The lighter ban’s lifting bodes well for the TSA become slightly less a giant waste of time and money, but did you know that they’ve actually wanted this for some time? In June, 2006, TSA chief Kip Hawley was quoted in USA Today as saying:
security
Cigarette Lighters To Be Allowed Back On Airplanes
By 7.20.07
Starting August 4, cigarette lighters will no longer be banned from airplanes, according to the New York Times. The two-year-old rule was enacted after authorities claimed that the shoe bomber (Richard Reid) might have managed to detonate his feet if he’d had a lighter instead of matches.
What's A Greater Threat To Airline Security?
By 7.17.07
Gawker Media polls require Javascript; if you’re viewing this in an RSS reader, click through to view in your Javascript-enabled web browser.
How Geek Squad Steals Your Porn
By 7.16.07
According to an insider, these are the tools, programs, and procedures one Geek Squad precinct exploits to snarf up your porn:
By 7.12.07
../../../..//2007/07/12/hot-on-the-heels-of/
Hot on the heels of Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott’s announcement that consumers are now much safer from identity thieves because they’re making stores shred instead of merely toss customer records out the back door, id theft watchdog Steven Peisner showed how easy it was to steal Abott’s identity through the incredibly insecure Secretary of State Online Access database. [Freakonomics]
Geek Squad Hatched Plot To Harvest Porn From Pornstar Jasmine Grey's HardDrive, Days Before She Died In Car Crash
By 7.12.07
“I worked for Best Buy 285 several years ago (2003-2005) and was both a Blackshirt and an Agent once the Geek Squad rolled out.
Botnet Targeting Consumers Interested In iPhone
By 7.11.07
Ars Technica is reporting that a there is a 7,500-computer (and growing) botnet infected by a Trojan called Aifone.A.
TSA Confiscates Water Bottle, Misses Bomb
By 7.10.07
Federal inspectors were able to slip a bomb past the TSA 5 out of 7 times, according to the Albany Times-Union. Here’s the best part: One fake bomb was placed in the same bag as a bottle of water. The TSA opened the bag, took the water, and let the bomb on the plane.
2 More Former Employees Claim Geek Squad Stole Customers' Personal Files
By 7.9.07
Two more individuals identifying themselves as former Geek Squad employees have stepped forward with allegations about the repair company’s employees unauthorized copying of personal information from customer’s hard-drives.
How Frank Abagnale Protects Himself From Identity Theft
By 7.4.07
How does Frank Abagnale, an infamous check forger in the 60’s, protect himself from modern day identity thieves?
30 Free Personal Finance eBooks
By 7.2.07
Mint has collated a collection of thirty free ebooks on personal finance and money management. The selection ranges from budgets to credit cards to mortgages to general consumer advice. Each one is in PDF format. Check ’em out and get your learn on.
Cross Out The Tips Box On Receipts And Write In The Total
By 6.23.07
We do this little thing to protect against someone charging us more when we swipe with a card for a good or service that doesn’t require tip.
Reader Shares Personal Financial Security Protocols
By 6.21.07
Reader and security researcher Nweaver has blogged the precautions he takes when managing his personal finances, from credit cards to debit to his brokerage account.
6 Things To Do When You Lose Your Wallet
By 6.18.07
Losing your wallet is a major drag but if you act quickly you can mitigate the fallout, writes The Mint Blog:
Safari for Windows Has Glitch That Could Let Attackers Take Complete Control Of The PC
By 6.13.07
According to an article in PC World, only hours after Apple debuted its Safari browser for Windows, 8 bugs were found, one of which is so severe that it could let an attacker “grab complete control of the PC.”
Yes Virginia, Scammers DO Use Stolen Credit Cards To Buy Airline Tickets
By 6.13.07
After reading some of the incredulous comments on, “Easy For Fraudsters To Fool E-Ticket Kiosks,” we asked a former identity thief whether fraudsters ever actually used stolen credit cards for airline tickets. He said:
Yes, people card them and yes its very risky, however people have made a killing doing it.
— BEN POPKEN
Easy For Fraudsters To Fool E-Ticket Kiosks
By 6.11.07
It would be really easy for someone to steal your credit card and buy and use an airplane ticket.
TSA To Airlines: "You Owe Us $219 Million"
By 6.8.07
US Airways Group Inc. owes $18 million; UAL Corp.’s United Airlines, $15 million; Continental Airlines Inc., $14 million; Northwest Airlines Corp., $9 million; and America West Airlines, now part of US Airways, $8 million, Howe said
According to the airlines, the fees are excessive, and they’re refusing to pay them. It all stems from the way the TSA’s budget is calculated. The airlines are responsible for paying fees based on an estimation of what it cost them to run airport security in 2000. The airlines say it cost $300 million, the TSA says the real figure is closer to $750 million.
“We believe it is time for the TSA to develop a new system for allocating these costs, which is based on 2000 market shares,” said Tim Wagner, a spokesman for American, the world’s largest airline. “This old system is fundamentally unfair.”
