Home Security Cameras 101: the Audio Element

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Before buying a security camera, ask yourself:

  • Where do you intend on placing it?
  • How well-hidden can/will the unit be?
  • Are you familiar with laws pertaining to surveillance of people without them knowing about it and the associated audio recordings?

1HLaws vary from state to state regarding the audio element of a surveillance camera, but on a federal level, the requirement is that one person needs to be aware of the recording. Because this is the federal law, it makes it impossible for any state to allow zero people being aware.

So what this means is that it’s illegal to audio record in the form of eavesdropping. It’s prohibited, for instance, to secretly record a conversation that two people, without them being aware, are having across the room at a coffee house that you’re all in.

However, that federal rule that one person needs to be aware of the recording means that you can get away with “secretly” recording those two people—as long as you’re part of their conversation, sitting right with them. So if those two people learn you recorded them, they can gripe all they want, but you’re protected by federal law since you sat and talked with them.

The law for audio recording isn’t the same as for visual, in which the latter is allowable for publically seen environments. This is where “Dual Consent” comes into play for ANY audio recording. Some states require both parties need to consent to audio recording in order for the recording to commence.

These rules apply to phone conversations as well as cameras, which is why you often get an alert that your customer service call “may be recorded for training purposes.”

Loopholes

  • If one of those two people is informed you’re recording them, then all is well, though once at least one of them knows this, it’s sure to influence the conversation (unless it’s dual consent state).
  • What seems to be a contradiction of that aforementioned federal rule is that you CAN secretly record those two people—provided that you don’t intend to use the recording for any illegal purposes (unless it’s dual consent state).
  • So it looks as though you can secretly record a conversation between your wife and the man she’s cheating on you with, then present it to her later as evidence you caught her. Nothing illegal about that (unless it’s dual consent state).
  • But if you covertly record your boss conversing with his secret mistress, then threaten you’ll give the recording to his wife unless he gives you a $1,000 bonus, then that’s illegal.
  • This is NOT legal advice. Consult your attorney and local laws.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.

Government risks Consumers’ Identities

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Guess who may be compromising the security of your Social Security Number.

1PThe Social Security Administration!

Yep, that’s right. Did you know that 66 percent of the mail the SSA sends out contains someone’s Social Security number? This is what the inspector general of the SSA, Kimberly Byrd, says, and I believe it.

How many pieces of mail is this? Over 230,000,000. This situation is problematic.

  • The SSA claims it will cost over $19 million to reduce these mailings.
  • It also won’t happen anytime soon.
  • The SSA can’t even give a time estimation for when these mailings will be cut back, and Byrd says that security should trump convenience.
  • It is not known what percentage of the mail-outs reach their intended addresses, and this includes the not-so-uncommon problem of mail carriers delivering to the wrong address. Imagine that the wrong recipient is also an identity thief, and sees that Social Security number upon opening someone else’s mail…
  • Another reason many mail-outs may end up in the wrong hands is that the addresses are no longer accurate for the recipient.
  • And then of course there is mail theft. Or someone can easily change your mailing address. It’s maddening actually.
  • Though some mailings do require the SSN, others don’t, and many other entities, such as private businesses, have found a way around this sticky problem, though this doesn’t mean they’ve eliminated 100 percent of it.
  • Another plan to help reduce the number of SSNs flying around out there is the use of the Beneficiary Notice Control Number—used on a case-by-case basis, says the Social Security Administration.

Nevertheless, it’s maddening that the Administration has failed to yield a deadline range for these changes. Let’s face it, the SSN is responsible for the judicious handling of our Social Security numbers, and 230 million mailings—without verification that the addresses match the recipients—is hardly judicious.

Think of how often, over the past five years, you’ve accidentally received someone else’s mail. This is common and a gateway for crooks to steal somebody’s identity.

The Fix

  • The SSA should make deletion of SSNs from their correspondence a top priority—and once they do that, things will start falling more together.
  • Revisit the estimated cost it would take to implement the reduction of mail containing SSNs.
  • YOU need to getting a locking mailbox.
  • YOU need to get a credit freeze and invest in identity theft prevention. These two solutions make your SSN relatively less attractive to a thief.

Robert Siciliano is an identity theft expert to TheBestCompanys.com discussing  identity theft prevention.

How the FBI hacks You

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In a recent Wired.com expose’, they expose how the FBI has been secretly hacking civilian computers for about 20 years, but thanks to Rule 41, their ability to hack has been expanded.

11DNevertheless, effective record keeping for these hacking incidents doesn’t exist. For instance, search warrants that permit hacking are issued using elusive language, and this makes it difficult to keep track of when the feds hack.

Also, it’s not required for the FBI to submit any reports to Congress that track the FBI’s court-sanctioned hacking incidents—which the FBI would rather term “remote access searches.”

So how do we know this then? Because every so often, bits of information are revealed in news stories and court cases.

Carnivore

  • Carnivore, a traffic sniffer, is the FBI’s first known remote access tool that Internet Service Providers allowed to get installed on network backbones in 1998.
  • This plan got out in 2000 when EarthLink wouldn’t let the FBI install Carnivore on its network.
  • A court case followed, and the name “Carnivore” certainly didn’t help the feds’ case.
  • Come 2005, Carnivore was replaced with commercial filters.

The FBI had an issue with encrypted data that it was taking. Thanks to the advent of keyloggers, this problem was solved, as the keylogger records keystrokes, capturing them before the encryption software does its job.

The Scarfo Case

  • In 1999 a government keystroke logger targeted Nicodemo Salvatore Scarfo, Jr., a mob boss who used encryption.
  • The remotely installed keylogger had not yet been developed at this time, so the FBI had to break into Scarfo’s office to install the keylogger on his computer, then break in again to retrieve it.
  • Scarfo argued that the FBI should have had a wiretap order, not just a search warrant, to do this.
  • The government, though, replied that the keylogger technology was classified.

Magic Lantern

  • The Scarfo case inspired the FBI to design custom hacking tools: enter Magic Lantern, a remotely installable keylogger that arrived in 2001.
  • This keylogger also could track browsing history, passwords and usernames.
  • It’s not known when the first time was that Magic Lantern was used.

Robert Siciliano is an identity theft expert to BestIDTheftCompanys.com discussing identity theft prevention.

Home Security Cameras 101: Filming

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Before buying a security camera, ask yourself:

  • Where do you want to place it?
  • How well-hidden can it be or does it need to be?
  • Are you familiar with laws pertaining to filming people with or without their knowledge?

5HWhere is setting up the camera illegal? Bathrooms, locker rooms, dressing rooms and residences other than yours (unless you have that other individual’s permission to set it up for their use).

Assume this list is not complete; the bottom line is that video surveillance is prohibited where anyone could be naked or even partially nude. There may be some gray areas, however. In that case, consult with an attorney.

A gray area would be some kind of private room where a person might be undressing, such as a dressing room for a theatre production, a cabana at a country club or beach, or a mock dressing room for a model posing for an oil painting class.

What if you want to set up a camera in the locker room, dressing room or bathroom of a business you own—not to be nosy, but to catch any thieves or other criminal behavior?

Sorry, it’s against the law. The propensity to be partially naked wins out over the possibility of someone stuffing unpaid-for items in their pants or sexually assaulting someone in a bathroom stall.

But this doesn’t mean you can’t place cameras outside the targeted room, to capture entrances and exits on a timeline. Set the camera up so that it can’t capture activity inside the room when the door opens.

Home Cameras

  • The general rule is that if a scene is viewable to the public, your camera can be stationed to record it, such as the parking lot smack in front of your front door or the neighbor’s outdoor deck across the parking lot (where it’s not expected anyone will undress).
  • Though it’s legal to point a camera at the neighbors, it can incite them and cause you grief, including legal action against you (people can sue for anything and everything; doesn’t mean they’ll win, but the anticipated defense legal fees and the whole headache of being taken to court often convince the defendant to retract the behavior that triggered the lawsuit).
  • This is NOT legal advice. Consult your attorney and local laws.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.

Business Credit Scores 101

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Are you a small business? Do you know your business’s credit score? The range is zero to 100 for most credit reporting agencies, with at least 75 being desirable if you want to be approved for financing and trade credit (business loan or line of credit), says a report at NAV.com and from Gerri Detweiler’s new book, Finance Your Own Business.

1SWhat determines credit score of a business?

  • Size of business
  • Payment history
  • Outstanding debts
  • Credit history length
  • Credit utilization ratio
  • Industry risk
  • Public records (which the credit agencies are always inspecting)

The credit score of your business may be different among the different credit reporting bureaus. The nav.com article summarizes the three most common bureaus below.

Dun & Bradstreet PAYDEX (zero to 100)

  • Based on the total number of payment experiences in D & B’s file, this is a dollar weighted indicator of the company’s payment performance.
  • Vendors and suppliers favor the PAYDEX.

Intelliscore PlusSM from Experian (zero to 100)

  • This credit risk score is statistically based and predicts the likelihood of payment delinquency in the subsequent 12 months.
  • This score incorporates multiple factors and is quite reliable.

FICO® LiquidCredit® Small Business Scoring Service℠ (zero to 300)

  • The SBSS rates applicants by their odds of making payment deadlines.
  • The SBSS score is used for credit line and loan applications (up to 350K from the Small Business Administration).
  • 140 is the minimum score to pass the Small Business Administration’s pre-screen process.

Using Business Credit Scores

  • Lenders want to know how well your company pays debts. They won’t want to lend to you if your credit score is low.
  • When is the last time that you reviewed your business’s financial information? This should be done on a recurring basis.
  • Credit scores fluctuate and are not immune to calculation error. Contact the credit agency if you spot an error or it seems that your score is lower than it should be.

Improving the Credit Score

  • Companies can raise their score by avoiding late payments, among other actions. Improving the score won’t happen overnight.
  • Credit utilization should be about 25 percent.
  • Open several credit accounts.

Robert Siciliano is an identity theft expert to BestIDTheftCompanys.com discussing identity theft prevention.

Child Predator screws up, gets caught

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If you’re a pedophile, you’d be wise not to keep any prescription containers in view of a webcam with your lewd pictures. The information on such a bottle is what helped pedophile Stephen Keating get 110 years in the slammer says a CNN article.

4HBut the amazing thing is that the bottle’s information was extracted from a blurry image of it in the background of a photo that Keating took of one of his 14 victims. Keating posted the photo online, not knowing that that innocent little prescription bottle would get him busted—along with the fingerprints that were extracted off his fingertips in the image.

Yes, this is what forensic technology can do these days. Only some of Keating’s name and the prescription number were actually extracted in a photo lab, but it was enough information for a record check of the pharmacy to get his identity.

Homeland Security Investigations Cyber Crimes Center specialist Jim Cole says his Project Vic teamviews half a million images every week.

How does this technology work?

  • Computers use “Photo DNA” to speedily sift through hundreds of thousands of photos, separating previously viewed ones from new ones, sparing investigators from having to see disturbing images more than necessary.
  • Cole says that what used to take nine months now takes one month.

In another case, an image showed a woman and her victim holding a fish at a campground. The woman was a known offender…but where was this campsite?

The image of the fish was sent to Cornell University for analysis of the species: Where is this type of fish found? The location was narrowed down to a specific area, and then the campsite image, minus the offender and young victim, was sent to all the campsite advertisers in that region. They got a hit, and in fact, the reception room of the particular camping grounds had the same image on display. All of this took place in under four hours.

Even a blurry company logo on a shirt can be extracted for identification. In one case this led to a plumbing business where an offender used to work.

Where are all these images coming from in the first place? The public sends in tips to the CyberTipline. So do giants like Google, Facebook and Twitter. Cole says that the advanced technology has caused an exponential increase in the number of victims rescued.

Good guys 1. Predators ZERO.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.

10 Ways to Protect your WordPress Site or Blog from Hackers

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As much as you try, the unfortunate truth is that hackers are going to try to attack and access your WordPress website or blog, whether you like it or not. So, it is up to you to make sure you make the hacker’s job as difficult as possible. Here are some tips:

2D1. Use Plugins

One way to make your WordPress account less appealing is to use security plugins. These vary in quality, and you might have to purchase some of them, too. Just make sure to do some research before buying them, and when you do, only buy them from a trusted marketplace.

2. Choose The Right Password and Change It Often

When choosing a password for your account, make sure it is a minimum of 8 characters, and mix it up with letters, numbers and symbols. Also, change your password about every 2-3 months.

3. Change Your Defaults

Also, make sure that you are changing the default user name and password that you are given for your hosting account.  It’s best, in fact, if you change any detail that you are allowed to change, simply because you don’t know how secure your host’s servers are.

4. Only Choose Secure Hosting

Use a secure hosting company. There is no better tip that that. If you go with a free package, understand that you will get what you pay for.

5. Install All Updates

Make sure you are installing any updates you get from WordPress. These often contain security features that can protect you.

6. Consider Hosting Company Security Options

Many good hosting companies offer security options for their clients, and if you have this option, do it. Just make sure you are not paying too much, and look for coupon codes, if possible.

7. Delete What You Are Not Using

If you have unused images or plugins in your account, delete them. They waste space and can put your account and site at risk.

8. Back Up Everything

Your best defense against hackers is to make sure you are backing up everything, and do it often. You can delete any old backups to save space.

9. Watch the Powers You Give Contributors

Though it might be tempting to allow authorized contributors to post their own blogs and articles, don’t give them any more access to your site than you have to.

10. Use Security suites

There are a variety of web based security products designed to proactively monitor your site and block unauthorized activity. Check out Cloudbric. This all-inclusive solution helps in preventing web attacks including DDoS, while also providing SSL and CDN services.

Robert Siciliano is a personal privacy, security and identity theft expert to Cloudbric discussing identity theft prevention. Disclosures.