegram, an app popular with ISIS members, WhatsApp offers end-to-end encrypted text messaging and, according to the Guardian, will in the coming weeks be offering encrypted voice and group messaging. At present, the Department of Justice is unsure how to proceed in an ongoing criminal investigation in which a federal judge ordered a wiretap, as the department is unable to get access the ordered data thanks to WhatsApp's encryption.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on March 12, 2016 10 Comments
Don't let it be said the Obama Administration doesn't have it's priorities in perfect progressive order. And near the top of those priorities are dealing with "climate change deniers". Today's forecast related to climate change insanity is grim, indeed. United State Attorney General Loretta Lynch admitted her team has discussed the option of filing a lawsuit against the fossil fuel industry based on its handling of climate data gathered in the course of pursing business.
Attorney General Loretta Lynch has considered taking legal action against climate change deniers. The United States' top lawyer told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that the Justice Department has 'discussed' the possibility of a civil lawsuit against the fossil fuel industry. She said any information her office has received has been sent to the FBI in a bid to build a case.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 02, 2016 35 Comments
Several months ago, Kemberlee predicted that getting a State Department employee to flip on Hillary would be the key, Some dare say conspiracy: Who will be first Hillary aide to flip on her?:
Was there a concerted conspiracy to violate the law, particularly given the fact that Clinton opted for a private email on her person server? Who else knew classified information was being transmitted outside of government purview? If any of these suspicions are confirmed throughout the course of the FBI’s investigation, will aides then be offered legal concessions if they cooperate? What were once Clinton’s closest lackeys may end up being her downfall.
And that appears to be the FBI's plan, flip a key witness, then roll up others all around Hillary.

Posted by Taryn O'Neill on February 13, 2016 1 Comment
With the help of the FBI, British officials arrested a teen they believe may have ties to a series of hacks targeting the U.S. government and high level officials. The 16-year-old was arrested in the East Midlands, U.K. on Tuesday and has been accused of having connections to the hack of CIA Director John Brennan's personal email account in October of last year, along others. The identity of the teen has not been released, but he is believed to be the pro-Palestinian hacker known as "Cracka" that leads the hacktivist group known as "Crackas With Attitude," or CWA. Officials with the Thames Valley Police confirmed the arrest in a statement, saying that it had arrested a 16-year-old boy, "on suspicion of conspiracy to commit unauthorised access to computer material contrary to Section 1 Computer Misuse Act 1990, conspiracy to commit Unauthorised access with intent to commit further offenses contrary to Section 2 Computer Misuse Act 1990 and conspiracy to commit unauthorised acts with intent to impair, or with recklessness as to impairing operation of a computer contrary to Section 3 Computer Misuse Act 1990."

Posted by Taryn O'Neill on February 11, 2016 5 Comments
Following through with a threat made last week, a group of hackers released data pertaining to as many as 30,000 federal government employees. Hacktivists released the information in two waves via a Twitter account by the name of @DotGovs. The data was posted on the encrypted text-sharing website by the name of Cryptobank. The first release took place place shortly after kickoff on Super Bowl Sunday and included a directory of names, job titles, and contact information of 9,355 employees of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The second directory was released on Monday and contained subsequent information on 20,000 employees of the FBI. This is more than half of FBI personnel. Tweets from the @DotGovs account were filled with pro-Palestine hashtags. One tweet was directed towards the U. S., saying the hackers would not stop "until they cut relations with Israel."

Posted by Taryn O'Neill on January 15, 2016 13 Comments

Newly released documents from the State Department indicate the U.S. government has known Islamic extremists have been entering the country via Mexico for over ten years.

A cable obtained by Judicial Watch under the Freedom of Information Act shows the U.S. was aware of "smuggling networks" that specialize in the trafficking of suspected Islamic extremists across the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2004 cable was sent to the State Department by the American Consulate in Juarez, Mexico.

Perhaps most alarming was the mention of a top Al Qaeda operative by the name of Adnan el Shukrijumah. The 2004 cable indicates the U.S. had human intelligence leading to his "exact whereabouts." It was not until December of 2014 - ten years later - that Shukrijumah would be captured (or in this case, killed in Pakistan).

Shukrijumah was described by FBI as "a grave danger to the security of the United States" and had ties to 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed as well as to the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Among other acts domestic and abroad, he helped plot the 2009 foiled bombing of Oprah Winfrey's Chicago studios and the Sears Tower.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on December 17, 2015 32 Comments
Back in September, the New York Times reported that Turing Pharmaceuticals had increased the price of its HIV drug, Daraprim, from $13.70 per tablet to $750 per tablet.

Specialists in infectious disease are protesting a gigantic overnight increase in the price of a 62-year-old drug that is the standard of care for treating a life-threatening parasitic infection.

The drug, called Daraprim, was acquired in August by Turing Pharmaceuticals, a start-up run by a former hedge fund manager. Turing immediately raised the price to $750 a tablet from $13.50, bringing the annual cost of treatment for some patients to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Watch Turing CEO Martin Shkreli explain his decision on Fox Business:

Posted by Leslie Eastman on December 11, 2015 17 Comments
Investigations are continuing into the terrorist couple, Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik, who slaughtered 14 coworkers in San Bernardino and were planning to kill the first responders with explosives. The quest for clues has led to a local lake:
An FBI dive team was searching a lake Thursday near the site of the terror attack in San Bernardino, California -- a spot where investigators were told the shooters spent time. The FBI would not discuss the specific evidence it was looking for, but said it was seeking "anything that had to do" with the shooting. ....The investigators appear to be combing an area near the shallow edge of the lake. The water is so murky that divers cannot actually see through it, so they are largely feeling their way through.
Investigators had received indications through leads that at some point they came to this park, though they didn't specify exactly what was being sought when reporters queried them.

Posted by Mike LaChance on December 10, 2015 16 Comments
FBI director James Comey testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday and the big take away seems to be that the San Bernardino terrorists were "radicalized" two years ago. Rebecca Kaplan reports at CBS News:
FBI director: San Bernardino suspects radicalized at least 2 years ago FBI Director James Comey said Wednesday that the husband and wife team suspected of shooting 14 people in the San Bernardino, California last week were radicalized at least two years before the attack. Comey testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee that Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik began talking about jihad and martyrdom as early as the end of 2013, before they became engaged, married and began living together in the U.S.

Posted by Amy Miller on October 16, 2015 14 Comments
Last Sunday, we published a post showing how Obama pretty much signaled Justice to lay off their investigation into Hillary Clinton's email server. During an interview with 60 Minutes correspondent Steve Kroft, the President threw the FBI's investigation under the bus when he said---without going into much detail---that he didn't think the server posed a national security threat.
Steve Kroft: Do you think it posed a national security problem?

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on March 06, 2015 25 Comments
Allegations of corruption and scandal have swarmed New Jersey Democratic Senator Menendez for years now. That the DOJ waited until now to pull the trigger is... interesting. Just four days ago, Menendez said he would only support a deal that dismantled Iran's nuclear program, according to NJ.com:
"As long as I have an ounce of fight left in me, as long as I have a vote and a say and a chance to protect the interests of Israel, the region, and the national security interests of the United States, Iran will never have a pathway to a weapon," Menendez said, bringing the delegates to their feet. "It will never threaten Israel or its neighbors, and it will never be in a position to start a nuclear arms race in the Middle East. Not on my watch." Menendez is one of the most outspoken supporters of increasing sanctions if negotiations fail to curb Iran's nuclear program. The issue has pitted Menendez against President Obama, a fellow Democrat. Obama has threatened to veto new sanctions legislation, saying it would give Iran an excuse to walk away from negotiations and leave a military solution as the only option to prevent the Islamic Republic from developing nuclear weapons.
Though it's worth noting Menendez has a history of supporting AIPAC, and fighting with the White House over the proper course of action on Iran. Today, CNN reports the DOJ is moving forward with criminal corruption charges:
Washington (CNN)The Justice Department is preparing to bring criminal corruption charges against New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez, a Democrat, alleging he used his Senate office to push the business interests of a Democratic donor and friend in exchange for gifts. People briefed on the case say Attorney General Eric Holder has signed off on prosecutors' request to proceed with charges, CNN has learned exclusively. An announcement could come within weeks. Prosecutors are under pressure in part because of the statute of limitation on some of the allegations. The case could pose a high-profile test of the Justice Department's ability to prosecute sitting lawmakers, having already spawned a legal battle over whether key evidence the government has gathered is protected by the Constitution's Speech and Debate clause.

Posted by Mike LaChance on January 31, 2015 2 Comments
The FBI is seeking a man named Ghazi Nasr Al-Din for connections to Hezbollah. He is believed to be in Florida. WPTV News reported:
The FBI is looking for Ghazi Nasr Al-Din and believes he could be in South Florida He was just added to the bureau’s seeking information terrorism list. The agency wants to talk to him about his fundraising efforts with Hezbollah contributors. Hezbollah is an Islamic militant group. Nasr Al-Din is 5 foot 7 and weighs about 175 pounds. He has black hair, brown eyes and an olive complexion. He speaks Arabic and Spanish and he has dual citizenship in Lebanon and Venezuela. If you see him call the FBI’s toll-free tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800- 225-5324) or contact your local FBI office.
Here is the the official FBI wanted poster:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 19, 2014 38 Comments
The speculation as to who the U.S. government thinks was behind the Sony hack is over. The FBI now is on record blaming North Korea, via NBC News:
The FBI on Friday formally accused the North Korean government of the hacking attack that led Sony Pictures Entertainment to cancel the movie "The Interview." "North Korea's actions were intended to inflict significant harm on a U.S. business and suppress the right of American citizens to express themselves," the bureau said in a statement. "Such acts of intimidation fall outside the bounds of acceptable state behavior." U.S. officials had said privately earlier in the week that they suspected North Korea. The FBI said Friday that technical analysis had revealed links to North Korean-developed malware, including lines of code and encryption algorithms.
Here is the full FBI statement (via Business Insider):

Posted by Andrew Branca on October 14, 2014 10 Comments
Dr, John Lott, head of the Crime Prevention Research Center and long-time researcher and perhaps best known as the author of the seminal book, "More Guns, Less Crime," has taken a thorough look at a recent report issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and found it severely flawed. The report, entitled "A Study of Active Shooter Incidents in the United States Between 2000 and 2013," (embedded below) purports to show that "mass shootings" have increased at an average annual rate of more than 16% over that time period.  Dr. Lott demonstrates that this figure can be arrived at only by a tortuous methodology that is rational only if showing a large increase in "mass shooting" is the actual goal of the report. Sadly, we live in an era in which "science" is routinely twisted in pursuit of purely political ends, and it appears that the authors of this FBI report may have adopted this approach. Dr. Lott's formal analysis is embedded under the FBI report below, I do encourage you to read the whole thing.  As a taste, the paper's abstract reads:
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