Enemy of the [Surveillance] State

Latest Episodes:

15 - Private Web Searches: Keep It Secret, Keep It Safe Jul 28, 2020

Show notes

This week, my special guests are Alexandra Kubiak, Senior Product Manager and Kelly Finnerty, Director of Brand and Content from StartPage — a private search engine that returns Google results without giving Google access to your personal data. I also want to send a special shout-out to Henry, the intern at StartPage who reached out to me to set this up. We discuss the importance of privacy where web searches is concerned, how StartPage keeps your data (including searches) private, and more. After listening, give StartPage a try and see what you think. Let everyone know your thoughts in the comments.

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Please consider supporting Enemy of the [Surveillance] State via Patreon https://www.patreon.com/EnemyOfSurveillance or by picking up some cool merch at https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Anything you do helps support the show and keeps it growing!
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The soundclip at the beginning of the episode is from a promo video by StartPage:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvGJD2YeS3U&list=PLSdvyNeewenBGsrfV8cp6fuUcnV9I_jpu&index=2

Here is another great video they made:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzWrSVDhgpk&list=PLSdvyNeewenBGsrfV8cp6fuUcnV9I_jpu&index=3

Check out StartPage at www.startpage.com

This is the list of articles referenced in this episode:

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-alphabet-google-privacy-lawsuit/google-faces-lawsuit-over-tracking-in-apps-even-when-users-opted-out-idUSKCN24F2N4

https://bgr.com/2020/07/16/google-tracking-users-app-activity-privacy-lawsuit-firebase/

https://www.zdnet.com/article/siri-alexa-and-google-assistant-in-the-spotlight-as-europe-launches-internet-of-things-investigation/

https://www.msn.com/en-us/finance/companies/congress-wants-apple-google-to-warn-users-about-apps-posing-e2-80-98national-security-risks-e2-80-99/ar-BB16LZ5C

https://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-google-and-microsoft-sued-over-photos-in-facial-recognition-database/

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/smallbusiness/this-google-privacy-email-is-a-perfect-example-of-why-people-dont-trust-tech-companies/ar-BB16OefV

https://www.cnet.com/news/google-reportedly-pledges-not-to-use-fitbit-health-data-amid-eu-antitrust-concerns/

https://blog.privacytools.io/delisting-startpage/

https://blog.privacytools.io/relisting-startpage/

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Enemy of the [Surveillance] State is written, produced, and narrated by C. Mitchell Shaw and is listener supported — No ads. No compromise. If you are interested in supporting the show, check out https://www.patreon.com/EnemyOfSurveillance — Anything you can do is greatly appreciated. It takes time, talent, and money to make a show like this. Please consider supporting.

Get your Enemy of the [Surveillance] State merch. Wear it with pride and show the world how you feel about mass digital surveillance. https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Theme song was created by Michael Leavitt. If you want (or need) a piece of music that you own (for a wedding or anything else), check him out. He is the best and is a great guy, too.

Follow Enemy of the [Surveillance] State:

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14 - NSA, Encryption, and Congress Jun 22, 2020

Show notes

This week, I discuss the corruption of the NSA and how its very existence threatens not only the privacy of Americans, but the very security it promises us in exchange for that privacy, and the ongoing war on encryption. I also introduce a new segment that I’ll call “messing with the scammers,” this week on EOTSS!

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Please consider supporting Enemy of the [Surveillance] State via Patreon https://www.patreon.com/EnemyOfSurveillance or by picking up some cool merch at https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Anything you do helps support the show and keeps it growing!
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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-juniper-encryption-congress-idUSKBN23H2C9

https://www.zdnet.com/article/congress-asks-juniper-for-the-results-of-its-2015-nsa-backdoor-investigation/

https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6940833-Wyden-House-Juniper-Letter.html

https://www.thenewamerican.com/tech/computers/item/23554-government-s-all-access-pass-to-your-privacy

https://www.thenewamerican.com/tech/computers/item/22701-mcafee-gov-t-backdoors-are-destroying-national-security

https://www.businessinsider.com/john-mcafee-nsa-back-door-gives-every-us-secret-to-enemies-2016-2?r=US&IR=T

https://www.dailydot.com/debug/earn-it-act-petition/

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Get your Enemy of the [Surveillance] State merch. Wear it with pride and show the world how you feel about mass digital surveillance. https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Theme song was created by Michael Leavitt. If you want (or need) a piece of music you own (for a wedding or anything else), check him out. He is the best and is a great guy, too.

Follow Enemy of the [Surveillance] State:

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13 - COVID, Riots, and Kidney Stones, Oh My! Jun 19, 2020

Show notes

I owe all of you an explanation for why it has been a month since the last episode. Please give this a listen.

12 - Discussing Surveillance With Our Children Jun 03, 2020

Show notes

This week, I have the Murray Hunter, author of Boris the BabyBot, a children's book about Big Data and Surveillance Capitalism. We discuss Surveillance Capitalism, and how to teach children about the Surveillance State in age appropriate ways. The sound quality is not up to this show's normal standards, but rather than delay the show any further, I decided to post it. Perfect is the enemy of good.
Here are the links to the things we discussed in this episode:

The Electronic Frontier Foundations "Surveillance Self Defense" page - chock full of great info.

https://ssd.eff.org/

Murray's website where you can find Boris the BabyBot - it makes a great gift idea for the young children in your life.

https://boristhebabybot.org/

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Please consider supporting Enemy of the [Surveillance] State via Patreon https://www.patreon.com/EnemyOfSurveillance or by picking up some cool merch at https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Anything you do helps support the show.

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Get your Enemy of the [Surveillance] State merch. Wear it with pride and show the world how you feel about mass digital surveillance. https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Theme song was created by Michael Leavitt. If you want (or need) a piece of music you own (for a wedding or anything else), check him out. He is the best and is a great guy, too.

Follow Enemy of the [Surveillance] State:

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube

11 – COVID-19 Surveillance Redux with Michael Maharrey May 18, 2020

Show notes

This week, I have the Tenth Amendment Center’s Michael Maharrey back for another guest spot. We discuss COVID-19 and how it is being used to expand the Surveillance State. Spoiler, it’s bad, but there something you can do about it! Michael is an amazing guest and I got lots of comments from listeners when he was last on. This is another great episode; You don't want to miss it!

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Please consider supporting Enemy of the [Surveillance] State via Patreon https://www.patreon.com/EnemyOfSurveillance or by picking up some cool merch at https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Anything you do helps support the show.

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The sound clip at the beginning was from a France24 news broadcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xy4mSmFXVLM

Articles cited in this episode:

Michael’s blog post on the expansion of surveillance under the pretext of COVID-19:
https://tenthamendmentcenter.com/2020/05/13/coronavirus-is-just-the-latest-excuse-to-expand-the-surveillance-state/

An update on Michael’s lawsuit:

https://tenthamendmentcenter.com/2019/06/06/lawsuit-update-why-i-keep-fighting/

My previous episode on this topic:

https://enemyofsurveillance.podbean.com/e/06-%e2%80%94-coronavirus-and-the-expansion-of-the-surveillance-state/

Michael’s previous appearance on the show:

https://enemyofsurveillance.podbean.com/e/04-%e2%80%93-michael-maharrey-from-the-tenth-amendment-center-%e2%80%94-constitutional-issues-with-secret-surveillance-of-citizens/

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Get your Enemy of the [Surveillance] State merch. Wear it with pride and show the world how you feel about mass digital surveillance. https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Theme song was created by Michael Leavitt. If you want (or need) a piece of music you own (for a wedding or anything else), check him out. He is the best and is a great guy, too.

Follow Enemy of the [Surveillance] State:

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube

Bonus Episode 3 - Protecting Privacy With a VPN May 03, 2020

Show notes

This week, I discuss how to protect your data and your privacy by using a VPN. I address what a VPN is, how it works to protect privacy, the VPNs a recommend, and those you should avoid.

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Please consider supporting Enemy of the [Surveillance] State via Patreon https://www.patreon.com/EnemyOfSurveillance or by picking up some cool merch athttps://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Anything you do helps support the show.

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Links for info covered in this episode:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_private_network

https://protonvpn.com/secure-vpn

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Enemy of the [Surveillance] State is written, recorded, and produced by me, C. Mitchell Shaw.

Theme song was created by Michael Leavitt. If you want (or need) a piece of music you own (for a wedding or anything else), check him out.

Follow Enemy of the [Surveillance] State:

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YouTube

10 - Internet Porn is an Enemy of Privacy Apr 25, 2020

Show notes

This week, I discuss a sensitive topic — Internet porn and its effects on you, your privacy, society, the people involved in the industry, and more. Listener discretion is advised. Children should not listen to this episode.

If you really want to help the show, but cannot financially support right now, give the show a good review and rating on whatever platform you use to listen to podcasts. Also, please like, share, and make your friends and family aware of the show; Friends don't let friends get spied on. Spread the word so others can listen and learn to become Enemies of the [Surveillance] State!

Resources for this episode:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pFX2P7JLwA

https://fightthenewdrug.org/10-porn-stats-that-will-blow-your-mind/

https://www.webroot.com/us/en/resources/tips-articles/internet-pornography-by-the-numbers

https://www.ft.com/content/f7c54d1a-5cee-11e3-a558-00144feabdc0

https://www.factretriever.com/pornography-facts

https://pando.com/2013/08/05/infographic-what-countries-host-the-most-porn/

https://fightthenewdrug.org/how-your-porn-may-be-watching-you/

https://www.techworm.net/2016/10/porn-websites-tracking.html

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/could-your-online-porn-habits-be-publicly-released-10160214.html

https://www.salon.com/2013/12/12/whos_tracking_your_porn/

https://vulnerablelife.wordpress.com/2016/01/20/online-porn-could-be-the-next-big-privacy-scandal/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/zakdoffman/2019/07/19/microsoft-exposes-google-and-facebook-for-secretly-tracking-users-on-major-porn-sites/#5f0833742f7a

https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/real-life/news-life/porn-industry-reeling-after-five-deaths-in-only-three-months/news-story/e779587b387f0ad2b3ae71ec45f0c631

https://www.covenanteyes.com/pornstats/#stats_title

Enemy of the [Surveillance] State is written, produced, and recorded by C. Mitchell Shaw and is listener supported — No ads. No compromise. If you are interested in supporting the show, check out https://www.patreon.com/EnemyOfSurveillance — Anything you can do is greatly appreciated. It takes time, talent, and money to make a show like this. Please consider supporting.

Get your Enemy of the [Surveillance] State merch. Wear it with pride and show the world how you feel about mass digital surveillance.https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Theme song was created by Michael Leavitt. If you want (or need) a piece of music you own (for a wedding or anything else), check him out.

Follow Enemy of the [Surveillance] State:

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube

09 - Zoom is a Privacy Nightmare: Avoid it Like the Plague! Apr 15, 2020

Show notes

This week, I discuss video-conferencing apps and the risks associated with them. With more and more people working and schooling from home and depending on video-conferencing, protecting privacy should not take a back seat. I address reports that Zoom has compromised users, alternatives to Zoom, and more.

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Please consider supporting Enemy of the [Surveillance] State via Patreon https://www.patreon.com/EnemyOfSurveillance or by picking up some cool merch athttps://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Anything you do helps support the show.

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The sound clip at the beginning was from a YouTube video by College Humor https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djznlxQyIZk

[Warning: the language in the video is strong.]

Articles cited in this episode:

Forbes https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasbrewster/2020/04/03/warning-zoom-sends-encryption-keys-to-china-sometimes/#573b006d3fd9

ZDNET https://www.zdnet.com/article/zoom-concedes-custom-encryption-is-sub-standard-as-citizen-lab-pokes-holes-in-it/

The Intercept https://theintercept.com/2020/04/03/zooms-encryption-is-not-suited-for-secrets-and-has-surprising-links-to-china-researchers-discover/

Bleeping Computer https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/over-500-000-zoom-accounts-sold-on-hacker-forums-the-dark-web/

My recommendation (at least for now) as a replacement for Zoom: https://meet.jit.si

It is open-source, e2e encrypted, and simple to use. No one can steal your login, because you don’t need one. You just create a meeting and use it. There is no need to install anything, either. It runs in the browser. There is an iPhone app and an Android app, for convenience, too.

Get your Enemy of the [Surveillance] State merch. Wear it with pride and show the world how you feel about mass digital surveillance. https://teespring.com/shop/enemyofsurveillance

Theme song was created by Michael Leavitt. If you want (or need) a piece of music you own (for a wedding or anything else), check him out.

Follow Enemy of the [Surveillance] State:

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Twitter

YouTube

Bonus Episode 2 - Password Creation and Management Apr 12, 2020

Show notes

In this bonus episode, I discuss how to create, manage, and use strong passwords / passphrases to protect your privacy.

Passwords need to be long and random, but that makes them difficult to memorize. If you have as many passwords as I do, it would be impossible. That is why I recommend a good password generator / manager.

For more info on tools discussed in this episode:

https://bitwarden.com/

https://help.bitwarden.com/article/can-bitwarden-see-my-passwords/

https://howsecureismypassword.net/ (Remember, disconnect from the Internet before using and then close the page and wipe your history — including cookies — before reconnecting.)

https://www.eff.org/dice

Again, a BIG thanks to Jonathan for signing up as the first patron of the show!

Get your Enemy of the [Surveillance] State merch. Wear it with pride and show the world how you feel about mass digital surveillance.https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Theme song was created by Michael Leavitt. If you want (or need) a piece of music you own (for a wedding or anything else), check him out.

Follow Enemy of the [Surveillance] State:

Facebook

Twitter

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08 - Trevor Loudon – Communism and the History of the Deep State and Surveillance State Apr 07, 2020

Show notes

This week, my guest is Trevor Loudon — Writer, Speaker, and expert on communist infiltration and tactics. We discuss communism, the Cold War, communist infiltration of the U.S. government, the history of the Deep State and Surveillance State, and more.

Trevor's amazing wiki site can be found at www.keywiki.org

Trevor's newest book can be found at https://www.amazon.com/WHITE-HOUSE-REDS-Communists-Socialists/dp/B084WKWDBZ/

For more info on the programs and history we discussed:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_CHAOS

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_SHAMROCK

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECHELON

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_surveillance_disclosures_(2013%E2%80%93present)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Eyes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_assistance_to_Osama_bin_Laden

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Americans_in_the_Venona_papers

Get your Enemy of the [Surveillance] State merch. Wear it with pride and show the world how you feel about mass digital surveillance.https://teespring.com/stores/eotss-merch

Theme song was created by Michael Leavitt. If you want (or need) a piece of music you own (for a wedding or anything else), check him out.

Follow Enemy of the [Surveillance] State:

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube