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Moving from OpenDNS to Google DNS
It is best to use a DNS resolution service to avoid targeted attacks on your machine esp if you use the browser a lot. and it is quite fast!! Takes 2 minutes to set it up even for non geeks
I was getting slower browsing speeds on OpenDNS http://www.opendns.com/
so I switched to Google DNS (though I am not sure how people in Iran and China – who have a much greater need for DNS verification services will get secure resolution of DNS)
http://code.google.com/speed/public-dns/
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What is Google Public DNS?Google Public DNS is a free, global Domain Name System (DNS) resolution service, that you can use as an alternative to your current DNS provider. To try it out:
New! For IPv6 addresses, see our configuration instructions. If you decide to try Google Public DNS, your client programs will perform all DNS lookups using Google Public DNS. |
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Why does DNS matter?The DNS protocol is an important part of the web’s infrastructure, serving as the Internet’s phone book: every time you visit a website, your computer performs a DNS lookup. Complex pages often require multiple DNS lookups before they start loading, so your computer may be performing hundreds of lookups a day. |
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Why should you try Google Public DNS?By using Google Public DNS you can:
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Understanding Indian Govt attitude to Iran and Iraq wars
This is a collection of links for a geo-strategic analysis, and the economics of wars and allies. The author neither condones nor condemns current global dynamics in the balance of power.
nations don’t have friends or enemies…nations only have interests
In 2003
The war in Iraq had a unique Indian angle right at the beginning. Some members of the US administration felt they needed more troops in Iraq, and they started negotiating with India. Those negotiations broke down because the Indians wanted to fight under the UN flag and on MONEY!!
India wanted-
- More money per soldier deployed,
- more share in post War Oil Contracts,
- better diplomatic subtlety
NEW DELHI: There will be a lot a Iraq on the menu over the weekend before the Pentagon team arrives here on Monday to talk India into sending troops to the war-torn nation.
Jul 28, 2003, 01.28pm IST
NEW DELHI: Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Richard B Myers, who is arriving here on Monday evening on a two-day visit, will request India to reconsider its decision on sending troops to Iraq.
and
Jul 29, 2003, 07.00pm IST
NEW DELHI: Though Gen Myers flatly denied his visit had anything to do with persuading India to send troops to Iraq, it is evident that the US desperately wants Delhi to contribute a division-level force of over 15,000 combat soldiers.
Sep 10, 2003, 05.34pm IST
NEW DELHI: Even as the US-drafted resolution on Iraq is being heatedly debated in many countries, American Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Christina Rocca held a series of meetings with External Affairs Ministry officials on Wednesday.
Though it was officially called “a regional dialogue”, the US request to contribute a division-level force of over 15,000 combat soldiers to the “stabilisation force” in Iraq is learnt to have figured in the discussions.
The penny wise -pound foolish attitude of then Def Secretary Rumsfield led to break down in negotiations.
“Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” Sir Winston Churchill
In 2012
Indian govt again faces elections and we have 150 million Muslim voters just like other countries have influential lobbies.
and while Israelis are being targeted again in attacks in India-
India is still seeking money-
India has struck a defiant tone over new financial sanctions imposed by the United States and European Union to punish Iran for its nuclear programme, coming up with elaborate trade and barter arrangements to pay for oil supplies.
However, the president of the All India Rice Exporters’ Association, said Monday’s attack on the wife of an Israeli diplomat in the Indian capital will damage trade with Iran and may complicate efforts to resolve an impasse over Iranian defaults on payments for rice imports worth around $150 million.
India buys $ 5 billion worth of oil from Iran. Annually. Clearly it is a critical financial trading partner to Iran.
It has now gotten extra sops from Iran to continue trading-and is now waiting for a sweeter monetary offer from US and/or Israel to even consider thinking about going through the pain of unchanging the inertia of ties with Iran.
There are some aspects of political corruption as well, as Indian political establishment is notoriously prone to corruption by lobbyists (apparently there is a global war on lobbyists that needs to happen)
The team is expected to go to Tehran later this month to discuss steps to expand India’s trade with Iran, part of a larger strategy to pay for Iranian oil, said highly-placed sources.
Despite the US and European Union sanctions on Iran, India recently sealed a payment mechanism under which Indian companies will pay for 45 percent of their crude oil imports from Iran in rupees.
So diplomats with argue over money in Israel, Indian and US while terrorists will kill.
Against Stupidity- The Gods Themselves -Contend in Vain
Cyber Cold War
I try to write on cyber conflict without getting into the politics of why someone is hacking someone else. I always get beaten by someone in the comments thread when I write on politics.
But recent events have forced me to update my usual “how-to” cyber conflict to “why” cyber conflict. This is because of a terrorist attack in my hometown Delhi.
(updated-
Iran allegedly tried (as per Israel) to assassinate the wife of Israeli Defence Attache in Delhi using a magnetic bomb, India as she went to school to pick up her kids, somebody else put a grenade in Israeli embassy car in Georgia which was found in time.
Based on reports , initial work suggests the bomb was much more sophisticated than local terrorists, but the terrorists seemed to have some local recce work done.
India has 0 history of antisemitism but this is the second time Israelis have been targeted since 26/11 Mumbai attacks. India buys 12 % of oil annually from Iran (and refuses to join the oil embargo called by US and Europe)
Cyber Conflict is less painful than conflict, which is inevitable as long as mankind exists. Also the Western hemisphere needs a moon shot (cyber conflict could be the Sputnik like moment) and with declining and aging populations but better technology, Western Hemisphere govts need cyber conflict as they are running out of humans to fight their wars. Eastern govt. are even more obnoxious in using children for conflict propaganda, and corruption.
Last week CIA.gov website went down
This week Iranian govt is allegedly blocking https traffic on eve of Annual Revolution Day (what a coincidence!)
Some resources to help Internet users in Iran (or maybe this could be a dummy test for the big one – hacking the great firewall of China)
News from Hacker News-
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3575029
I’m writing this to report the serious troubles we have regarding accessing Internet in Iran at the moment. Since Thursday Iranian government has shutted down the https protocol which has caused almost all google services (gmail, and google.com itself) to become inaccessible. Almost all websites that reply on Google APIs (like wolfram alpha) won’t work. Accessing to any website that replies on https (just imaging how many websites use this protocol, from Arch Wiki to bank websites). Also accessing many proxies is also impossible. There are almost no official reports on this and with many websites and my email accounts restricted I can just confirm this based on my own and friends experience. I have just found one report here:
http://kabirnews.com/iran-shut-down-gmail-google-yahoo-and-sites-using-https-protocol/202/
The reason for this horrible shutdown is that the Iranian regime celebrates 1979 Islamic revolution tomorrow.
I just wanted to let you guys know about this. If you have any solution regarding bypassing this restriction please help!
The boys at Tor think they can help-
but its not so elegant, as I prefer creating a batch file rather than explain coding to newbies.
this is still getting to better and easier interfaces
https://www.torproject.org/projects/obfsproxy-instructions.html.en
Obfsproxy Instructions
Step 1: Install dependencies, obfsproxy, and Tor
You will need a C compiler (gcc), the autoconf and autotools build system, the git revision control system, pkg-config andlibtool, libevent-2 and its headers, and the development headers of OpenSSL.
On Debian testing or Ubuntu oneiric, you could do:
# apt-get install autoconf autotools-dev gcc git pkg-config libtool libevent-2.0-5 libevent-dev libevent-openssl-2.0-5 libssl-dev
If you’re on a more stable Linux, you can either try our experimental backport libevent2 debs or build libevent2 from source.
Clone obfsproxy from its git repository:
$ git clone https://git.torproject.org/obfsproxy.git
The above command should create and populate a directory named ‘obfsproxy’ in your current directory.
Compile obfsproxy:
$ cd obfsproxy
$ ./autogen.sh && ./configure && make
Optionally, as root install obfsproxy in your system:
# make install
If you prefer not to install obfsproxy as root, you can instead just modify the Transport lines in your torrc file (explained below) to point to your obfsproxy binary.
You will need Tor 0.2.3.11-alpha or later.
Step 2a: If you’re the client…
First, you need to learn the address of a bridge that supports obfsproxy. If you don’t know any, try asking a friend to set one up for you. Then the appropriate lines to your tor configuration file:
UseBridges 1
Bridge obfs2 128.31.0.34:1051
ClientTransportPlugin obfs2 exec /usr/local/bin/obfsproxy --managed
Don’t forget to replace 128.31.0.34:1051 with the IP address and port that the bridge’s obfsproxy is listening on.
Congratulations! Your traffic should now be obfuscated by obfsproxy. You are done! You can now start using Tor.
For old fashioned tunnel creation under Seas of English Channel-
http://dag.wieers.com/howto/ssh-http-tunneling/
- You can proxy to anywhere (see the Proxy directive in Apache) based on names
- You can proxy to any port you like (see the AllowCONNECT directive in Apache)
- It works even when there is a layer-7 protocol firewall
- If you enable proxytunnel ssl support, it is indistinguishable from real SSL traffic
- You can come up with nice hostnames like ‘downloads.yourdomain.com’ and ‘pictures.yourdomain.com’ and for normal users these will look like normal websites when visited.
- There are many possibilities for doing authentication further along the path
- You can do proxy-bouncing to the n-th degree to mask where you’re coming from or going to (however this requires more changes to proxytunnel, currently I only added support for one remote proxy)
- You do not have to dedicate an IP-address for sshd, you can still run an HTTPS site
Related-
http://opensourceandhackystuff.blogspot.in/2012/02/captive-portal-security-part-1.html
and some crypto for young people
http://users.telenet.be/d.rijmenants/en/onetimepad.htm
Me- What am I doing about it? I am just writing poems on hacking at http://poemsforkush.com
Ohri's Johari Window
Image via Wikipedia
A Johari window is a cognitive psychological tool created by Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham in 1955[1] in the United States, used to help people better understand their interpersonal communication and relationships. It is used primarily in self-help groups and corporate settings as a heuristic exercise.
When performing the exercise, subjects are given a list of 56 adjectives and picks five or six that they feel describe their own personality. Peers of the subject are then given the same list, and each picks five or six adjectives that describe the subject. These adjectives are then mapped onto a grid
A Johari window consists of the following 56 adjectives used as possible descriptions of the participant. In alphabetical order they are:
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Stuxnet DeMystified
Image via Wikipedia
A fascinating article in New York Times details the fascinating details of the Stuxnet virus, apparently the most successful cyber weapon in recent times.
Given that Industrial Controllers are a part of a everything from factories to missile launch configurations, I believe this is a fascinating area of study for the world’s research scientists including creating variants and defenses for this.
https://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/16/world/middleeast/16stuxnet.html
Also a 2008 presentation by Siemens that the NYT was kind enough to link to- (whither Wikileaks ??)
Related Articles
- New York Times Reports US and Israel Behind Stuxnet (tech.slashdot.org)
- Iran Shows the Downside of Using Proprietary Software (techrights.org)
- Report: U.S., Israel Tested Iranian Worm (foxnews.com)
- Report: Israel tested Iran-bound Stuxnet worm in Dimona nuclear plant – Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News (aboriginalpress.blogspot.com)
- Must read Stuxnet article (imperva.com)
- Stuxnet Could Cripple America: Report (newser.com)
- Israel tested worm linked to Iran atom woes – report – Reuters Africa (news.google.com)
- NYT: Israel’s Stuxnet test led to Iran nuke delay (msnbc.msn.com)
- Did Israel test Stuxnet in Dimona? (elderofziyon.blogspot.com)
- Evidence builds that Stuxnet worm was aimed at averting war over Iran’s nuclear weapons (venturebeat.com)
